The Withered Fig Tree — Dave Storey

Expecting Revival and the Sovereignty of God

Studies and things like that just prayer times and I had to say Don my heart always feels the same about you brother and I think of you many times, and I thank God for you heart for revival and We should be Expecting revival our God has all power amen.

There's there's no one that can stop his hand or say you know what can you do like God is sovereign? He has all power and He's just looking for men and women who will be completely set apart for him, and when that happens God will move.

You know we don't know to what degree always. But I do know that I just want to share a few things that like just down the road from where I live there was a revival back in the 40s and It was at a little Southwest Baptist Church and the church basically had gone through quite a bit of a dead period and One of my friends he's an older gentleman, but a man of God who I love Wilbur Matthews he was actually one of the men who was converted in that meeting and there were two nights and this preacher this Joe Strack.

And he wasn't like a great orator or nothing like that and many of the churches didn't even want him to come to their churches. Because they didn't he didn't meet their qualifications but at the same time during that time after the war a lot of the churches especially a lot of the Baptist churches had become quite liberal and All the different liberal thoughts have been creeping in you know.

And so this church wanted to see something happen, so they brought this guy in. And he preached in two nights. There was over 90 people saved in two nights. Wilbur was one of them his brother was another one and his sister.

She became a missionary actually to Africa I believe or India his brother actually and then his and his brother's son now would be out in New Maryland out there Matthews out there, so I don't know him well, but I just know the family well and Wilbur and and his son and you know like I was just thinking if God moved that way in two nights.

Imagine that 90 some people there's almost no fall away from those numbers at the exact same time on the island of Hebrides. With Duncan Campbell there was there was over 20 ,000 people converted in five weeks.

In 1904 with Evan Roberts. He actually had that same sense liberalism and modernism had just invaded the church nobody was praying nobody had faith almost and. And during that revival he actually felt that the Lord told him before there was going to be over a hundred thousand people Converted that's actually in his diaries.

I've read just about everything you can get on that revival and. And and within six months there was over a hundred thousand people Converted stocks that Walsh Bibles were sold out taverns were shut down sports things were shut down.

And out of that movement many missionary movements also actually happened and went all over the whole globe. Think of that like a place smaller than their buns week and a hundred thousand people what would it look like if a hundred thousand people were converted in New Brunswick and Literally transformed, and I'm not talking about religion and turn over no leaf.

I'm talking about being born of the Holy Spirit. Regeneration is a supernatural work of God where God literally through the gospel takes out a heart of stone. Puts in a heart of flesh and puts his spirit in that man and that woman and they become alive in Christ.

Become a new creature all things pass away and all things become new and that's you know. So well a God that that his kingdom come isn't it? That you know that that his kingdom come that that people be added to his church.

And when I think when we read the book of Acts we look at that that was a some kind of a strange thing. But realistically that was just a reoccurring theme over and over and over in our church. Life now in all of us.

We have become very deadened by our culture and society and we need to get back to the Bible and get back to praying and believe in the promises of God and not following men, but following God and don't follow men whatever you do and don't follow this man and go home and examine what I'm saying and see if it's true after.

Or not and your Bibles be like the Brienne's. And so I just wanted to share that this morning to encourage you that God is mighty he's able to move he wants to move and. But there may be some things that need to be removed in us and see what we're going to talk about this morning is is that as some of the things that's going to need to take place for personal revival and Awakening and also for for corporate revival.

You know and I can't guarantee any numbers or nothing like God I'm just a man, but I do know that it's the Lord's will that that that people be added to his kingdom. So I just want to go to prayer and we're going to go to Matthew 21 18 through 22.

And one revival I forgot to mention too was and I got to talk to Bill McLeod before as well the revival. It's ask you to in there that revival as well and some of my good friends are actually all connected with them Don Kern and People that's connected him with the Soterra twins and things so I'm kind of in that kind of being I like Raven Hill Don and I like a lot of the same guys I like spurge and moody if they're on for God and on for truth and awakening.

