A couple weeks ago, we looked at Nehemiah 8-9 to see what revival should look like. We noted that the central part of revival is preaching, of which both the preacher and the congregation have a part. Then, we found that worship is also an important part of revival. In Nehemiah 8-9, we find three more elements of revival.
A third part of revival that we find in Nehemiah 8-9 is repentance. We cannot long bask in the light of Who God is without also realizing who we are—sinners. This realization weighed heavy on the children of Israel in Nehemiah 8. “And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the LORD your God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law.” (Nehemiah 8:9) The people had been confronted with God’s standard and their sin, and they were sorrowful over their sin against God. They were convicted, we might say. Conviction really just means that we are convinced about something. In the context of revival, we are convinced about the truth of God’s Word and our need to make ourselves align with that truth. This is repentance! Repentance happens when we change our minds about our sin and return to God’s righteousness. Yes, sorrow and mourning may be included with conviction. There may be a number of emotions that accompany conviction. But what is important is the act of repentance—turning from our way of thinking to God’s way of thinking about our lives.
Repentance also includes confession. Confession is simply admitting that what God says about our sin is true. We certainly must confess our sins to God, but if they have affected other people, we should confess to those people as well. In Nehemiah 9 the children of Israel publicly confessed to God. “And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers. And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of the LORD their God one fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped the LORD their God.” (Nehemiah 9:2-3) Their confession meant that they agreed with God about themselves, as Nehemiah 9:33 says, “Howbeit thou art just in all that is brought upon us; for thou hast done right, but we have done wickedly.” Every revival service should include repentance. Remember, the goal of preaching is for the listeners to hear, receive, and act on the Word of God. This will bring repentance in the lives of the listeners.
While sin brings sorrow, the end of revival is always rejoicing! Rejoicing is a choice, and it is the appropriate response to preaching and reviving. To those sorrowing over their sin, Nehemiah said, “Go thy way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength. So the Levites stilled all the people, saying, Hold your peace, for the day is holy; neither be ye grieved.” (Nehemiah 8:10-11) God does not convict us so that we can wallow in sorrow. He wants us to be changed (through repentance) and to rejoice at this transformation that He has wrought in our lives. Chapter 8 ends with saying, “And there was very great gladness” because the people had simply received God’s Word and repented. They did not dwell on the sin which caused sorrow. They rejoiced in making it right! God always gives us sorrow for the purpose of turning that sorrow into rejoicing. The psalmist David experienced the transformation of revival in Psalm 30:11-12: “Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness; to the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee forever.” God always takes our sorrow and uses it in a way that brings Him more glory. While there may be an atmosphere of somberness for some time at a revival, the majority of the time should be characterized by rejoicing. Joy should be the spirit of every revival service because that is the end goal of revival. The joy of the Lord gives us the strength to live for the Lord. Revival is not about grieving, but about rejoicing!
The final part of revival that we see in Nehemiah 8 is a renewed commitment to doing right. The point of conviction, confession, and repentance is renewed commitment. What good is being convinced of something if we do not put that belief into practice? What good is agreeing with God about our lives if we do not follow up on that agreement with action? What good is changing our minds about something if we do not act accordingly? The children of Israel understood the point of revival to be a renewed commitment to doing right. They had been reminded of Who God is and confronted with their own failures. In response, they took action. Nehemiah 8:16 says, “So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in the courts, and in their courts of the house of God, and in the street of the watergate the street of the gate of Ephraim.” For years, they had neglected the feast of tabernacles commanded in the law of Moses. The feast of tabernacles was given to remind the children of Israel about God’s blessings on their family and nation. Because they had forgotten to keep God’s command about the feast of tabernacles, they had forgotten God Himself! But now, the children of Israel returned to observing this feast in order to remember God’s blessing in their lives.
In Nehemiah 9, the people decided to put their renewed commitment to do right in writing. Nehemiah 9:38 says, “And because of all this we make a sure covenant, and write it; and our princes, Levites, and priests, seal unto it.” Their decision to do right was not a flippant one. They intended to hold themselves to this decision. That is the reason they put it in writing. They wanted something that would remind them of the decisions they were making and keep them accountable to each other and to God for that decision. Like the children of Israel, we should seek to keep ourselves accountable to other Christians and before God. Revival will be as long-lived as our commitment to doing right. If we renew that commitment often, we can experience revival often.
The children of Israel were in desperate need of revival in Nehemiah 8-9, just as many Christians are today. Their revival service likely looked much different in style than many revival services in American today would look. However, we can and should share some things in common with the revival service in Nehemiah 8-9. Like theirs, our revival services should include preaching, worship, repentance, rejoicing, and a renewed commitment to doing right. If they do, then we can experience the same transformation that the children of Israel did in Nehemiah’s day.