The Need for Revivalists

Ephesians 4:11-12, "It was He(Jesus) who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be edified(built up)."

You will notice that their is no biblical office called revivalist. The late Vance Havner coined the term revivalist some years ago. It spoke of a specific ministry to the body of Christ. Today, most itinerant preachers carry the title of evangelist, this however is not an accurate description of the service they provide for the church. An evangelist is someone who preaches the gospel, the good news, to lost people. Their ministry is to the world and they are a gift to the church to win souls. Men like Billy Graham, Dwight Moody, Billy Sunday, Mordecai Ham and Charles Finney are noted evangelists. The revivalist however, has a message for the church. Their message and ministry is for saved people; to exhort, encourage, convict and present the whole counsel of God to believers in the effort to edify. I believe that their is a biblical office of revivalist, the bible, however, refers to them as a prophet.

The words prophet and prophecy are greatly misunderstood. Most people when they hear the word prophet have images of someone predicting future events. While this is definitely true, the biblical meaning of the word prophet is someone who declares the word of God, and sometimes in past times this has included declaring future events. In the Old Testament the cry of the prophet was "And the Lord says."

By and large the message of the prophet was for God's people. The prophet Jonah was an exception but as we read the 16 prophetic books in the Old Testament, though sometimes the message included the peoples of the land, the prophets were sent to the children of Israel. In the church we have a clear need for men to cry out the message of the bible, and clearly state what the Lord indeed says. This is a revivalist.

This past week we had one such man, Dr. Tim Fowler, preach revival at Oakland Baptist Church. Brother Tim boldly, unflinchingly and uncompromisingly declared the word of the Lord to us and did indeed edify the body of Christ. No one was saved, but that was not the intent of the services. Tim was brought in to preach to this church, this body, to prayerfully inspire and lead us to greater and more fruitful service for God.

We must understand that true revival is for the church, it is for believers. If God's people are truly revived, then they will go into the world and minister to and win lost people. Sadly far to many churches lack the divine spark from the Holy Spirit to truly be an agent of change through God's power in their communities. Through disobedience and rebellion, pride and comfort, they have become unfruitful, and the world around them is perishing. This is why I feel we have a great need for the message of the prophet, the revivalist, in the church today.

If a pastor has been faithful in declaring the whole counsel of God, the revivalist will simply confirm what they have been preaching. Many times however a different voice proclaiming the message can penetrate hearts in a way a pastor cannot. This is why I am still a firm believer in revival meetings and the message of the revivalist. The church today across our nation is mired in complacency and selfishness. We have become country clubs ministering to our fellow members but doing very little in our communities. Quite frankly, we need a kick in the pants. The prophets of old often times declared a harsh message of judgment and repentance. God sent them to try to awaken His people from their slumber and sin. The revivalist, or prophet, has the same role today. They have a challenging ministry, and most of the time, do not see the fruit of their work as an evangelist does when many are saved. But the office of prophet is every bit as important. If we are to have true revival in our nation, it will begin in our churches. The prophet, the revivalist, is God's tool for helping His church get right with God.