Acts 3 - Times of Refreshing — Richard Owen Roberts

Acts 3 and the Healing at the Temple Gate

We'll begin this morning with looking at Acts chapter 3. We'll go to the Lord together in prayer, and then Mr. Roberts will come. Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the ninth hour, the hour of prayer.

And a man who had been lame from his mother's womb was being carried along, whom they used to set down every day at the gate of the temple, which is called beautiful, in order to beg alms of those who were entering the temple.

When he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple, he began asking to receive alms. But Peter, along with John, fixed his gaze on him and said, look at us. And he began to give them his attention, expecting to receive something from them.

But Peter said, I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ, the Nazarene, walk. And seizing him by the right hand, he raised him up, and immediately his feet and his ankles were strengthened.

With a leap, he stood upright and began to walk. And he entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God. And they were taking note of him as being the one who used to sit at the beautiful gate of the temple to beg alms.

And they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. While he was clinging to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them at the so-called portico of Solomon, full of amazement.

But when Peter saw this, he replied to the people, men of Israel, why are you amazed at this? Or why do you gaze at us, as if by our own power or piety we made him walk? The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus, the one whom you delivered and disowned in the presence of Pilate when he had decided to release him.

But you disowned the holy and righteous one and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, but put to death the prince of life, the one whom God raised from the dead, a fact to which we are witnesses.

And on the basis of faith, in his name, it is the name of Jesus which has strengthened this man whom you see and know. And the faith which comes through him has given him this perfect health in the presence of you all.

And now, brethren, I know that you acted in ignorance, just as your rulers did also. But the things which God announced beforehand by the mouth of all the prophets that as Christ would suffer, he has thus fulfilled.

Therefore, repent and return so that your sins may be wiped away in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord so that he may send Jesus, the Christ, appointed for you. God, we thank you.

Well, thank you for the privilege of being with you today. Probably you're all alert to the fact that in the days in which we live, things become increasingly difficult. It doesn't matter where I go. There's bound to be somebody who will tell me, oh, we heard that before.

Well, where? Well, in Los Angeles or Boston or where you didn't hear it here before. Now, you know, most preachers set their minds not to repeat themselves, not that we succeed. I mean, none of us is quite that able.

But these days, you never know whether you're speaking about something that the folk don't know or something they've already heard you say. And I had kind of a critical experience some while back when I was preaching, I think, in Texas in a series.

And there was a woman who had been brought in, a soloist and a beautiful, beautiful singer, very committed Christian. At the end of the series, she said, I will be with you next week. And she named wherever it was, Kansas or wherever.

And I was shocked. And I said, oh, I'm planning to use some of the same material. So? Well, I said, I'm grieved. Well, she said, I'm planning to use the same songs. Oh, I said, I love your songs. Delighted to hear them again.

Well, she said, do you know, I have friends who have worn out the tapes they've had of your sermons, listened 12, 15 times. Well, now, I mean, it may sound silly, but that helped me. It really did. Because there, I was struggling with fearing that I was saying the same things that at least some had already heard.

So I'm not going to worry about that. I just want you to know that it would be utterly impossible for me every time I spoke to say something that nobody ever heard. And I'm not even going to try. So I would like to begin this morning with a question that I want to answer with great care.

Revival and the Authority of the Old Testament

And it's a question based very much on the difficulty of our day in the whole field of revival. Now, I trust, and I have no idea where most of you come from in terms of theological background, but there are some doctrines that have crept into the church over the last 150 years or so that are very, very destructive to the biblical theme of revival.

So one of the constant questions that is hurled at me, why do you spend so much time in the Old Testament? And often, I have taken my Bible and done this. What do you see? This is old. This is new. 2 3rds old, 1 3rd new, roughly.

Now, here's the problem. We have people who say all scripture is given by God. It is suitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. But they say we're New Testament Christians, and we're not interested in the Old Testament notions.

Christ replaced the law. Now, that's very pertinent to this week because anybody who has given serious consideration to the subject of revival is aware that a great portion of the marvelous truths on the subject of revival come from the Old Testament.

