Oh God, Would You Rend The Heavens?

I do wanna give you just a heads up on this. This is not going to be a normal audio book where the person recording just reads word for word and perfect, flawless. I'm actually gonna have this be a living type of book where I'm going to add some thoughts as I come across them, maybe, you know, encourage people here and there. If you know my past, you know, I've grown up with dyslexia and speech challenge and when I read, my eyes skip to the next sentence. And so this is going to be a very, very interesting journey. It's the last thing I wanna do, but many people have encouraged me to read this and then also add my thoughts. So it's gonna be a whole different type of approach. But in the preface I wrote, I'm not sure how far you'll get in this book, but please make sure to read the final section. Do you really want God to rend the heavens? The need to address revival and the vital role of the Holy Spirit is as relevant today as it has been throughout church history. My hope is that all of us, including myself, would humble ourselves and find the middle ground, the common ground. The words revival and spiritual awakening are used interchangeably. Historically speaking, a revival is when God revives his people, whereas a spiritual awakening is when the masses are converted. But these spiritual experiences always overlap. And for added encouragement, this is actually for those who have the ebook, in that version of the ebook, I included links to articles, sermons, podcasts, that you can actually follow up on. You can go to my YouTube channel. I actually preached a sermon entitled, Rend the Heavens. There's a podcast where I discuss a lot of the topics in the book. There's another sermon, True Revival Has a Cost. True Revival Has a Cost. I would encourage you to look on YouTube for that one. And then a lot of relevant articles are on my website, Why Revival is America's Only Hope, A Battle Cry for a Dead Church, Will You Pay the Price for a National Awakening, and so on. And you can actually, if you have the electronic version of this book, you can also just click links in that. I'm also releasing a book simultaneously with this one. I'm working on it as we speak, 40 Days to Reset Your Life, Applying God's Wisdom for Physical and Spiritual Renewal. So if you're ready, I'm ready. We're gonna begin with chapter one. And again, I'm just gonna, you know, if things come to my heart, I just wanna add to maybe some of the things I've written. One of the difficulties with a booklet is it's short, right to the point where as I could write a thousand pages on this topic. So here we go. Chapter one, Oh God, Rip Open the Heavens. As many of you know, it comes from Isaiah 64, one and two. Oh, that you would rend the heavens, that you would come down, that the mountains might shake at your presence to make your name known to your adversaries, that the nations may tremble at your presence. And that's actually one of the theme verses for West Side Christian Fellowship, the church I have the privilege of being the lead pastor. We're located in Southern California, about an hour north of Los Angeles in a little tight community back in the mountain area there called Leona Valley, just west of Palmdale. So anyway, that's neither here nor there. Let me get right into this first chapter. On April 24th, 2021, an Indonesian submarine sank in the Southern Pacific Ocean. The news report, actually the news reported that the crew may have run out of oxygen and quickly sank below the crush depth. Now the crush depth is the pressure on the outside is actually greater than the strength on the inside. And let me just pause there for a minute. What about in our own lives? Is the pressure on the outside overwhelming you? It won't if the strength on the inside is greater through devotion to God, through surrender, through repentance, through confession of sin, through prayer and brokenness and humility and fasting and looking to the word of God and then obeying God's word. So it is this thought as to why the submarine had this internal leaking and obviously everyone on that vessel perished. Now this parallels exactly what is happening in America today. As waves of confusion and chaos overcome the masses, many are looking for the answers in all the wrong places. And many are being crushed by the external pressures of life because the strength on the inside, which is the relationship with God, is not greater than the pressure on the outside. As I recently wrote in one of my past articles, America has stage four cancer and it has metastasized to the family and the church. We are more depraved than ever before. I also wrote America crossed a dangerous line years ago. Instead of repenting and turning back to God, we have walked further into the deep waters of ungodliness. The decadence and brutality in our streets is unparalleled in our history. And as a result, there is despair and there's depression and it's overcoming our land. But believe it or not, I am hopeful. Now I've got footnotes in a lot of what I've already read and again, you can access all of that via the ebook. But it does beg the question, how can I be hopeful amid such darkness and depravity? Because God is sovereign and controls the affairs of men, I am finding great hope. He often revises people at very dark moments in history. Before an awakening broke out in Wells in 1904, for example, one person wrote this. Now, listen to this carefully. It is ever the darkest hour before the dawn. The decay of religious faith, the deadness of the churches, the atheism of the well-to-do, the brutality of the masses, all of these, when at their worst, herald the approach of the revival. In other words, it takes a lot of fear and failure to get the church to finally break, to humble ourselves before God. And when things are going pretty good or a little challenge here and there, we're not as desperate. So when things are dark, when we look around, we see there is no hope. Everything is, what is good is being called evil, what is evil is being called good. This is the time for the church to press in and be broken before Almighty God. And don't we see similar indicators today? There's dead churches, there's the decay of religion, there's the rise of rebellion and brutality, but don't give up. Instead, prepare the soil of your heart so that God can rend the heavens and release a spiritual downpour. That's actually the whole point of this book. So next section, he hears the cries of