“If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?” – Psalm 11:3
Our world today desperately needs a revival of convictions. It has grown dull and immune to real biblical convictions and is in dire need for an awakening. God is a Father, who gives us what we need at any given time and not just what we want.
The following are areas of conviction I feel are waning:
The Spiritual Family – legacy
Foundations of the spiritual family must be restored. In my many years around the church, I have been privileged to be part of a church that is a family church. I have come to understand the meaning of spiritual family, legacy, and the importance of restoring this critical foundation.
We need to preach what spiritual family is and strengthen those things that are weak. We need to re-establish the place and the role of spiritual fathers and mothers in the house of God. – place honor on fathers and mothers while encouraging others to become spiritual fathers and mothers. I have come to realize that this is the most important thing in the house of God. It is the only priceless gift we can pass on. Jesus paid for everything and while people can buy buildings, cars, houses, and lands for themselves, they can’t buy fathers.
Fathers establish a moral compass, speak identity, shape legacy, and blaze a trail to be followed. We need more fathers in the faith.
Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.” (Malachi 4:5-6 NKJV)
The Church – We are the body of Christ
The church has grown lethargic and complacent, resisting any unction to confront the world yet remaining stagnant, like a frog in a kettle. We need to strengthen the body of Christ. This is the vehicle through which Christ is revealed in the earth; His hands and feet. We must preach the importance of the church in the midst of society. We must enhance the authority of the church in order to amplify the voice and influence of the church in the community. We must preach the Kingdom of God as the governing authority over the local church.
Making Disciples – Mat. 28:18-20
We are called to “make disciples of all nations,…baptize them,…command them…” We need to be fully aware of this great commission and fully exemplify the command to make disciples. We must preach, teach and demonstrate the true nature of discipleship. It is the reason Jesus Himself chose to come and live with the 12. – He taught it, preached it and demonstrated it. Our success is in those we leave behind.
A people that seek His face will be convicted concerning the condition of His family in the earth. –
“This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him, who seek Your face. Selah Lift up your heads, O you gates! And be lifted up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, The LORD mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O you gates! Lift up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah” – Psalms 24:6-10 NKJV
America has seen many waves of the outpourings of the Holy Spirit. In each revival, I believe God poured out His Spirit for a specific purpose. The next great revival must answer the questions of the fatherless, resolve the fears of the destitute, remove the shame of the sinner and cover the wounds of the orphan with healing balm.
- We need a revival of convictions that will create a home for the abandoned, revive the hopes of the broken, and elevate the dreams and aspirations of the next generation.
- The convictions that build great families are the same convictions that will revive fallen families.
- We’re not looking for a 3-step process nor a legal system that has the letter but not the Spirit. We’re looking for a revival that is genuine and authentic, that releases true conviction, cutting men and women to the heart and producing decisions made on the altar of the heart.
- Real convictions are drawn when our hearts are pierced by the word of God, causing us to change. True conviction produces permanent change because it’s produced out of the Holy Spirit and not out of law.
A revival of conviction answers the following questions:
- What is the overall purpose of our lives?
- What is the purpose of the spiritual family?
- Why do we invest in the next generation?
- What is the purpose of making disciples?
- What is the purpose of the church?
REVIVE, RESTORE, REVEAL!
There needs to be a revival of convictions
There needs to be a restoration of the things that have fallen apart
There needs to be a deeper revelation of Christ
We need to seek a revival of the convictions of the Kingdom. This will lead to a restoration of broken down walls and torn down places. Then the glory of God will be revealed.
It is like it was when Solomon’s temple was built:
“And it came to pass, when the priests came out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD, so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD. Then Solomon spoke: “The LORD said He would dwell in the dark cloud. I have surely built You an exalted house, And a place for You to dwell in forever.”
I Kings 8:10-13
Nelson Masinde 