The illustration shows a ‘picture’ I was given when praying for the UK Church three years ago. I saw a broken-down wall, effectively useless for either demarcating territory or for security.

The foundations were largely still in place, but in places they were completely buried in rubble. The situation seemed of long standing and well established, well beyond any quick fix. I attempted to sketch what I saw.

Divergent Prayers?

In many hours of prayer during this current crisis, I have felt a strong burden in the Lord to pray for the Church and especially for its leaders. I have noted something interesting.

Among prayer ministries, there is a significant divergence between those like myself, who feel that Covid-19 is a judgment of God upon a world that has largely gone its own way and ignored him, and those who see the pandemic as an evil spiritual attack, consequently attempting to ‘bind’ it and pray strongly against it.

For the former group, the answer would come in the form of a turning back to the Lord or, to use the biblical word, ‘repentance’. For the latter group, the answer would logically come in seeing the virus ‘defeated’. Yet the interesting thing is that both groups are praying and believing that a greatly renewed Church will come out of the crisis.

Some talk of ‘revival’, some talk of a great strengthening of the Church, and some talk of ‘renewal’. Depending upon how we use these words (and their definitions can vary widely), there is not necessarily a great divergence in end-goal between these two groups of fervent believers.

In my own prayer, in the Spirit, I have felt to pray and believe for an army of ordinary church members to come forth from this time: for the ordinary foot-soldier of Christianity to turn fully to the Lord and be renewed, to enter into a new intimacy with him, rising up together to form a wall across the land.

For this to work, we need to pray for leaders likewise to rise up and be renewed, to come back to the infallible, inerrant and eternal word of truth, and to lead their flocks faithfully into all righteousness, whilst they themselves walk humbly before God in a pathway of holiness.

I pray for an army of ordinary church members to come forth from this time, rising up together to form a wall across the land.

Prophetic Call

If we believe (as I do) that whenever a plague comes, the call of Scripture is always to turn back to the Lord in repentance, then this needs to be proclaimed to the nation by the people of God. That being the case, where is that word of repentance to the nation? It seems strangely silent out there!

Maybe the answer is that judgment starts with the household of God (1 Pet 4:17). If an army of ordinary Christians does indeed rise up and if there is a coming forth of a new godly leadership at this time, then maybe the prophetic voice calling the nation to repentance will begin to be heard.

Being Clear on Terms

But in order to be able to understand one another, we often need to consider the way that we are using particular words. There is no biblical definition of ‘revival’ and therefore the word means different things to different believers. There have probably been as many models of revival as there have been actual revivals over the centuries!

To be revived is to be brought back to consciousness. To be revived is to wake up! To be revived is to be brought back to what we once were and to what was always intended for us. That is the normal meaning of the word in English. Yes, many new additions will likely come into the Kingdom as well, because when people are flat on their backs it is a good time to look up! They will need to be discipled by those who are already walking close to the Lord. But in order to bring in the harvest, the workers first need to be galvanised, prepared and sent out.

What is needed is for the people of God to be awake and active, about the service of the King, empowered and led by the blessed Holy Spirit, alert to the state of society, ready to make a stand, and passionate about the condition of the lost.

Similarly, what do we mean when we say ‘renewed’? To be renewed is to be made new. Is this not what the Spirit of Jesus does? To make all things new? Renewal results when many ordinary Christians return to a life of intimacy with him, to obedience to his word and to being empowered with the Spirit. And to channel this effectively we need godly, righteous, empowering, equipping, servant leaders to emerge. I believe that this is what the Lord wants. It is worth praying for.

Finally, what do we mean by ‘repentance’? Does this word not mean ‘to think again’? Does it not mean a turning away from what is ungodly to that which is godly? Does it not require a turning back to the Lord and a decision to walk in his ways from now on? Surely, therefore, a correct understanding of both ‘revival’ and ‘renewal’ would involve ‘repentance’.

If an army of ordinary Christians does rise up and a new godly leadership comes forth at this time, then maybe the prophetic voice calling the nation to repentance will begin to be heard.

Rebuilding the Wall

If we use any of these three terms as we have defined them here, are we not talking broadly about the way in which professing believers need to turn back to the Lord at this time? And is this not what he is requiring? Only then will God’s people be in a position to talk to the nation about its many ungodly and obnoxious practices that are so abhorrent to the holy God of heaven.

If these things come to pass, we will see the stones of the wall come back into place. We will see a wall being built that is a strong demarcation between the godly and the unrighteous, a wall that is effective and strong.

An ordinary intercessor in a village in Derbyshire.