Revival Conference 2007 - Gareth Evans - Part 2

Where would you declare that you're lost in wonder, love and praise? When was the last time? I'll tell you this, when you once experienced the presence of God, you hungered for more. Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones said these words, that revival is nothing more than a lot of God's people being filled with the Spirit at the same time. You see, you and I can come here to this conference on revival, and we can listen to the speakers, and we have many different emphases from this platform these two days. We've been forced to look at the situation of your nation and my nation, and we have visitors here from Australia, we have visitors here from South Africa, we have visitors here from Scandinavia and Europe, and every one of us can identify with the cry of the heart of American preachers, preaching of the state of this nation. And we long for God to move in revival upon our nations, amen? But brother and sister, if you have not got a longing in your heart for Him to move in revival here, it's never going to happen out there. He has to begin His work in the hearts of His own people, and God longs to make His presence known, longs to make His presence known. I love the story of Moses, and I'd like you to turn with me to Exodus, please, and I'm just going to walk through the journey of Moses as God reveals Himself to Moses. You know the story well, but I just want to draw a few things out from it. I do not intend to be long, I intend to be the dessert of this meal. You remember how Moses saw God at the burning bush? He's 80 years of age. He'd been looking after millions of four-legged, bleating sheep for 40 years, and God now at 80 years of age is about to call Him to lead millions of two-legged, bleating sheep. And God meets Him at a bush that appears to be burning, but it is not being consumed. I tell you what, if I experienced God like that in the burning bush, that would last me probably the rest of my life. It seems to last many other Christians all the rest of their lives. They can look back to something 40 years ago and say, Oh, God did this. I want to know what's God doing today. I've experienced the burning bush. I've been on the mountaintop with God and felt His glory numerous times where I've sensed His presence come in. I'm known as one who tells stories. I'm always telling stories about some of the things that God has done, that God has done in my life. I don't intend to tell the stories of the valleys I went through before I came to the mountaintop. But I've experienced God. I've heard His voice that cries out and says, Take your shoes off your feet for this is holy ground. I've sought to walk a holy life. I've never been the man I want to be. I seek to know the truth of that verse. It says, Continue to be filled with the Spirit. It's a passion. I want to walk in holiness. I'm constantly amazed, particularly these last few years. I've gloried for years in the grace of God. These last few years I've gloried in the mercy of God. But I realize how unworthy I am as I hunger for more of Him. I've been to the mountaintop. I've seen the burning bush. But like Moses, I want to cry out, Oh God, show me your glory. From the burning bush, Moses experienced God in many wonderful ways. He saw the sea parted. He saw the plagues that came down upon Egypt. He saw the deliverance of the firstborn. He comes out. He sees the miracle of the parting of the sea. The children of Israel are led out of bondage. He leads them on and then he has those intimate times with God on the mountaintop, face to face with his face. In chapter 32, I'll paraphrase much of this chapter. We'll come in mostly to chapter 33 of Exodus. Moses came down from the mountain and there was a noise of war in the camp. And Joshua said to him, It is not war, but it is the people worshiping an idol. And Moses came down and took a calf and he ground it down to powder. He cried out and said to them, Who is on the Lord's side? And the tribe of Levi said, They would be. And he gathered them together and he said to them, Destroy every man that would worship this calf. And Moses is angry. And verse 30, On the morning he came to the people and said, You have sinned a great sin. Now I will go up to the Lord. Perhaps I can make some atonement for this sin. I had no idea what Moses was intending to do as atonement. I find that when he came unto God, he said, O God, these people have sinned a great sin. They have made them gods of gold. And then he says, Yet now, if thou wilt not, if you will forgive their sin, and if not, blot me, I pray, out of your book. This is a man who is prepared to take upon himself responsibility for the sins of the people. You know, I really am fed up with the church pointing at the world. And when Christians come to me and say, Look what's wrong in the world. I say, Brother, this is about time we looked and saw what's wrong in the church. I find in the New Testament so many promises of God that the crown is given to him that overcometh. I want to live an overcoming life. I want to live a life where Satan has no power in me except the power that I give him. And I refuse to give him power. If you want to look at this whole situation, start looking at the church and say, Why isn't the church the church of God that it should be? And Moses identifies with the sin of the people. God, he says, if you will not forgive them, blot me, I pray, out of the book. And God says, Moses, whoever sinned against me, him I will blot out. But I want you to go and lead these people into the place I've spoken of. I want you to take them on into the promises that I have for them. Nevertheless, I shall visit them with judgment. My angel shall go before you. In chapter 23, God had made the same promise. My angels shall go before you, for my spirit is in him. That sounded a wonderful promise. The angel of God is going to go before us, brothers. Isn't that a wonderful promise? Who wants to go forward with the angel of God? I don't. Moses cries out to God and says, Oh God, unless you go with us, I'm not going. I'm not going. Have we become so used to the angel-liness? Have we become so used to good men-liness? Have we become so used to good programs-liness, that we fail to keep sight of the pillar of fire that leads, and the cloud that leads, and God who longs to go in front of his people? We followed men, we followed programs. Oh, they're good. And we've seen some measure of success. We've seen our churches grow, our numbers grow, because we've got men with good business ability leading, men with good organizational skills leading, so much so that we don't need God to lead us anymore. You all know the story, I'm sure, of a Chinese man who came to North America, went back home to China. He's asked by his people, What do you think of the church in America? He said, It's wonderful. He said, I'm really amazed how much they can do without God. We've got so used to the angel, we've got so used to the good man-liness, that we've taken our eyes off God. And Moses says, God, unless you go before me, I ain't going. When I heard that young Greg Gordon was coming here to this conference, he was at my home telling me, I felt my heart stirred. I said, Oh, I want to be there. And I didn't know how my wife would take it. I was so delighted when she looked to me and said, I think you should go. I said, I never said anything. But when your wife says that, guys, you know, it's special. Then Greg said to me, Gareth, I'd like you to speak when you get there. I'd tell you rather than say anything.