I'm on for it if they're just dead either way. I'm not into reading their their minds. Anyways, let's pray father. Thank you God today Lord for your word your word is absolute truth. It's an errand infallible, and it's sufficient, and it's all we need for life and godliness Lord let everything else be put aside, and I pray Lord that we would be a praying people.

I pray that God that your spirit would meet with us today Lord that you will bless these people here today and Lord that you would awaken us and Lord that you would convict us Lord your word says when the Holy Spirit comes.

He will convict Lord of righteousness Lord and sin and judgment Lords so today do that Lord that you would awaken Lord that people would be encouraged God today that You were Lord Alive and well and we're willing to do things Lord if we will just get on your side in Jesus name in and so Matthew chapter 21 and Verses 18 through 22.

The Withered Fig Tree and Its Warning

I want to just read this passage. It's called and this Message is actually the I'm titled the withered fig tree and made that not be said about this church. You know and when I think about Evangelical churches, I want them to stay open and we plant churches, and we don't compete with other churches.

We're hoping to complete with other churches that preach the true gospel and believe the Bible. And so what we want to see is that happening and so when I preach that message this morning I want you to understand that my heart is for you as a Christian and as a pastor and that I love people.

I love the gospel, but I will say things this morning that will be hard probably to hear for some people. But I pray that we would all humble ourselves Before the Lord and hear his word and say God whatever needs to take place.

Just do it in my life, and if we will humble ourselves We will be exalted, but if we exalt ourselves God will humble us. So we have to take our pick on that and I pray that we will. Early in the morning as he was on the way back to the city He was hungry and seeing a fig tree by the road.

He went up to it and found nothing on it except leaves. And then he said may you never bear fruit again and immediately the tree withered. When the disciples saw this they were amazed at how how did the fig tree withers so quickly they asked and Jesus replied?

I tell you the truth if you have faith and do not doubt not only can you do what was done to the fig tree? But also you can say to this mountain go throw yourself into the sea and it will be done if you believe.

You will receive whatever you ask for in prayer. And so this morning I want to look at this and this is an object lesson first of all for the the Old Testament Jewish Church the nation of Israel and This is the primary artist.

But it's also an object lesson for the early church for the church all through the ages and Jesus is with his people to the Very end of the age, but it is it is a warning for the churches as as it was for Israel.

And that we we don't want to be withered so the Jewish nation The nation of Israel that that church in the Old Testament was without fruit. That's the the point of the message and also we're going to look at the fact that many New Testament churches bear no fruit and have The Bible uses it this way in Revelation chapter 2 that Jesus himself actually sometimes removed the lampstand now.

That's scary, and when I think about churches like driving through the Maritimes, and I've preached in Ontario especially a lot of places in the southern states and Georgia and Louisiana and Florida different places like that you drive through and see churches being boarded up or being closed down.

You know it's a sad thing for me. I don't look at that and think oh wow isn't that great. You know that these are being closed down my heart breaks when I see it. Because see those churches were once actually fruit-bearing churches at one time obviously they were once salt and light.

But they had lost its savor and the light had grown dim and the glory departed and Jesus himself actually removes the lampstand. And we don't want to see that and in the day, which we're in. We need more churches how many people rate in Fredericton like in the surrounding areas close to a hundred thousand people?

Counting the surrounding area. And if you actually took how many people are in evangelical churches that bleed the Bible and believe that you must be born again. They are low and getting lower and so we need churches.

And we need churches like this one not only to stay alive but we need to we want to pray that God would actually bring revival and expand these churches and. Also the third lesson we're going to look at this morning is that every fruitless professor of faith is in danger Of being cursed and that's the doctrine of apostasy.

I'm not going to get into that extremely, but we're going to look first at Israel the Lord's curse on the fruitless tree. You think about that that you know these Jews and so Jesus actually curses this tree.