Do you know how many times the word revival appears in the New Testament? You do? He says zero. Oh, then what are you talking about? We're New Testament Christians. Now, that may not seem very big to you, but I assure you that is a monstrous matter.

Here, the nation is on the verge of self-destruction, and a huge portion of the church is saying revival is irrelevant. Now, that nonsense did not exist in the church during the great seasons of revival.

That kind of teaching crept in since God was moving powerfully, and it's one of the major reasons why the church continues to plummet downhill morally and spiritually, and we have got to deal with that issue.

So that's how I would like to begin this morning. How do we handle that clear truth that revival is mentioned zero times in the New Testament? If it's important, even if we don't embrace that nonsensical view that eliminates the Old Testament and focuses solely on the New, how do we cope with that absolute fact that revival is mentioned over and over in the Old Testament, not in the New?

It'd be interesting if this were just a discussion, and you felt perfect liberty at any and all times that we're together this week to speak up. Now, what would be wrong if we did it that way? I'm going to give you the authority to speak up, to ask questions, to object, if you like.

I would give you a caution. If you object, you better be sure you know what you're doing. But we are here, aren't we, for the glory of God and for the advancement of the kingdom of God in our lives and through us to others, and the better grip we can get on these truths and the more powerfully these truths lay hold of us, the more useful will be our time together.

So let me say it again, just so you clearly understand. You are at liberty at all times this week when you're dealing with me to interrupt, to contradict, to ask for clarification, to interject an opinion of your own.

There's only one thing I would ask, and that is you extend the courtesy of letting me know you have something to say, but give me an opportunity to finish the paragraph. You don't have to wait for me to finish the whole, but just let me finish the paragraph I'm on.

And, of course, just to wave the hand or any other sensible means that will enable me to recognize you want to speak. So please, feel very deeply at liberty. But now, on this issue of the Old Testament and the New and the fact that we have just spoken about Old Testament revival and the absence of the word in the New Testament.

Now, let's get this as an established fact. It is absurd to say all scripture is given by God and is suitable for doctrine, reproof, and correction, and then to treat the Old Testament as inconsequential.

Because when the scripture, that word, is used in the New Testament, it is not talking about the New Testament. It's talking about the Old Testament. If I may just give you a very personal account of what happened to me when I was a student in the theological seminary.

I had planned to enroll in a seminary in the East. And it was just days before seminary opened. I was ministering in Idaho at that time and my mother called me. And she said to me, the domine. Now, we came from a Presbyterian background in upstate New York.

And the pastor, because it was a Reformed church area, Dutch Reformed, even the Presbyterians referred to their pastor as the domine. So my mom calls and she says, the domine refuses to send in the pastoral recommendation on you to the seminary where you're planning to go.

Why? Well, my mom says, he says it's the wrong school for you. Well, I said, I've already been accepted. I don't know what will happen when he refuses to send in his recommend. Well, she says, the domine thinks you need to go to Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena.

Well, why? Well, because, Dr. Fuller, some of you are old enough to remember the old-fashioned revival hour, that radio program which at that time was the largest Christian program in the world. Dr. Fuller was a sweet-spirited, godly man.

And the domine of our church thought that someone with a burden for revival such as he knew I had should go there. Well, I said, Mom, that's absurd. Fuller is full. They're not accepting students. And I don't have any leadership from the Lord to go there.

Well, she said, what will I tell the domine? Well, I said, when does Fuller start classes? Yesterday. Well, I said, I was going to Columbia in Decatur, South Carolina. I said, I've got 10 days to get to Decatur.

Well, look, Mom, I think it's absurd, but I'll drive by way of Pasadena. So I do. And when I get there, the domine has already made arrangements and he's notified certain personnel that I'm coming. And they make it clear that I'm an absolute fool not to grab the chance to attend Fuller because Fuller is the top seminary in the world.

Fuller is exactly designed for someone like you. You'd be an idiot not to grasp this opportunity because Fuller has turned hundreds of applicants away and they've accepted you. Well, I was troubled because they hadn't seen any report academically on me.

