Now the most important thing is to discern which group I am in. Where do I stand?
When my dear mother was 20, she answered a man’s question by saying that she wasn’t interested in faith. He then replied: And if you died in the night? This comment hit her hard. But it had a very positive effect. It led her to make a decision for Jesus. Maybe this question will help you too:
Suppose … you died today …! Do you have the assurance of eternal life with Jesus Christ?
Don’t remain uncertain.
Our Happiness Depends on This
I am very alarmed as I have begun to understand the great magnitude of this problem. I have thought and prayed about this a lot. I don’t know who it applies to. But I want to be of help to the persons concerned, since I have been helped as well. It is crucial that everyone who is carnal realizes this, or he will not be able to ask for God’s help to change. God in His love wants to richly bless us through an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit. As a result, great loss can be avoided and immeasurable blessing can be experienced. And the wonderful thing is that we can quickly remedy the situation with God’s help.
The problem of carnal Christianity is described in the Bible in different ways. Individual groups and the people in the groups can have very different focal points, but the central problem is the same. The different descriptions are:
- In the flesh or carnal — Romans 8:1-17; 1 Corinthians 3:1-4, Galatians 5:16-21 and other texts
- Foolish — the parable of the ten virgins — Matthew 25:1-13
- Lukewarm — the letter to Laodicea — Revelation 3:14-21 “I could wish you were cold or hot” (Revelation 3:15). Isn’t it amazing? Jesus prefers cold to lukewarm. What is His reason for this? “Halfhearted Christians are worse than infidels; for their deceptive words and noncommittal position lead many astray. The infidel shows his colors. The lukewarm Christian deceives both parties. He is neither a good worldling nor a good Christian. Satan uses him to do a work that no one else can do.”¹
- Not “born again” or hasn’t remained in this condition — John 3:1-21 “The new birth is a rare experience in this age of the world. This is the reason why there are so many perplexities in the churches. Many, so many, who assume the name of Christ are unsanctified and unholy. They have been baptized, but they were buried alive. Self did not die, and therefore they did not rise to newness of life in Christ.”²
- A form of godliness — “Having a form of godliness but denying its power” (2 Timothy 3:5). Arthur G. Daniells says the following about this: “… But formalism is something extremely deceptive and destructive. It is the hidden, unexpected cliff, which the church has threatened to shatter on many times throughout the centuries. Paul warned us that this ‘form of Godliness’ (2 Timothy 3:5) without God’s power [without being filled by the Holy Spirit] would be one of the dangers of the last days and admonishes us not to be taken in by this comfortable, self-deceiving attitude.”³
- A great danger — “I will not here dwell upon the shortness and uncertainty of life; but there is a terrible danger — a danger not sufficiently understood — in delaying to yield to the pleading voice of God’s Holy Spirit, in choosing to live in sin; for such this delay really is.” ⁴ What is at the core of sin? “Because they do not believe in Me” (John 16:9). The sign that we really believe and trust Jesus is that we completely surrender ourselves to Him. It has to do with our complete surrender; our willingness to follow Him in everything.
Questions to Consider
The crucial question is: Are you filled with the Holy Spirit or not? When is a person filled with the Holy Spirit? What are the necessary prerequisites? What are the positive results of a life with the Holy Spirit? What happens when you erroneously think you are filled with the Holy Spirit?
Call to Action: Be Thankful for Signals
Let’s devote ourselves more to the topic of revival. I think that our great and marvelous God has important reasons for presently giving us impulses by the Holy Spirit for a revival. Could these be the reasons?
- He wants to relieve our deficiency and lead us out of our Laodicea-like state
- He wants to prepare us for the soon second coming of Jesus and the special time just before He comes
- He wants to bring about the great closing revival (Revelation 18:1-2) in the world through those “who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ” (Revelation 12:17) and have “the faith of Jesus” (Revelation 14:12).
The above is an excerpt from Steps to Personal Revival.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
- Ellen G. White, Letter 44, 1903, quoted in the Seventh Day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 7, p. 963 on Rev 3:15,16
- Ellen G. White, MS 148, 1897, quoted in the Seventh Day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 6, p. 1075, Many buried alive
- A. G. Daniells, Christ our Righteousness, p. 20
- Ellen G. White, Selected Messages, vol. 1 (1958), p. 109.2