Christ’s Divine Nature and the Fig Tree

And so when we think about Jesus Christ what I want to look at this morning. Is that he is has an eternal divine nature John 17 5 that was with the father in the beginning? He he wasn't as the father he was with the father his divine nature.

And then they took on human nature and so what you have in Jesus the Christ is one person and two natures a divine nature which was eternal in a human nature that he took on so that he could become the sacrifice for our sins and the sins of the whole world and when he just spoke to this tree like you imagine going up to talking to a tree you know and Sometimes people do it.

I remember quite a few years ago. There was a sign over the bank in Nova Scotia on the Downtown it was between there and Kings place. And it was a picture of David Suzuki. And he had his hand holding up on a tree looking up at it saying could this be my mother and I was thinking I don't.

Think that's his mother so it just goes to show you that a man can be quite intellectual and smart and not be wise at all and so. And quite twist it but Jesus was. What you could understand about him, he's not just the man of Galilee.

That's his human nature, but his human nature could be hungry. He says I thirst all these different things, but his divine nature was with the father in the beginning in Genesis chapter 1. He said let there be light.

And there was light as the exact same second person in the Godhead saying to this tree may you never bear fruit again? When he speaks it happens when we speak it doesn't necessarily happen, but when God speaks it's a finished deal and Jesus is God in the flesh.

Now there's a heart searching lesson for us in this year and in this withered fig tree so early in the morning again. Here's Jesus. He's on his way back to the city. He's hungry, so here's his human nature, right?

He's he's not only divine. He is actually hungry and seeing the fig tree by the road he went to he found no fruit on it except for leaves and leaves aren't a very good sandwich and. Then he said to it may you never bear fruit again.

And just I just think about that the leaves on there immediately the tree wither just picture him saying the words. All the leaves just dry and crumple and the tree just withers and falls. Like the power to be able to say that like you know this is the eternal God.

And that fig tree full of leaves. But it had no fruit was a picture of the Jewish Old Testament Church Israel and when Jesus was upon on the earth they had everything though on the outside. They looked alive like many churches today.

They had many things on the outside well the Jewish people they had the temple. They had the priesthood they had the daily sacrifice. They had the yearly feast the Old Testament Scriptures they had the scriptures they knew what the scripture said in.

The courses of the Levites on duty, and they had the morning and even sacrifice but beneath all those good leaves. This nation this Old Testament Church was utterly barren of fruit. They had they had no real fruit.

They just had leaves. It's a shell on the outside. They had no grace. And I want to say even at the top no love. Which is the greatest of all. No no no love no grace no real fruit. No humility. And I want to say today I've preached all over.

That is a really lacking thing amongst God's people and I was very blessed to be around some of those old Reviver Preachers back in the 70s when I was a boy growing up. And I remember being at meetings where all you could see was just people in black shoes and people weeping and crying out for their children and for their grandchildren and praying for the Lord to come.

Brokenness and repentance and It's like today so many people when they hear things that they just sit there. And I pray that we're not amongst out here today. I pray that God softens our heart and that we're really for him but if we want to see God move we're going to humble ourselves.

You read the book of Nehemiah and Ezra you read them confessing sins and Getting things cleaned up before God comes. We can't just you know sit in our seats and hear the message and say oh that you know tickled my ears today or that was interesting and.

And then not do nothing. We are to humble ourselves before God. Amen. God is holy. You read Isaiah 6. Isaiah sees Christ exalted in his train filled. The temple is filled with smoke and the threshold shook and Isaiah didn't say oh.

That was a good message, or you know I really feel good about myself and have a lot more self-esteem now. He said woe is me. I'm undone. That's what happens when you meet God in those ways in quite a few years ago for me.

And I'm not a charismatic. I'm hopefully I'm charismatic in the right kind of way, but I'm from the old older school theologically and I'm a firm believer in every single thing that the Word of God says.

I don't believe God's speaking outside of his word. And I believe whatever his word says is finished, and we're not to add to it, and we're not to take away at all. But there's a lot being taken away from it today and back in the mid 90s I was reading my Bible and praying.