All they had was a recommend of one man. But in confusion, now some of you have been in circumstances like this. You think you know what you're supposed to do. Somehow somebody else messes it all up and you end up in an uncertain state.

So I stayed at Fuller. But it wasn't very long before I was wondering, is the whole Bible inspired by God? Now it's not that they said it wasn't. But they were so adamant in exposing us to all the unbelievers and their opinions that it just got to be very confusing.

Now I had made a link with Dr. Fuller himself. In fact, I'll jump ahead just for a moment. I began in my large or broader state of itinerant work because Dr. Fuller would turn invitations that he received and couldn't accept over to me.

So it had that plus. But now listen carefully. After I had been there for a year and a half, I realized I would be worthless in the ministry because I was in the grip of doubt. Now I'm telling you this not because I want you to know a lot about me.

But I want you to know a lot about what happened to the church. We have countless men in ministry who have their doubts. When you listen to a doubter, it's not very good for your soul. And the church is in decline in part because there is so much uncertainty in the ministry.

But after a year and a half, I made an appointment to talk with the dean. And I went to the dean and I told him of the difficulty I was having believing the Old Testament. And he said to me, Dick, I want you to promise me now that you will do what I'm going to do at the end of the quarter.

I said, what's that? Now wait a minute, he said, you trusted me enough to come and talk to me. I want you to agree to do what I'm going to do. And I said, sorry doctor, but not without knowing what you're going to do.

Well, he was disappointed. But he said, all right, I'll tell you. I'm leaving here at the end of the quarter. Oh, I said, I can do that. So I went back from Pasadena to Spokane, Washington where I had graduated from college and where I had had very extensive ministry throughout the Inland Empire.

And I went to the rescue mission in downtown Spokane and I said to the director who had been a great help and encouragement to me, I left the seminary. I have no money. My parents will be in anguish when I tell them my church will be disgusted with me.

But this is why I left. He said, I have a room here in the mission for you. I want you to stay as long as you need to. I will arrange that your meals be brought to you in your room if you like or you can come to the dining hall when you want.

You stay as long as you need to. Now listen, friends. Day after day after day for three long months I was buried in this book. I began trying to clarify that although I was doubtful about the Old Testament I was truly believing the New.

But I was perplexed every day because I was finding so many quotations from the Old Testament in the New. And it gradually came to me if you're going to have to dump one you're going to have to dump the other as well.

And then suddenly I realized I do believe. And I did. And I do. And I understood then although I had not at that time been asked this question how can you talk about revival and use the Old Testament so much?

Don't you know? It's not a New Testament theme. But I understood the issue then. And I believe by God's grace I still understand it. But I'm speaking this way to you because we have more than one concern here this week.

We are obviously concerned for ourselves. We must be. We must know everything possible about the revival of the work of God in our own lives. We want to know it academically, doctrinally and experientially.

But at the same time we're living in a world of churches where the whole subject of revival is an obscurity in most circles. Now thank God there are churches very much alert to this and very much in prayer concerning revival.

But honestly now I'm going to be perfectly blunt I'll be greatly disappointed if the only benefit that comes to your being here this week is to know more on the subject. I hope that without exception every one of you will be used by God to further the cause of God in true revival.

Christ Fulfills the Types and Shadows

But now look squarely at this fact. The Bible is not two books. The Bible is one book. You see what's happened in the church. Many think the Old Testament is nothing but history. And that it's irrelevant that Christ eliminated the Old.

But I want to make a very firm statement. I believe everything in the Old Testament is still relevant today unless God himself told us otherwise. Now the book of Hebrews I trust you love as much as I do.

But it's a wonderful clarifying factor in this matter. In the book of Hebrews it is very clear that what Christ did was to take the types and the shadows of the Old Testament and bring them into reality.

That's the one area of great change. So that which was a mere type and a shadow the priesthood the sacrificial system, all those matters relating to the ceremonial law it's not merely that they were dismissed but they were brought to completion in Christ the reality.

And those of you who love Hebrews are aware of the fact that the basic position of Hebrews, the reason for it being written in the way in which it was written is simply that the young Hebrew believers were under attack.

