Revive Us Again! (6)

Opening Prayer: Psalm 85.13
Righteousness will go before Him,
And shall make His footsteps our pathway.

Sing Psalm 85.10-13
(Lyons: O Worship the King)
In Jesus God’s grace and truth are combined;
both goodness and peace in Him do we find.
Truth springs from the earth as He walks in our midst,
and righteousness flows from the heav’ns as a gift.

The Lord by His grace will give what is good;
our land will produce abundance of food.
And righteousness will go before the Lord’s face,
and make of His footsteps a way in this place.

Read Psalm 85, meditate on verse 13

Preparation
1. What goes before the Lord when He comes in revival?

2. Where do the revived people walk?

Meditation
This final verse of Psalm 85 is meant as a summary. It tells us what leads to revival (vv. 1-7), and it shows us where revival leads (vv. 8-12).

God will not revive His people until they confess their sins, repent, and return to the path of His Law (2 Chron. 7.14; Ps. 119.59, 60). Indeed, He will not even hear our prayers for revival – or any of our prayers – if we harbor sin in our lives (Ps. 66.18; Is. 59.1, 2). We cannot make ourselves righteous; only God can do that. Our duty is to get rid of any obstacles to righteousness that may have taken hold in our soul.

God has declared us to be righteous by setting us apart as His people and giving us His Spirit. When we confess our sins and turn away from them, we allow the light of God’s indwelling righteousness to shine in the form of love for God and our neighbors. Thus we prepare the way of righteousness for God to come and revive us more completely.

And when He does, the path we walk will be the path He walks – the path Jesus walked when He was among us, the path of God’s Law (1 Jn. 2.1-6). We may expect God to revive us when He sees in us that earnest desire to return to the path of righteousness (Heb. 12.3-11). And we’ll know revival has begun as the followers of Jesus walk His footsteps in holiness, righteousness, peace, joy, and love.

Pray earnestly for revival. But pray intelligently and obediently as well, that revival may begin in you.

Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
Merry Christmas! “The LORD will give what is good…” (Ps. 85.12). Yes, He did!

“Righteousness will go before Him, and shall make His footsteps our pathway” (Ps. 85.13).

First, Jesus always goes before us to show us the way: “But go, tell His disciples—and Peter—that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you” (Mk. 16.7). (How kind for us all that Jesus issued that special invitation to Peter, who had just denied Him three times). Jesus had just gone through suffering and death and life for us. He did it perfectly and before us, so that we can learn from Him.

Then He tells us how to do it: “Follow Me” (Matt. 9.9).
“Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it” (Mk. 8.34, 35).
“If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serve Me, him My Father will honor” (Jn. 12.26).
“For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: ‘Who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth’, who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed” (1 Pet. 2.21-24).

Then He tells us what to look forward to: “They sang as it were a new song before the throne…who were redeemed from the earth…These are the ones who followed the Lamb wherever He goes. These were redeemed from among men, being firstfruits to God and to the Lamb. And in their mouth was found no deceit, for they are without fault before the throne of God” (Rev. 14.3, 4, 5).

Thus we have confidence in what He will do: “You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Ps. 16.11).

Because all this is true, then we must gladly and obediently follow our dear Savior.
Looking back, looking ahead, looking up, looking around, looking good, onto the Revival Path!
He is the only way to go (Jn. 14.6).

Reflection
1. Why do you suppose God insists that we confess and repent of sin before He will revive us?

2. What does it mean to follow Jesus in the pathway of revival?

3. How can believers encourage one another to prepare for and seek revival day by day?

Through Christ, the pardoned sinner becomes fruitful in good works, and by looking to and trusting in the Saviour’s righteousness, finds his feet set in the way of his steps. Righteousness is a sure guide, both in meeting God, and in following him. Matthew Henry (1662-1714, Commentary on the Psalm 85.13

Closing Prayer: Psalm 85.4-9
Pray for revival in yourself and your church, for renewal throughout the Lord’s churches, and for a great awakening to faith to begin over all the earth. Seek the Kingdom and righteousness of Jesus for your walk with Him today.

Sing Psalm 85.4-9
(Lyons: O Worship the King)
Restore us, O God, renew us in peace,
and cause all Your wrath against us to cease.
Will You evermore all Your wrath to us show?
Revive us that we may Your joy again know.

Lord, show us Your love; restore us, we pray!
And help us to hear the words that You say.
Speak peace to Your people; in truth let us stand.
We fear You; let glory and grace fill our land.

T. M. and Susie Moore

You can listen to our summary of last week’s study by clicking here.

Psalm 85 is an exercise in living from the Christian vantage point on life. For more about that vantage point, and how to live it, order a free copy of our book, Vantage Point (click here).

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter (Williston: Waxed Tablet Publications, 2006), available by clicking here.