his children. Isaiah 64, one indicates that desperation along with repentance and humility capture God's attention. Oh, that you would rend the heavens, that you would come down, that the mountains might shake at your presence. Just reading that, I'm getting excited because rend means to burst, to blow out, to explode. What an awesome verse about an awesome God. And like any parent, he hears the cries of his children as they cry, oh God, would you rip heaven open? Come down and help us. We are lost without you. That's a good prayer, and it takes a very humble person to admit that they need God. And I think that's the problem in our nation, in the church, and dare I say it, in the family. So many men, and this is to women, of course, too, but I've seen so many men are just prideful and arrogant and not leading their family spiritually. Oh, they're complaining. They're complaining about the government. They're complaining about this and that, but they're not owning it and putting this weight of responsibility on our shoulders. But on this topic, yes, God is everywhere. This is what theologians refer to as omnipresence. So how can God come down if he is already here? I'm sure many of you are thinking that. Well, the prophet is pleading for more of God's presence and for the overwhelming power of the Spirit to come upon us. And it's an interesting topic because we are seeking the manifest presence of God. Now, if an interesting charismatic says that, we kind of just throw it out the window. But when people like Ronnie Floyd with the Southern Baptist, that denomination, I'm reading his book right now, something along the lines of 40 Days of Prayer and Fasting, and he talks about how the manifest presence of God visited his church. And let me submit to you, that is genuine revival. That is a genuine spiritual waking. That is nothing to be feared. And many times we think, and wrongly, by the way, this is all not in the book, I'm just adding it here. We wrongly think that, well, when God is moving, surely everyone will notice. Not necessarily. The hard-hearted, religious, arrogant modern-day Pharisees will often discount a mighty work of God because it is experiential and they have not experienced the presence of God. They've got sound doctrine, and I'm gonna say this later, straight as a gun barrel theologically, but just as empty. They're arrogant, they're critical, they like to put down everyone and they don't lead anyone to Jesus Christ. It's sad, it really is sad. I don't know if even, many of these people are even converted because that's not the heart of God. Now we can struggle with a critical heart, amen, some of you out there, myself included, but that should not be the tempo of our attitude. That should not be the pulse of our heartbeat toward God. So anyway, back on track. There are times when God seems distant, hearts feel dry, and evil is praised throughout the land. But when God comes down, literally upon his people, we experience the joy of his presence and evil is overturned because praying men and women seek him like never before. As the old timers used to say, God heard our cries and showed up today. This is, my friends, this is revival, when God shows up. So to clarify, yes, he's everywhere, omnipresence of God, the Holy Spirit dwells in the believers. But many people are quenching and grieving the Spirit in their hearts, quenching and grieving the Spirit in our churches, and God will say, you want it? You got it. You wanna just go through the motions? Fine, but if you wanna cry out to me, you wanna get desperate, you wanna say, oh God, would you rend the heavens and come down? That's when he will respond. And that is the difference maker. Let me tell you, the difference is between night and day. I've been dead preaching sermons and I've been alive with the Spirit of God. I've been in dead services and I've been in services where you don't even know what time it is. The difference is indisputable. It is, you either have experienced it or you haven't. So that's my hope for you listening, no matter where your heart's at, is to surrender, humble yourself, if you're carnal, come back to God. If you're arrogant, prideful, break before him. Get to a church that opens the altar and get on that altar and cry out to him and say, God, would you rend the heavens in my own heart? And the altar's really just a step of obedience and going forward and saying, God, I need you as a pastor. I wanna do that daily. So would be to God that the nations would tremble again at his presence, again in Isaiah 64. So the next section, what, or actually who, we can say both, who can stop God Almighty? Think for a moment, who can stop God Almighty? Like Joshua and Caleb, we too can say, we are well able to take this land. Like David, we too can cry out, who is the enemy who dares to come against the living God? And like the three Hebrew men in the fire, who can, we can also say, my God will deliver me, but even if he doesn't, I will not bow down to you. And like Elisha, who told 850 false prophets that God would answer by fire, we too can be assured of victory. God plus you is the majority. I want you to make, I wanna make sure you catch that. God plus you is the majority. Stop worrying about people, you know, not backing you, not supporting you, and I don't think I'm making a difference. And many times God will take us through that valley of discouragement before the mountaintop experiences. So what entity can ruin God's plans? What leader can overpower him? What government can override him? What army can defeat him? Hope you caught that and not just thinking about other things. Who can stop God's plans? What leader can overpower him? What government can override him? What army can defeat him? No one. What then shall we say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? As Paul said in Romans eight, Isaiah said that even the mountains shake and tremble in his presence. He no doubt, I think, had Exodus 19 in mind when he penned those words. Mount Sinai was covered with smoke when the Lord's fire descended on it, and the whole mountain trembled violently. God often shakes us physical to get us to respond in the spiritual. God often shakes the physical, what's going on in your life, in my life, around us, to get us to respond in the spiritual, to get us to bow our knee to Jesus Christ in full surrender. So are you being shaken today? Is our nation being shaken? Absolutely. Do you see the calamity, the decadence, and the perversion all