The Need Of The Hour

The Need Of The Hour

Looking at Revelation chapters 2 and 3, Jesus listed out the needs of the hour for each of these churches:

1. Laodicean church

2. Philadelphia church

3. Ephesian church

4. Smyrna

The Lord runs the spiritual diagnosis of the body of Christ in every generation and at different locations. Looking at the present state of the church in this generation, what do you think we lack?

Many are pursuing God for material things, not to know Him. We lack the exact message of Christ; we lack the heart of Christ, we lack the passion. Our desire looks different from the real desire of the early Church; it’s like we are not concerned that we are losing it.

If I will put it in one simple statement, I’d say the need of this hour is that WE ALL RETURN TO OUR BETHEL. Truly we have once had encounters. Truly we have once upon a time had a peak of spiritual dealings and experiences. But our present state and spiritual location have a semblance of Shechem (Genesis 28:10-19).

We need to return to the right knowledge of Christ, as John 3:30 says, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” I saw how John the Baptist wanted to decrease (MUST) so that Christ may increase, and I ask how many want to be this today? Today, everyone wants to be seen and known; the fact is, as you are known, you are to decrease, and Christ should increase. Oh, that Christ may increase and we decrease. We have a wrong theology and foundation as believers today; an urgent reconstruction is required. Oftentimes, I ask myself, how did we get here? We got here because our focus shifted; anytime the focus of the Church shifted to anything different from the revelation of Christ, the Church is on her way to backsliding.

The song captures what we need to do:

Whatever happened to death do us part?

Does the home reflect the heart?

Parents’ faces tell of worried minds,

While children search but can’t seem to find.

It’s time we took a closer look,

Got back to living by the Holy book.

No compromise without getting slack,

You see, we’ll go forward if we just go back.

We’ll know the tree by the fruits we see,

Serving God has no in-between.

We’re either cold or we’re hot,

He said lukewarm will have no part.

It’s coming down to in or out,

There’s no time for playing around.

We’re coming down to lost or found,

We’re going back to stand our ground.

We’ve got to go back to living true,

We’ve got to go back to the absolute.

Back to where the church stands strong,

Back to where there is a right, There is a wrong.

Back to where there’s black or white,

You see the difference is like day and night.

We’ve got to go back to things above,

We’ve got to go back to our first love.

There are so many distractions. It really takes God’s grace and sensitivity to be focused in these times. Here are some needs of the hour:

1. Real love for God

2. Heart for God

3. Passion for God

4. Return to Bethel

5. Right knowledge of Christ

6. Reconstruction of our faith foundation

Please note:

All we are pointing out by the Spirit will form our prayer burden in the coming days at the place of our prayer travail. In Gen 35: The instruction came clear. Go back to Bethel and dwell there.

We oftentimes visit our BETHEL without dwelling there. We get encounters, but we fail to sustain them. We get outpourings of God, but we fail to contain and house them, unlike our fathers. We experience the supernatural, but we turn them to our gratification. Absolutely! We evaded the word. We fail to understand that the word sustains revival.

We seem to think the life we live now and the much of God we have now are all that we need to go on in faith. We don’t see the need to seek for more. Little wonder our fire dies out mid-way.

As we bring a conclusion to our discussion, I will plead with us that we become and remain unsatisfied with our present state and never be ready to live fine with anything less than the fullness of Christ.  Father, we thank you for today; may you please help us at this hour in Jesus’ name.