Their families were putting pressure on them. Don't be so foolish as to follow Christ. Christ was a heretic. Our leaders proved that he was a heretic. They crucified him because he was pretending to be God.

So if you follow him you're throwing away your life, you're defying your family, you're complicating everything stop being stupid come back to the bosom of your family and it's true religion and of course Hebrews is making it clear if you leave Christ and go back to Judaism, you leave everything to go back to nothing and then as many of you know it was not only the family pressure but Nero the ruler at that time was doing everything in his power to destroy Christianity like some politicians that we know of today.

Now how successful was Nero? Take heart friends it doesn't matter who in high places is trying to destroy Christ they'll be the ones destroyed not Christ. But some of you are aware that thieves, organized bands of thieves were going around to believers homes when they were gathered together in their fellowship and worship meetings and they were looting their homes also some of you are alert to the fact that Nero was sending out palace guards and they were taking captive these young Hebrew believers they were bringing them to the palace they were mounting them on crosses they were putting these crosses around the garden and when Nero had these festivals these young believers were doused with flammable material perhaps tar something like that and set on fire and they provided the light for Nero's garden party.

So the pressure was very great upon them and so Hebrews is constructed in the marvelous fashion that it is perhaps a few of you have missed this wonderful truth. Hebrews has two interwoven parts. There are the wonderful doctrinal sections in which Christ is elevated above all else.

He's compared with the angels he's compared with Moses, he's compared with Melchizedek he's compared with the priesthood and the sacrificial system and in every instance shown to be infinitely greater than any of those things.

But all of those glorious doctrinal passages are interwoven with warnings and at the heart of the warnings is Christianity is not a good beginning. Christianity is a glorious ending doesn't matter near as much how you start as how you finish finishing.

Well. I hope all of you have that deeply embedded in your hearts. I hope you're as determined as I am by the grace of Christ through the power of the word and the spirit to finish well. So I've simply tried to clarify the relationships between the testament.

Now listen. God is more intelligent than we are. Suppose I was talking to this lady your name please? Bonnie. Suppose Bonnie and I were in private conversation. She had already outlined a number of things in a given area that she knew quite well.

Then I proceeded to instruct her in the very areas that she had informed me she was well acquainted. Wouldn't there be something terribly stupid about that. We don't try to teach our children what we know.

They know. We try to teach them what we know. They don't know. Now why would God keep on repeating himself. Is it not sufficient that he has thoroughly established the matter of revival in the old testament.

Why would it be necessary for him to repeat himself in the new. But now listen part of the confusion exists because so many people have never asked simple questions like how long a period does the old testament cover.

Or how long a period does the new testament cover. Well I don't think any of us could give an exact answer to either of those questions. But we do know that the old testament covers many generations and the new testament does not.

Now that may sound so simple that you wonder why I'm mentioning that. But that's a very pertinent matter in what we're thinking of now. Are you familiar with the phrase cycles of history. I don't know how you feel about the imagination.

I know some folk who seem to believe that imagination and its usage is for children. And when you grow up you no longer use your imagination. Well if you want to be stupid I can't prevent it. But I believe the imagination is a gift from God.

I was one time talking with a pastor of a wonderfully useful church and he said to me if the deacons of my church caught me at a time when I was doing my best work for God they would fire me. And I was quite taken aback by what he said and I said explain what you're meaning.

He said I do my best work for God when I close my office door, sit down at my desk put my feet up on the desk tilt back in my chair and dream dreams of the expansion of the kingdom of God. When my imagination begins to think in terms of how the word and the spirit can expand the work and bring glory to Christ, I'm doing my best.

Now you may have some disagreement with that perspective. That's not a concern of mine but I'm asking you to use your imagination now I'm going over to this side of the room and I'm asking you to think about a eye hook just above head level and then across the room in the same position on that other pillar another eye hook at the same level and then stretch between those two high hooks a cable.

We're going to call that cable the norm. You got the picture? Do you realize that a cycle of history involves the crossing of that norm twice. Get that picture in your mind. Think of the cable and the double crossing up down or down up.

