“And when he had set the brands on fire, he let them go into the standing corn of the Philistines, and burnt up both the stocks and also the standing corn, with the vineyard and olives’’– Judges 15:5
Luke warmness and spiritual coldness cannot take the church of Jesus anywhere in terms of impact and the influence of the gospel. The kingdom business requires great zeal and passion to accomplish it. The church of today looks so lukewarm. Like the church in Sardis, we have wonderful Pentecostal charismatic names that look like we are on fire but in real sense we are asleep to our responsibilities. Like the Laodicea church, we seem to have traded the spiritual power, gifting and anointing and the power of Pentecost that characterized the ministry of the apostles for silver and gold. Today, the church of Jesus is so rich in education, so advanced in technology, so rich in skills, so endowed with material things but at the expense of the supernatural and tangible miracles that served as undeniable proofs and overwhelming evidence of the reality of Christ’s resurrection.
Unlike Apostle Peter, we now have plenty of silver and gold but we cannot boldly say in the name of Jesus, rise up and walk. Instead, we give medical care and social welfare packages in exchange for the healing and miracle working power of God (Acts 3:6). We award honorary degrees, tittles and certificates, things that Apostle Paul counted but dung for the excellency of the knowledge of God.
The people wondered at the exploits and unction of the apostles knowing that they were unlearned men but today eloquence, oratory, manipulation and entertainment have taken over the pulpits. In place of admonitions, unction, spiritual gifts and awesome presence, we have expensive jokes and oratory.
The church has become an object of ridicule on our newspapers and social media due to absence of fire. Oh God, revive your work in the midst of the years. Awake church, awake sleeping Christians, wake up from deep slumber and Christ shall give you light. Awake to righteousness, awake to evangelism and world mission awake to the supernatural and the miraculous. Oh that God will stir up spiritual fire of revival at such a time as this. Oh for fire brand Christians like Samson’s three hundred firebrand foxes released into the camp of the Philistines. The church of today is in dare need of spiritual stirring and revival, oh for the glory of the latter house that will be greater than that of the former house.
PRAYER; God, stir up fresh fire of revival, let it begin with me.
Rev. Vincent Diolu