around us? If so, then why are so many Christians stagnant, inactive, and lifeless? Maybe some of you listening, stagnant, dead, inactive, doing nothing for God, and lifeless, there's no spiritual life. Why are they not hosting rend the heavens prayer meetings and worship nights? Why aren't churches packed and adding more services to accommodate the hunger of God's people? Recently, I talked to Jack Hibbs, a friend of mine, and Rob McCoy. I heard John McArthur speaking on this on YouTube as well. And those churches that decided to open during, you know, a year ago now it's been, during COVID, actually saw tremendous growth financially, spiritually, in all areas. And they were adding services. I know we've had to add things. And the need to rend the heavens, folks, has never been greater. And that's my heart. My heart really, if you could, you know, see my heart, see my tears sometimes, it's for pastors and leaders to break under the power of Almighty God. We are too arrogant. We are too selfish. We're getting caught up in all these ungodly movements out there, viewing skin color a certain way, supporting legislation that's ungodly, supporting groups incorporated that are not applying the word of God to their businesses. And we've got to get back to being pastors who are preparing our sermons in the prayer closet. That's where the fire of God comes from, the prayer closet. Turn off the media and find out what God has to say. The next section, never let go when God shows up. Do we really believe that all of this evil will simply reverse itself? No, it's only going to get worse unless God's people pull down heaven. Now, on this point, some people might say, oh, you're putting so much responsibility on our shoulders. Only if we do this, only if we pray, only if we fast, only, only, only. Oh, that's too much on our shoulders. Well, I don't really want people to feel like that, number one, because that's not true. We know God is sovereign. We know that nothing can stop his plans and no one can make him do anything by twisting his arm through praying and fasting and worshiping. However, who is going to ignore the plethora of scriptures that talk about pulling down heaven and praying to God for the answers and fasting? My book, Feasting and Fasting, goes into more detail on this. I might talk a little bit about this as we go on. But God wants us to position our heart, or said another way, prepare the soil of our heart for a downpour. So, and my thought is, we do need to pull down heaven. We do need to spend more time in praying and fasting, and not that it all depends upon us, but it all depends upon God, but we are positioning ourselves correctly to receive from God. So, what's the alternative? Just watch Netflix all day? No need for prayer meetings? No need to really fast? King's stomach is gonna be on the throne from here on out? And then, you know, if it's in God's sovereignty, he'll bring a revival. Well, it doesn't work that way, folks. We have to prepare the soil of our heart. You will not find any scripture contrary to that. In Isaiah 64, which I read earlier, we must cry out, oh God, would you rip open heaven and come down? We must wait on God and seek him like never before because he acts, here's the thing, he acts for the one who waits for him. Isaiah 64, and again, I've got references to tons of scriptures I've already read, but you can find this in the electronic book or the print version as well. This type of waiting on God expects something to happen and waits patiently for it. When we wait, anger doesn't influence us. When you wait on God and expect him to move patiently, you're not in a hurry today, tomorrow, next week, but you're just waiting on him. You're working for him, but you're waiting on him. Anger then doesn't influence you. Impatience doesn't drive you and impulse doesn't derail you and fear will not stop you. The disciples prayed in an upper room for days until heaven opened and the spirit came down. The filling of the Holy Spirit forever changed them. They were hungry for more of God. Can you say the same? I know I can most of the time, sometimes I can't and it's a matter of getting my heart reengaged, set back on the things of God. Here's where I wanna get to, exciting point here. Many years ago, a very old man who experienced a revival, I believe it was the Welsh Revivals, 1904, 1905, when he was younger and they asked him why did the revival end? His eyes were filled with holy fire when he cried out, when you lay hold of God, never, never, never let go. Let this be a warning as well as a reminder to us as well to never let go when we lay hold of God to pursue him like never before. When you were first born again, you had this fire, didn't you? Or maybe some of you haven't because you've been quenching and grieving the spirit this whole time but then life happens and prayer and reading the word gradually becomes an afterthought yet nationwide revival begins with personal revival. Believers, one by one, begin to seek God again and before long, there are family revivals and church-wide revivals and the community revives. That's really what happens is there's a spark. It's usually from a prayer meeting extended. It's not like, well, if we worship all night, God will do this. It's not necessarily, it's an extended prayer meeting. It's times of worship. It's pressing in sometimes for months, sometimes for years before God, I mean, I know as a church, we've been praying for this for 10 years now. This September will be going on 11 years and we've experienced measures of revival that are clearly God working in the church and in our services and so many, I mean, one service comes to mind, a Wednesday night, 25 baptisms. You could just tell this service was different. Other times on Sunday and, you know, but we're looking for and praying for a larger scale spiritual awakening. But are we welcoming this type of downpour in our churches and positioning ourselves for a downpour of God's spirit? Are we extinguishing it or are we extinguishing it because of pride, sin, doubt, unbelief? We have to ask that question. Let me ask that again. Are you welcoming this type of downpour in your church or in your own personal lives or are you extinguishing it because of pride, sin, doubt, and unbelief? I mean, we really have to deal with that question. And I believe it's time to break up our follow ground and seek the Lord while he still may be found. Hosea 10, 12. Here's the key. We provide the sacrifice, he provides the fire.