Revived by His Word

We are told that “a revival of true godliness among us is the greatest and most urgent of all our needs.”26 Recognizing this urgent need, the 2011 General Conference Annual Council voted to implement a plan called Revived by His Word.

It was launched on April 17, 2012, and ended at the General Conference Session in July 2015. Every church member was encouraged to read one chapter of the Bible each day. At the 2015 session, a similar plan was instated —“Believe His Prophets,” a five-year program to read through the Bible and selected Ellen White writings.

Every true revival in the history of Christianity has begun when people pled with God in fervent prayer and spent time in the earnest study of His Word.

We are admonished that “never should the Bible be studied without prayer.”27 On the other hand, we should recognize that “the reading of the word of God prepares the mind for prayer.”28 Therefore, “I hope you will be an earnest, true Christian day by day, seeking God in prayer. Do not be so busy you cannot give time to read the Bible and seek the grace of God in humble prayer.”29 We must recognize that revival and reformation go together. Revival generates the spiritual drive for reformation, and reformation is the result of any true revival. Revival without reformation is an empty spiritual illusion, and reformation without revival is nothing but ethical formalism.

If it is true that in the past many preachers stressed reformation without revival, today the tendency is to preach revival without reformation.

People want Christ as their Savior but not necessarily as their Lord.

Another basic feature of true revival is that it generates a deep feeling of personal humility and remorse. Whenever people become proud of themselves and judgmental of others, we can be sure that the Holy Spirit is not leading them.

The aforementioned plans were formulated to encourage us to seek the Lord. But don’t wait for others to stimulate spiritual growth; decide for yourself to seek the Lord now!