In First Kings eighteen versus one and two it reads…  “Now it came about after many days, that the word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the face of the earth.  So Elijah went to show himself to Ahab.  Now the famine was severe in Samaria.”  There are several things in this passage of scripture that I want to point out.  First of all Elijah represents what I will call the “culture of revival.”  Elijah received a word from God to go and confront Ahab because there was a famine in the land.  Ahab represents  the overpowering spirits or the dominant forces that are at work in the earth today.   

Elijah, the “culture of revival” has been given marching orders from God to confront the dominant powers that have created a famine in the land.  Famine in scripture many times represents the removal of people’s potential for fruitfulness.  So here we have it Elijah (culture of revival) revealing himself to Ahab (dominant strongholds) to break the famine (lack of fruitfulness) in the land.  Revival could not come until Elijah “showed himself“!  The word “show” in Hebrew is ra’ah which means to appear, or to present one-self too, to be seen, or to be visible.

Can you see where this is going?  The “culture of revival” could not manifest until it was revealed or made visible.  What our society needs to see is something that’s genuine, authentic in the midst of the famine.  If we will reveal ourselves to the existing dominant powers God will send the rain (revival) and overthrow the systems of Ahab and Jezebel and release in our day and in our land a revival that will break the famine.  I say let the modern-day Elijah’s arise, come out of the hiding  places, walls of insecurities, places of defeat and “Go and show” yourself to the very things that has hindered fruitfulness.  God will send the rain (revival) and if we will stay revealed long enough we will sustain a culture that will become a “culture of revival.”

Jesus Himself said in Matthew 5:16 ” Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your father who is in heaven.”  Society is waiting for us to shine and reveal.  We are the answer to what’s lacking!  So I say to you Arise and become a “culture of revival”!

Before our churches can become a transforming agent in society it must first build within itself the right kind of Culture that will produce the right kind of Christians.  It goes without saying that different kinds of Churches produce different kinds of Christians.  For example, some produce victimized mentalities, “woe is me and how hard everything is”, others produce “circle the wagons, hold the fort and lets just hang on until Jesus can get here and rescue us”, while at the same time others are moving toward a “culture of revival” and producing dynamic, faith filled, power-shifting “cultures” that are ready to shake their cities and nations for His Glory.

Jesus said in Matthew 11:12 “and from the days of John the Baptist until now the Kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.”  Notice Jesus said it’s the “violent that take it by force!” The violent speaks to us about the strong or energetic ones.  There’s a culture rising that’s strong and energetic toward the things of God…it’s a culture of forceful people who will produce this “culture of revival.”  They are not satisfied to just be in church or go through the religious calisthenics of church but they are striving to be the church that releases heaven’s Glory in the earth.

Cultures are not developed over night…they have to be established and sustain with intention.  This “culture of revival” that I’m talking about is not a date on a calendar, or some organized planned meeting.  This “culture” in which I am referring to is a lifestyle…it’s the spirit or the attitude in our hearts that makes God alive.  This kind of a lifestyle must be cultivated daily in our personal lives and sustained with some longetivity until a “culture” is established in us personally and with those we influence daily.

I believe there’s a stirring taking place in the hearts of God’s people along with a passion that’s beginning to burn for the things of God like never before.  I am convinced that God has always had a remnant of people who would always rise in the face of overwhelming odds.  It’s a remnant not of perfect people but people who have learned how to conquer their fears in the face of adversity and have overcomed the obstacles in life without losing their faith.  The people who I am talking about are those who are determined to see the Glory of God revealed in their generation.  A people who are not content with business as usual, many times if not all the time they are not politically correct, you can’t buy them with money, you can’t threaten them with opinions and you can’t harness them with intimidation. 

For way too long many churches in America have been steeped in a culture of powerlessness, accommodation, and compromise to the point that they have marginalized themselves and lost touch within our society.  In fact, sadly enough the overall church has been locked up in tradition that it no longer has any real meaning of relevance while others support faulty theology and doctrine that has stripped them of any real spiritual authority.  Whatever the case may be…the end result is a dead church culture that has no-power to change anything and offers nothing that our society needs. 

May I submit to you that with the remnant that’s rising we need to build a church “culture of revival” that carries the power to transform lives, communities, cities and regions.   Over the next few weeks I will be sharing with you my thoughts on Becoming a “Culture of Revival.”