The Real Generosity in Revivals
As much as social media wants to censor Christianity, the reality is that revivals are sweeping across America—changing one heart a time! Some of the greatest revivals in human history were recorded in the Bible, specifically in Exodus 36, 2 Chronicles 31, and Acts 2. All of these revivals had one major thing in common: The abundance of generosity outflowing from the hearts of His people.
Over the past year, countless revivals have swept through the world! From an 8,000-student revival in the University of Texas to an “unbelievable revival” in a Russian-controlled part of Moldova, the Holy Spirit has been changing hearts!
Pastor Greg Locke speaks candidly about the connection between major revivals and radical generosity: “If people’s hearts and pocketbooks are not loosened, you can call it a cute meeting where people got emotionally super-charged, but you can never call it revival. Real awakening always stirs biblical generosity—unbelievably radical levels of biblical generosity.
[An example of a ‘real’ revival] is the Pentecost Awakening—and what an awakening it was. This revival shook the people so radically that we still feel it today. Our church exists, and your church exists, and every other Christian church in the world exists because of the Pentecost Awakening. Pentecost was a one-time event. It will never be repeated, nor does it have to, because God left us the principles on how to experience the power of Pentecost, and these principles have been applied for nearly two thousand years.
As we learn from the record of Acts 2, the Holy Spirit shows up and shows out, and supernatural things start happening. Among these happenings are all the new converts who are suddenly and radically transformed. We’re not talking about fifty-year-old believers who’ve had time to sit and think about it. We’re talking about people who are brand-new to the faith. They had just come out of religion, and suddenly they were trusting in Jesus, despite the fact that most of them were going to have their heads cut off because of it. They didn’t care, and those that survived gave up everything as they were driven underground.
You know what they did? They said, ‘You’ve got a need? And you’ve got a need? Oh, and you too? You also have a need? Well, I have this extra property. I have this extra boat. I have this extra bicycle. I have a little extra bling for the king. I have this cash in my pocket, some nice pottery out back, and some artwork I can fetch in Jerusalem and convert to money on eBay or Craigslist.’ You get the point.
The Bible says they sold their stuff, brought the proceeds to the church, and distributed it among the people to make sure everybody’s bills got paid. That’s God’s welfare program, and it’s the only such program there should be—the people of God taking care of the people of God. If we did that today, we would never need the government to help the poor, as the church would simply be the church. That is a lost art in the day and age in which we live, but make no mistake: it is a biblical command that the church has been disobeying for far too long.
Yet as we see in Acts 2, when revival came during the first century—when the Pentecost Awakening came—the people freely sold their possessions, and they gave to every man as he had need. I know a lot of folks reading this are thinking, ‘Well, that’s sweet and all, but maybe that was just a one-and-done kind of event.’ But check this out. In Acts 4 we see:
Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, and laid them down at the apostles’ feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.
—Acts 4:34–35
Notice that in Acts 2 they only sold their possessions, but just two chapters later the people got so buck-wild generous that they began selling their houses and lands. They sold it all for the sake of those in need. They brought the money from the things sold and laid it down at the apostles’ feet. And then they distributed it to every man according to his needs.
In all three of the biblical revivals [mentioned earlier], we see the same exact response. When the fire falls, the people can’t help but give. They can’t help but sacrifice. They sold their possessions, their lands, and their houses to make sure the church and the people were well taken care of.”
For more information on Greg Locke’s new book, The Generosity Journey, visit MyCharismaShop.com