Midweek Service 3-20-24 (3)

Note the following reference:

1 Samuel 7:6 KJV And they gathered together to Mizpeh, and drew water, and poured it out before the LORD, and fasted on that day, and said there, We have sinned against the LORD. And Samuel judged the children of Israel in Mizpeh.

The nation of Israel as a whole was speaking very clearly that “we have sinned” and need the power of God to help us to overcome the breach in the gap. Even Nehemiah had to offer up the words of repentance because of the breached walls and torn-down Temple.

If you have been lethargic, spiritually cold, harboring secret sin, not responding to the preached Word, resistant to spiritual leadership, criticizing the church (both members and leaders), prayer-less, and full of carnality, it does not just effect you, it effects the entire church. That is why during the Samuel Fast, when we are coming together to fast for revival that these issues are important to be overcome.

The greatest spiritual power occurs when all the people confess their sin. At that point, God then hears from Heaven and will pour out His Spirit. We all must understand that the most joyful and most fulfilled time of our lives will be when revival comes to this Church and we are so busy discipling and helping and exhorting and encouraging the new converts that we get lost in the work of the Kingdom and our identity is lost in the greatness of God’s Kingdom.

• STEP 5: Acknowledge the Power of the Word

1 Samuel 7:3 KJV And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If ye do return unto the LORD with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the LORD, and serve him only: and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.

No revival has ever occurred without the involvement of the Word of God. During the early years of Samuel’s life, the Word of God was “precious” (l Samuel 3:1). The underlying definition of this word is that it was very rare. When Samuel came to Israel, the Word of God began to invest itself in his life and Israel begin to hear a fresh word from Heaven.

When you enter in the Samuel Fast, it is imperative that the Word of God takes a first rate role in your life. Whole epistles should be pored over and your Bible needs to be marked in and things that you read become incorporated into your walk with God.

When one notes the great revivals of Scripture, the power of the Word of God is very clearly seen.

• Under Jacob: Genesis 35:1-4. Jacob commanded that the false gods and idols be put away. They were told to wash and change their garments and while they were doing these things Jacob was building an altar.

• Under Samuel: 1 Samuel 7:3-6. Samuel urged the putting away of false gods and for the heart to be prepared to receive the work of the Spirit.

• Under Moses: Exodus 14:31-15:21. Revival began to make its way into the children of Israel’s lives when the complainers turned into worshipers. They saw the mighty hand of God destroy the armies of Pharoah in the Red Sea. On the other side of the sea, revival broke out.

• Under David: 1 Chronicles 15:25-28; 16:1-43; 29:10-25. This first revival took place when the Ark was returned from the Philistines and brought into Jerusalem for the very first time. 1 Chronicles 29. This is the second great revival that came when the materials for the Temple were being gathered for Solomon to construct.

• Numerous others are noted: Solomon (1 Kings 6-8); Asa (l Kings 15:11-15); Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 19); Elijah (1 Kings 18:21-40); Jehu (2 Kings 10:15-28); Jehoiada (2 Kings 11:17-20); Hezekiah (2 Chronicles 29-31); Manasseh (2 Chronicles 33:11-20); Josiah (2 Kings 22-23); Ezra (Ezra 9-10); Nehemiah (Neh. 13); Jonah (Jonah 3); Esther (Est. 9:17-22); John the Baptist (Luke 3:2-18); Jesus (John 4:28-42); Philip (Acts 8:5-12); Peter (Acts 2 and 9); Paul (Acts 19:11-20).

• STEP 6: Get In Touch With the Symbols of the Sacred

God communicates with His people with definite physical things. He used events (miracles), days (Passover, etc.), furniture (Tabernacle and Temple), and ceremonies (communion). The Tabernacle was more than just a tent. It was an object that presented the holiness and presence of God. The Samuel Fast will become far more meaningful if you recognize the symbols that are present.

The symbols:

• Fasting from Food -- The outer demonstration of fasting can reflect the inner desire of the heart.

• Sacrificing to God -- Two offerings are made by Samuel in this fast. The first was a blood sacrifice (1 Samuel 7:6) offered by Samuel. The second was a sacrifice that was made by the people. They took water and poured it out on the ground (1 Sam. 7:6). Because water was symbolic of life, plenty, and even cleansing this was their offering to God. One must also consider that the water was generally very scarce and therefore it was valuable to them.

Lll. CONCLUSION -- AFTER THE FAST

It would be wonderful if I could tell you that after spending time fasting and praying that you would enter a fairyland zone and you would live happily ever after. However, this is not the case. In fact, it very well could possibly be that this will simply bring you under a greater attack from the devil. You may not get complete victory just because you fast and pray. This is the reason that you need to continue this process on in your life.

Because we have a relationship with God, often, the same can be said of revival. Relationships take time to develop. They will require some give and take and so we must spend time fasting to fully grasp our entire relationship with God. Secondly, our walk with God involves our relationship with those whom we worship with. We must pray for them and pray with them. There are no spiritual get rich quick schemes and it will take the passage of time and the discipline of the Spirit.

We can be assured that when we fast that many spiritual forces are set into action. We usually do not see these actions taking place but fasting puts the power of God to work and it very often agitates the power of the devil. There are several things that can be done on your part to encourage the work of God and discourage the work of the devil.

• Ask forgiveness from someone.

• Get involved in some form of service.

• Shore up your efforts at consistently attending the house of God.

• Commit long passages of Scripture to your memory.

• Make some form of restitution to someone (to those you may have hurt) or restore some thing (to those whom you may have taken something from).

• Spend time at church alone with God.

• Witness to someone with the intent of teaching a home Bible study to.

• Get involved in consistently mentoring someone younger than you who needs your assistance.

• Begin tithing and offering to God what He has given to you.

As we invest our efforts in activities like those just mentioned, you will be able to find that there are points of victory in your life and in the Church.

1 Samuel 7:10 KJV And as Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel: but the LORD thundered with a great thunder on that day upon the Philistines, and discomfited them; and they were smitten before Israel.

While the children of Israel were involved in the sacrifice, the process of victory started with a “great thunder.” This is a great principle to remember:

• Sacrifice facilitates power. Sacrifice prepares us for victory.

One must understand that this was not the last battle Israel would have with Philistines, but on this day, God took notice of their return to Him and went and fought the battle. Victories like this can cause us to look into the past, look at the present, and look into the future. Dr.Diana Brevan