Hab 3:2-4  O LORD, I have heard thy speech, and was afraid: O LORD, revive thy work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years make known; in wrath remember mercy.  God came from Teman, and the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah. His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise.  And his brightness was as the light; he had horns coming out of his hand: and there was the hiding of his power.

As many of you know we just returned from Winter Bible Seminar in Tulsa, OK. There we always enjoy a blessed time great teaching, good fellowship, and rich anointing of the Spirit.  Elaine and I have been going to these meetings for close to thirty years, but this year we witnessed something much deeper.  In the midst of a wonderful move of the Spirit Pastor Kenneth E. Hagin declared he believe we are in the beginning stages of revival.  Folks I believe he is right! In the books of Acts Peter by the Holy Spirit spoke of “times refreshing” or revival.

Acts 3:19  Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; KJV

Revival is a display of God’s holiness, and power that overshadows human personality and programs. It is God breaking into the consciousness of men and women in majesty and glory. It is when God moves in a tangible way, where people, even cities become conscious of God, holiness, and sin. Charles Finney called revival a new beginning of obedience to God.

David Brainerd recorded the beginning of revival among the American Indians in 1745 with these words:  “Revival can never be explained in terms of activity, organization, and personality or preaching. Whether or not they are involved, they cannot account for the effects produced. It is a manifestation of God. It has the stamp of deity upon it. We cannot explain revival because we cannot explain God. “The wind blows where it wills“. Though we do not understand it fully yet we can and must “trim the sails” and work with it. To move with God in the day of His power means understanding and moving to those principles by which he has chosen to work.”  In others words we must cooperate with God in it.

2 Cor 6:1  We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain.

 In everything God does we see two sides; first is the working of God and second the working of men. In our salvation there is grace (God’s side) and there is our response or faith.

When it comes to receiving the Holy Spirit we see the Spirit poured upon a believer and we see the believer’s response speaking in tongues by faith. In every transaction with God there is God’s part and man’s part.

Greater Glory Is Coming
One way the power of God is manifested is in the glory of God. Haggai 2:9 says, “The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the Lord of hosts.”

 Interpreted this is telling us that the New Testament house of God is greater than the Old Testament house of God.  What does the “house of God” mean?  In the Old Testament, it was a Temple made with hands where the Presence of God dwelt in the Holy of Holies. The Presence of God dwelt in the Old Testament Temple.

When Jesus died, the veil into the Holy of Holies where the Presence of God dwelt was torn in two, and God changed His Temple from one made with hands to one not made with hands. God put His Presence in us as believers and made His Presence available to us. That’s when the house of God changed from an external building to the spirits of born-again believers.

The Apostle Paul said to the Corinthian church, “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” (1 Cor. 3:16).

Think about it, God must be a God of faith because He puts His Presence (the Presence that dwelt in the Holy of Holies) in us the minute we are born again. Wow!

The “house of God” in the New Testament is the Body of Christ, the Church.  Born-again Christians are the “house” of God. God lives in us individually and corporately.  So we could interpret Haggai 2:9 this way: The glory of the last days of the Church is going to be greater than the glory of the first days of the Church.  So the closer we get to the last days, the stronger we can expect to experience the power of God. The glory of God is coming, but the Body of Christ has to prepare for this outpouring.

A Divine Personality
The glory of God is in reality the Spirit of God in manifestation.  We see this more clearly in the Book of Romans. Romans 6:4 says, “Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father. . .” Romans 8:11 says, “But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you”.  Both verses were written in the same letter, by the same author, to the same Christians. One verse said that the glory of God raised Jesus from the dead, and the other said that the Spirit of God raised Jesus from the dead. So who is the glory of God? The glory of God is the Spirit of God.

Again David Brainerd said, “Though we do not understand it fully yet we can and must “trim the sails” and work with it. To move with God in the day of His power means understanding and moving to those principles by which he has chosen to work.”  In others words we must cooperate with God in it. Next month we will look further into cooperating in the move of God.