I was working so that in such a way I was working from 3 to about 10 every night and so my wife and I and then we had four little small children. They're all growing up now. One of our sons is a firefighter here in Frankton.

And another one's a carpenter our daughters married to a logger guy and our youngest son just finished forestry. So we got five grandkids now, so things have changed a lot. But during those times I was spending a minimal of five to seven hours a day in the word and prayer every morning and Seriously like two or three hours and there's intercessory prayer.

Seeking the Lord and at times fasting and because I'm reading my Bible, and I was going to churches. You know I'm saying I'm not seeing what the Bible saying something's missing, and I've seen things happen when I was younger.

I've seen Revivals and little awakenings and stuff and so having seen that I was I sought the Lord and honestly for two or three years and One particular time while I was praying and reading my Bible in my dining room the doors closed.

It's just like the Lord showed up, and there was such a heaviness come upon me. It wasn't like I had this real good feeling about myself like a lot of people are saying today I trembled my knees knocked and I this happened to me a couple of times.

And you know I never it never really happened again since that time or before that. But I talked to many good godly men after that God was setting me apart for a ministry at that point to preach his word and I do believe that God wants his people to be filled with the spirit and That doesn't mean flopping around In the boat like a dead fish like fish dying in the springtime in your boat but what it means is is to be alive in Christ and so I Know what it is to be awakened.

Revival Through Prayer, Evangelism, and Church Planting

I can remember when I was born again. And I also can remember that time in the 90s when God was setting me apart. And there's something different happened after that it just seemed like when I started talking to people people Started at coming to Christ and within a few years I had led over 40 people to Christ, and then we were in church planting.

We were in Moncton. We then we then we moved from Moncton back on to to Fredericton for a little while. And we just met with a bunch of people here, and then I've moved over to dovetail, and that's where I actually grew up.

That's not a real big spot some of you might know where it is. If you blink you'll miss it they say in the way through. But but at that point at that point You know God was calling us. There was four or five of us and We prayed and and prayed and prayed and prayed and within that first year over 27 people came to Christ.

And we baptized 27 people and the next year there was 17 that came to Christ and every year as a matter of fact four more People just came to Christ where we lived. There's just under 800 people and our church if it's full on Sunday if everyone's there with all their kids and families.

We have between about 150 and 180 people now and the high majority of them people have all been born again and converted at our church. And so God is moving in small populations. We planned another church in Rishabuck do Chris simply surpassed her that and That church started off in a guy's living room the same thing that church has grown now and we have another church actually that we planted here and.

But we're over in Marysville in that area. We're building a new church facility now for for our flock and So again there too. We started off with about so many people in a living room. We just started praying and God started saving people and so I want to encourage you that you got a lot of people around you here and God God's arm is not too short to save and It's actually he actually would rather people be saved than perish and so we need to be about his business.

But see Israel had no love they had no humility and greatest of all. They were not willing to receive Jesus as a Messiah were they and Jesus even said right before he was crucified shortly before he said how I Longed to gather you together to the people as a mother hen gathered her chicks, but you were what?

Unwilling. It wasn't that Jesus was unwilling. He was willing, but they weren't willing and the question is this morning Are we willing to be completely surrendered to Jesus Christ not only as Having as our Savior or some ticket to heaven, but as the Lord of your life that he rules your life.

This is the only path to joy, too. I'll say that the reason why many Christians don't have any joy is because they're trying to control their own lives. Andrew Murray wrote a great book years ago. It's called absolute surrender.

It's phenomenal and what God wants is full surrender of our hearts he doesn't want us holding on to parts to lay down everything all of our weapons of warfare and say take my life and let It be consecrated God unto thee everything hold nothing back.

And so the Jewish Church and the Old Testament Church like the fig tree Was soon going to wither away. And we all know about that from reading the Bible and by the time you get to Hebrews it was already done the sacrifices were Done you know and it's talking about no more sacrifices, but this is the one sacrifice for all time and so They were there.