Crossing the cable twice. Crossing the norm twice. Now let me ask you some questions. And this time I am expecting you to act alive. Where did the old testament open in terms of that norm. On the line this brother said not below the line.

Where did the old testament close in regard to this norm. Don't ever forget. I'm an old man and one of the consequences of age is your hearing isn't as sharp as it used to be. So favor me in that regard by speaking out yes below the line.

I would actually say that the old testament opened above the line. But to say at the norm there's a lot in this favor. I like that notion. I'm kind of reading your brain but I think yeah. Okay he means at the start.

But get that picture. Old testament opens at the norm. Or perhaps above it. I mean from what you know would you say walking and talking with God in the cool of the evening was norm. I would say it's above norm.

But anyway we're not worried about minor issues. This is a huge matter. So opens at one place closes at a completely different place. How many times during the course of the old testament was that line crossed twice.

Well we don't have a figure. We would just say lots of times. We know that there are at least five separate and distinct counts of this in chronicles. We know that in judges there are not less than seven of these times of crossing it twice.

We know that in Ezra and Nehemiah there are three more times. We know that in Exodus there's at least one. We know that in Samuel there's at least one. I mean it goes on and on. We don't pretend to know the precise number.

But we do know many many times now. Where did the new testament open in regard to that norm. Yes distinctly below the line. Where did the new testament close in relationship to that norm. Yes. Certainly above.

How many times was that line crossed in the new testament. You got that once at Pentecost everything rose gloriously above the line. It never came below the line. Now there are warning passages many of them in the revelation alone.

The seven letters to the churches are very clear warnings in 2nd Timothy 4 Paul enumerates 18 sins that characterize the church in decline. And the warrants against those who have a form of religion but deny the power.

The warnings are very clear very distinct. But now put together those two matters. The frequency of the crossing of the line in the old and the fact that the line is crossed. But once in the new now look there's your explanation as to why revivals is not a frequent theme of the new testament.

Why it was not necessary to use the term at all. Why should a people in the midst of revival be instructed how to have a revival when God is already given all the essential information on that subject.

But you see what's happening to us in the church that such a multitude is disregarding the old testament as if having any true consequence today. And because they don't find the word revival in the new they dismiss it as completely irrelevant.

Prayer, Decline, and the Need for Revival

Now you say to yourself I'm not sure he's right in saying that much of the church is disinterested. Well I don't in any way want to be unkind or cruel or unsympathetic to you. But if you think that the bulk of the Christian church is concerned about revival you better ask God to do some brain work on you.

This is an immense issue. Here we are at a time in our history both as a nation and as part of a greater world when we are at an absolute crisis point when any thoughtful observer of the situation should recognize that there is only one hope and the bulk of the church shows absolutely no concern.

And just as a partial verification of that what has happened to the organized prayer meeting in the bulk of the churches it has either been dismissed altogether or turned into nothingness. Just think maybe even about your church what are the basic themes prayed for where a prayer meeting still exists in a local congregation if that congregation takes prayer requests and you look through the list of prayer requests it is highly probable that if there are ten prayer requests nine of them have solely to do with temporal matter.

Pray for this sick person, pray for this out at work person, pray for this poverty stricken family. And if there are any requests of an eternal nature there are more likely requests. Say some elderly lady who has a drunken son and she is pleading with the congregation that her son might be converted.

And if in the course of the prayer meeting a single request is overlooked it will be that one request affecting eternity. And if there is a focus in the prayer meeting it will almost certainly be upon some temporal issue.

Here we are at the time when the great burden of the whole church ought to be the coming again the divine visitation the sunrise from on high the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and it is largely overlooked.

And if someone gets passionate in the local church prayer meeting others are behind the scenes whispering. Isn't that person a nut. Our prayer meeting would be so much nicer if he just kept quiet. So here we are as I've said in the midst of the greatest possible crisis and the church by and large just seems utterly unconcerned.

And what I've tried to say to you is there are of course many reasons for that lack of concern. But one very significant reason is a failure to understand the correct relationship between the testaments.

So let me personalize this now and ask you do you understand this matter. Are you yourself correctly orientated to these things. Do you realize that it is God's sovereign intention. And has been throughout history that when there is a season of decline there must be a season of revival.

