There seems to be a growing yearning for revival in our country. It has become an evident burden upon the hearts of many Christian leaders. It has become the focus of many conferences as they have placed the emphasis on revival. One major ministry has called a “solemn assembly” for the purpose of seeking God’s face for revival in our nation. It is very apparent that the hearts of Christian people are being moved for revival.

However, there is a major problem with the current emphasis on revival. And if we do not recognize the problem, I believe our emphasis and efforts will be meaningless. The problem has to do with our American concept of revival. The American concept of revival seems to be focused on the nation as a whole. It seeks God to bring revival to America so that biblical norms of morality will be restored. It almost seems to be a cry of desperation that has resulted from watching the power and influence of the church disappear in our country. It’s a “we tried our best, now we need God” attitude.

While this concept of revival is popular and prevalent, I believe it is misguided and wrong. And the result will only be manifested in disappointment. My assumption is based on two thoughts:

1. The issue is the church, not the nation.
I believe our efforts for revival are meaningless because the focus is on the wrong place. There is an underlying assumption with the American concept of revival that is very deceptive. The assumption is based on a belief that the church in America is spiritually okay. Yet poll after poll shows us that we are lying to ourselves about the true condition of our morality. We struggle with addictions just as the lost. We have a higher divorce rate than the lost. We view as much pornography as the lost. We are just a prejudice. We worship at the altar of materialism. We are self-absorbed.

In spite of all of this, we are disturbed more by the actions of unbelievers than our own. We have forgotten that they need Jesus. Only then will they be able to live as Jesus wants them to live. I believe it grieves the heart of God more when He sees those who have been redeemed living as the world in general. We need to embrace the words of Jesus when He told the multitudes, “

And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?  Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye?  Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? Matthew 7:3-5 ( NKJV )

Instead of praying for revival so that the nation is turned around, we need to pray the God turns the church around. I believe that the Lord is disgusted with the church and its sins, more so than the sins of the nation. We belong to Him, yet we turn the blind eye to our sins and focus of the sins of the lost. It is not the nation that needs revival, but the church.

2. America does not need revival, it needs to be evangelized.

Revival means to bring back to life. It has to do with God’s people coming back to life. The lost cannot be brought back to life when they have never experienced it in the first place. America does not need revival, it needs to be evangelized. This requires that the church deals with it sins so that we can be effective witnesses to the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ. With a nation that is becoming increasing secular and irreligious, the church needs to wake up to its responsibility as light-bearers. What will turn back the darkness in our nation is not a revival, but the light of the gospel of Jesus Christ that emanates from our lives.

Revival will never take place among that which a spiritually dead. Revival can only take place among the church. That is where our emphasis needs to be concerning revival. We need to start praying that the Lord will be merciful to the American church. We need to confess and turn from our sins. We need to seek His presence that has long been absent from His people. We need to turn back to God.