They were soon going to wither away. And it was going to be stripped off a vote of all of its leaves all of its outer activities. They had leaves, but they had no fruit. They were utterly barren and destitute of fruit.

But on the outside just like churches when you read in the first revelation they have a reputation for being alive. But Jesus said you're what? Dead and as members were scattered all over the world and the temple was destroyed and The daily sacrifice was taken away, and the temple would soon wither to the ground and by 8070 it did it was destroyed and Now even today we see in every wandering Jew.

We when you look at them people you see a branch of a fig tree that was cursed. I believe God has a purpose when you read Romans chapter 10 and 11 and. But I do believe we're living in extremely dark and wicked days.

Morality is affected by the temperature of the climate of the church. You know as the church goes Ravenhill said so goes the world and when we compromise on what we believe and we start condoning and accepting Sexual morality and homosexuality and all these things what we're doing is is we're not being loving.

We're actually destroying the church and as a matter of fact I want to say that every time I've met someone that's actually in that lifestyle I've shared the gospel with them and one of the guys that we shared the gospel with several years ago Now is actually a worship leader.

He's repented of his sins. He said God's given him a new heart and a new desire, and he's never gone back to that lifestyle again. First Corinthians 6 9 as such were some of you, but you were washed you were cleansed.

You were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. God can save whoever he wills. Amen. And when he saves a drunkard he doesn't leave them a drunkard when he saves anybody from their sins. He's saving us from our sins and he's actually given us a new heart that new heart has new desires and the Holy Spirit gives us power to fulfill the new desires and.

What we want to look at now is not only the Jewish nation, but if we look at verse 20 and that in chapter 21 it says when the disciples saw this they were amazed how did the fig tree wither so quickly they asked.

So also not only with Israel. But every fruitless branch of Christ's visible church is in danger of becoming a withered fig tree. I Seen churches right where I live that seem to be thriving in the 50s and 60s and 70s now closed down.

We were in Maine my wife. And I and here's one of the saddest ones for me ever because I like to get down there just because I like the history. In New England of the Great Awakening that happened with Jonathan Edwards when like hundreds of thousands of people were converted all over the place.

At one time Edwards said that there was it's reported that up to 200 people a day were being converted and coming to Christ. Can you imagine that? 200 people a day. Come to Christ it completely changed the landscape of everything and see when people get changed society changed because people make up society don't they.

And The reason why society is not changing today is because we have a lot of goats in the church a lot of false converts all over the place. They think that just by repeating a prayer after somebody and saying some words that makes a Christian that doesn't make you a Christian.

Jesus said you might he didn't say you must repeat after me. He says the kingdom of God is hand now repent and believe the gospel. Amen. Someone may have been converted, but when they said the sinners prayer.

But it wasn't because they said that prayer is because God the Holy Spirit convicted them when they heard the gospel. Amen. That's what actually saves a person. So every fruitless branch of Christ visible church is in danger of becoming a withered fig tree.

So in New England, we're going down through there and it was actually one of those congregational churches. And I'm not sure if you know a lot about them. But today must the most of the time we think of a lot of those denominations as being liberal but at that time those were the five churches that were alive and on fire and Jonathan Edwards was actually one of those people and also George Whitfield spoke at those churches at the same time.

And those were two of the leading key figures in revival and John Wesley, of course in the UK, but at that time we went into this church and it said Congregational Church and it was built in seventeen hundred and something and I looked at the thing and it was built Rachel in the Great Awakening and Now they had two people who were absolutely completely Opposite of the gospel selling candles made out of beeswax.

You know and I thought it made my heart weep. I remember being in the Grand Ole Opry my wife and I I was invited to speak in First Nashville the Big Baptist Church down There and as I'm preaching down there, they took us they said would you like to go see the old Ryman auditorium?

I said, yeah, I'd like to go see it, you know because I grew up Over home where we are everybody probably pretty well listen to country music and that was it. So so I had all these people I knew about so I went there.