So again the two cycles the down, the up the decline and then the revival. Now just a wee bit more on this matter. As I've said we could not possibly safely number all the revivals recorded in sacred history it is sufficient to say they are many.

But now listen as you study these old testament accounts certain things become increasingly apparent. The decline deepens with the advancement of time and the upturn goes lower. Have you thought your way through that.

You study carefully all the accounts of revival. And you do not see them becoming greater and greater. You see them becoming less and less. And have you ever considered with any care the last recorded revival in the chronicles.

Did you ever put together the last revival in the book of chronicles with the prophet Jeremiah. Do you know that Jeremiah was ministering during that time of the last revival in the history of Israel and Judah.

Now you say why does he mention that? Listen friends you remember how Jeremiah approached his ministry. Was it with confidence. If I am faithful if I do what God tells me there will be glorious revival.

No he knew from the start. Nobody would pay any attention to him. Maybe some of you are pastors and you have a feeling nobody is paying any attention to you. Should you quit. Well did Jeremiah quit. But I want you to think of this this last revival.

Josiah's Revival and the Limits of National Reform

Let's just familiarize ourselves not with the details but with the time frame of these things. So if you will turn in 2nd Chronicles and just to see what I am making reference to have a look just for a moment at 2nd Chronicles 28.

2nd Chronicles 28. Verse 1 Ahaz was 20 years old when he became king and he reigned 16 years in Jerusalem and he did not do right in the sight of God. Chapter 29 Hezekiah became king when he was 25 he reigned 29 years in Jerusalem.

Verse 2 he did right in the sight of the Lord according to all that his father had done. 30 is a continuation. 31 is still a continuation. Then in chapter 32 we have details about Zennacherib and in 33 details about Manasseh.

And notice these few words about Manasseh. In verse 2 he did evil in the sight of the Lord according to the abominations of the nations whom the Lord dispossessed before the sons of Israel. Chapter 34 Josiah was 8 years old when he became king and he reigned 31 years in Jerusalem.

Chapter 35 Josiah celebrated the Passover of the Lord in Jerusalem. Chapter 36 we have the priesthood of Johads and Jehoiakim. Verse 5. And what's the last chapter 36. Now listen. I know that was a lot to try to digest and it was not my intent.

You should just get a hold of the whole thing but just to catch the sense Josiah rises to the throne at a time when it was already too late for Jerusalem. Josiah reigned during the prophecy of Jeremiah.

And if you know Jeremiah you know it was too late. Jeremiah is an astonishing book because it is loaded with compassionate appeal and time after time the people are urged to return to the Lord and yet Jeremiah knew they would not but understand this.

Now because Josiah sought the Lord a revival did occur but it made no difference in terms of the eternal well being of the Jewish people. They had already sinned beyond hope. God had placed them under judgment they were to be carried away into captivity.

And yet God did send a wonderful stirring and movement under Josiah. But now if you will connect it with what I was speaking of before we came to Josiah I said to you that if you go through the records instead of each revival rising higher each declension went lower and the revival not as high as the one before it.

So the revival under Josiah did not save the nation. It did save some. It was from God it did accomplish its purpose. Now why do I tell you that do any of us dare say America will not be destroyed. I wouldn't dare say that I spoke yesterday about Romans 11 and the promise of the Jews being provoked to jealousy.

And I gave you an argument which I know is sound that there are more Jews in America than in any other land and therefore I hope with great fervency that the filthy bride of the American church will be made pure in a true revival and that the Jews will be provoked to jealousy.

In short I am saying I am convinced that another great revival will occur. But I don't dare to go so far as to say it will occur in America. I hope it will. And in looking at this account of Josiah we need revival whether it leads to the salvation of the nation or not.

And so it will be pertinent now for me to ask you are you really committed to seeking the face of God in true revival. But I have given you what I believe is a solid reason not in any way to be affected by those who say revival is an Old Testament theme.

It is nothing to do with the New but let me simply reiterate for the slow minded God established all the great principles about revival in the Old Testament. There was no need for him to repeat himself in the New.