Part 2 of an article by Rev. Reimar Schultze, a modern-day Elijah and Holocaust survivor, who speaks to the world as few are able to do in our day. To read Part 1, click here.
Paul said, “For the
time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own
lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears, And they
shall turn away their ears from the truth…”
I believe that the time Paul is referring to is now. And that being so, it is not time to
compromise with the world, to mix Baalism with Christ, to keep them at any
cost. Rather it’s time for us to hold
steady, to go deeper, to pray more earnestly, to take the remnant and let them
be in white heat for their love of Jesus.
Then the day will come when the fire will fall and sinners will be
converted in their automobiles, in the taverns, in the college classrooms, in
the factories without even a sermon or an altar call being given, as it was in
the case of the Welsh revival.
In the Welsh revival, seventeen men refused Baalism in
Christianity, they refused to lower the standard, they refused to go after
people with chicken feed; and on that memorable night in 1904, the fire
came. Within a month, those seventeen
men who prayed and held steady produced a fruit of 37,000 who repented to
receive Christ. And within five months,
100,000 had been swept into the kingdom of God.
Then even Welsh newspapers began to include columns of the names of
those born of God. Again, this revival
did not come by compromise, by making the lukewarm or sinner feel comfortable
and ”at home” in the church. This revival came by holding steady until
the Pentecostal flames had cleansed every sin, spot, and blemish out of every
heart of the committed remnant of God.
Or consider the mighty work of God in the Hebrides Islands
revival from 1948 to 1952. It was
equally powerful. Here, seven men in a
barn and two elderly sisters in their home decided to hold on and see the
salvation of the Lord. Listen to this
little excerpt of what it was like in those days:
The little band of prayer warriors
made their way to the farmhouse to plead the promises of God. Just after midnight Duncan Campbell asked
John, the local blacksmith, to pray.
John rose to his feet with his cap in hand and prayed a prayer that will
never be forgotten by those who were present.
In the middle of his prayer, he
stopped and raised his right hand to heaven and continued, ‘Oh God, you made a
promise to pour water on the dry ground, and Lord, it’s not happening.’ He
paused again and then continued, ‘Lord, I don’t know how the others here stand
in your Presence; I don’t know how these ministers stand, but Lord, if I know anything
about my own heart, I stand before you as an empty vessel, thirsting for thee
and for a manifestation of Thy power.’ He halted again, and after a moment of
tense silence cried, ‘Oh, God, your
honor is at stake; and I now challenge you to fulfill your covenant engagement
and do what you promised to do.’
Here is a man praying the prayer
of faith that heaven must answer. There
are those in Arnol today who will verify the fact that while the brother
prayed, the dishes on the dresser
rattled as God turned loose His mighty power.
Then wave after wave of divine power swept through the room. Simultaneously, the Spirit of God swept
through the village. People could not sleep,
and houses were lit all night. People
walked the streets in great conviction; others knelt by their bedsides crying
for pardon (“Bright and Shining Revival” by Kathie Walters; Good News
Fellowship Ministries, Macon, Georgia, pp. 11-12)
The word is not “compromise” – not to blend in with the
values, the mores, and the customs that The word is “stay put, dig in, get hotter,
close the ranks” and pray and obey and live as if it is a matter of life and
death for the church of Jesus Christ and a sinful world.
people are comfortable with.
 |
| Pastors Reimar Schultze and Aaron Simms at Waiting 2017, Parker City, IN |
Wait and see the salvation of the Lord. But don’t pollute yourself to get
success. Success in ministry is not
gathering crowds, it is not making ourselves look good, it is not competing,
but it is dying out to do the will of God second by second. We will never get to great revivals by
compromise, by giving people what they want in our churches, by making them
comfortable in our sanctuary. The key is
no compromise!
This drastic attitude was reflected most clearly by our Lord
than when he turned to a multitude and said, “If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife,
and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot
be my disciple. And whosoever doth not
bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26-27).
Jesus never compromised the standards for discipleship, and he never stooped to
do any of his work through anyone who refused such strict standards. Oh, my friend, let us not build lukewarm
churches, knowing that Jesus will spit every one of those lukewarm ones out of
his mouth. (Rev. 3:16).
Man, by his perverted nature, is seeking success, a piece of
glory, and as long as any of this
element is alive in any preacher, he is the most dangerous man in town, and he
has no business being in the pulpit.
Modern evangelism is a compromising, Baalish evangelism that is
self-seeking, flesh-glorifying, masquerading in a Hollywood spirit, void of the
supernatural power. It holds no promise
for the “fire” to fall again. The
spiritual pastor has and is continuing to crucify the flesh and to seek no
glory for his own but only that of the Triune God for him and for his
people. He does not give the church
what she wants by what God requires of her.
So, let me close with some more words of Tozer on this
subject: “Every effort to smooth out the road for me and to take away the guilt and the embarrassment is worse than wasted: it is evil and dangerous to the
souls of men.” (“Renewed Day By Day” by A.W. Tozer, Christian Publications,
Inc.)
Please pray for me!
Waiting 2017 - Recap #1 (Summary of meetings held in Dec. 2017 in which Rev. Schultze and others were used greatly of God.)
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