We must experience personal revival in order to have corporate revival. However, as we begin to grow and transform under the power of the Holy Spirit, we will need to corporately repent of forsaking God’s Holy Law as well as come together in corporate gatherings for group prayer and Bible study, praise to God, and sharing testimonies. That is what this page is for. We must have both personal and corporate revival in order for God to bless our reorganization efforts. The studies below are designed to assist in this endeavor.
The first study is a document that you should read aloud, and the rest are audio presentations with slides; please read all the slides as you listen and afterwards review the material on the outlines, provided in the description of each YouTube video.
(1) A Revival of ALL the Commandments
It is only as the Law of God is restored to its rightful position that there can be a revival of primitive faith and godliness among His professed people. ‘Thus saith Jehovah, ‘Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls’ ‘. Jeremiah 6:16.
— E.G. White, Great Controversy, p. 478
A Spirit of Prophecy compilation with a concluding appeal:
A Solemn Covenant: “ALL the Commandments” (Read Out Loud)
(2) A Reviving Outpouring from the Heavenly Storehouse
Please read the following study on one of the key ingredients for corporate revival and finishing the Great Commission:
A Reviving Outpouring from the Heavenly Storehouse
(3) A Revival of Praise and Social Meetings
In the previous presentation, we discovered that a major component of holy convocations is the daily praise meeting. This presentation will be dedicated just to that, except expanding it to the more frequent meetings each Sabbath and even each day of the year, which are a special class of praise meetings called social meetings! But they are not for socializing. It is uniquely an Adventist practice, but a long forgotten one.
In accordance with the Spirit of Prophecy, and as practiced in our pioneer days, they are to be the main part of the church service; in fact, they are to replace sermons. Only when a traveling minister happened to be in town did our pioneer churches have sermons. In the social meeting, everyone participates rather than just one person standing up front. Activities include prayer, praise, sharing testimonies and experiences, and exhorting one another unto godliness. This is a practice that must be revived at once, because according to the Spirit of Prophecy, any church that is not practicing this is not alive, but dead. It is truly an amazing experience, and I pray for and look forward to the day when all of the true Seventh-day Advent churches have this every week and the spiritual gifts are again manifest in us. When the Pentecostal outpouring comes, many of us will prophesy just like in the apostolic church. Nothing is more important than the social meeting, coupled with personal revival.
So, please watch this presentation on it and encourage the church or group you fellowship with to practice this after you share this with them.
This is not the only kind of meeting that needs to be revived.
Covered in the ‘Reformation’ section, under ‘Gospel Order’ is also the Missionary Meeting, which can be considered just as much part of revival (and this plan for it) as of reformation. People will be revived as they come together to plan and share in local missionary work, for the Holy Spirit is poured out in proportion to the need; and there is much need for the Holy Spirit to work in soul saving.
Another meeting that must be revived, and is essential for revival, is the Prayer Meeting; consider it part of this plan. Do you already have a true prayer meeting? Do you? Where most of the time is spent in prayer, and everyone participates rather than taking prayer requests? If not, you will never have corporate revival, and the less corporate revival, the less personal revival.
One more forgotten meeting was for the public: preaching services on the first day of the week (Sunday). In the pioneer days, the main Sabbath meeting was more private, geared for the local assembly—and rightly so, since Spirit of Prophecy could be freely used and exhortations given to the assembly. But Sabbath School and Sunday preaching services were for the public, and the Spirit of Prophecy encouraged this:
Sunday can be used for carrying forward various lines of work that will accomplish much for the Lord. On this day open-air meetings and cottage meetings can be held. House-to-house work can be done. Those who write can devote this day to writing their articles. Whenever it is possible, let religious services be held on Sunday. Make these meetings intensely interesting. Sing genuine revival hymns, and speak with power and assurance of the Saviour’s love. Speak on temperance and on true religious experience. You will thus learn much about how to work and will reach many souls.
— E.G. White, Letter 132, 1902
Here is an example of all the weekly meetings that were held, notice the services on both the seventh and first days:
La Crosse. (WI) – 1824 George St; Sabbath-school 2 P. M.; services 3 P. M. and Sunday 8 P. M.; missionary meeting Wednesday 8 P. M.; prayer meeting Friday 8 P. M.; G. H. Kisner, elder, 1213 North St., North La Crosse.
— General Conference Bulletin, 7/1895
To see examples of other churches, just search for “Church Directory” in the pioneer writings under the General Conference Bulletins.
We have truly forgotten our heritage, and we really cannot have the final revival—the seventh month revival (next)—until we revive what we already had. And even Sabbath School is not today as it once was. Lessons were brief with many Bible texts so that families and individuals could easily work on them throughout the week, and the meeting was more truly a school where the teacher actually taught—not rote questions and answers, for that was already done during the week, but getting deeper into the Scriptures and how to apply them.
(4) Seventh Month Revival
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We Are Eager to See True Corporate Revival!
The angels are working even now to prepare the way for our advancement, so let us move forward with confidence! Let us lay all on the altar, brethren and sisters. Our time, our money, our career, our relationships—everything belongs to God who bought us by the precious blood of Christ! Therefore, let us hold nothing back from His service, that we will not stand in the way of His work!
And let us remember, too, that revival and reformation must work together; this is what the Scriptures tell us through Ezekiel’s vision of the dry bones. We have a new page dedicated to reformation; check it out here!