But one thing I didn't know about the Ryman auditorium. It was actually a church as it started out and there was mass Revivals there and this cat see captain who got converted under this preacher. Actually built this for this preacher to preach at and there was thousands of people be coming to Christ just thousands and thousands coming to Christ in Nashville, Tennessee.

And then it they they got kind of doing a little bit more music and less preaching and more music and pretty soon it was all music and the church had died and See that's happening all over the place churches are dying.

A friend of mine who lives in Ontario. He was telling me that over 200 Baptist churches in Ontario actually of the group that he was with and the last 20 years have closed their doors and Another friend of mine in Arkansas Mike Taylor telling me over a hundred Southern Baptist churches closed their doors in the last 10 years.

There's a massive apostasy going on. The love of most is growing cold we're in those days and We need we need another awakening. And so these trees that are doing this when we see a church closed down.

It wasn't just that the elders decided to close the church and they just said well, you know, it's time for a change. No, I'll tell you what. My Bible says Jesus removed the lampstand. He walks among the lampstands and when they stopped beer and fruit, he pulls back the lampstand.

He curses the tree and it withers. That's sad news. I don't want to see that happen to any Evangelical churches, I know Lord have mercy upon us that will humble ourselves and repent. And if you look at Matthew chapter 3 verse 10.

It says every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. And it's not talking about tree there again. This is an object lesson that's talking about people who say that they're believers and they don't bear fruit God.

Well, they'll be cut down thrown the fire. And it's the same thing in Matthew chapter 7 and verse 16. It says is here of the Matthew chapter 7 and verse 15 rather Talking about bearing fruit and Jesus is actually finishing at the end of his great sermon that the Sermon on the Mount and this is what he says in verse 15.

Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they're ferocious wolves and here's what he says by their what? By their fruit you will recognize it not by the profession of faith not by their baptism certificate not by Church attendance not by good works.

You can still have all those things and be either saved or lost. That does not ensure that a man is saved a new hire or a new woman. Is it is that is the is the obvious lesson that a person's been born again?

And it says by their fruit you'll recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles. Likewise every good tree bears good fruit. But a bad tree bears bad fruit. Every tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown in the fire.

Thus by their fruit not by their time of decision by their fruit. Jesus said you will recognize them in our lives. And see this is what happened to Israel. They had the profession of faith. They said oh, yeah the the Ark of the Covenant.

We got this here. We had the priest who was here and Jesus actually cursed them because they actually had no fruit. Outside activity, but no real fruit no real life. So a church can be full of programs that can be full of activities.

It can have lots of meetings. But many times and I'm just glad to hear Don talking about prayer in here. Because any church that does not have a prayer meeting is a dead church. It's a dead church. And so in the Acts chapter 1 in verse 14.

It says they all met together constantly in prayer and the women and they were meeting in the prayer in Acts chapter 4. It says they raised their voices together in prayer. And see today when you go by churches on Tuesday or Wednesday night that 20 years ago I used to live here in Fredericton.

There were prayer meetings now. There's many that many of the big churches. They don't even pray. They think it's their activities that's going to make the church go see they have a reputation for being alive, but Jesus said they're dead.

So don't be discouraged because you don't have mass size that doesn't mean anything necessarily. A church with no prayer is a dead church. And I've watched churches like that over the years happen and in the 90s.

You know, you see it's just only elderly people at them, which we love elderly people. We got every age in our church too, but every age matters. I don't think it should just be some yuppie age. It's neat.

We want everyone right from birth straight up into the 90s until they go home to be with the Lord. It's just that this all these talks about having this church for these kind of people. That's a bunch of ridiculous stuff.

It's a church for the Saints. Amen. That's it. All this other stuff is ridiculous if we have more activities more people one time at this church in Fredericton years ago. We were going to people left it because they were bringing McDonald's treats and they had one of those hot air things the kids can jump so the preacher was better at this other church.

But they went to this other one. So their kids could have McDonald's snacks like not a good reason to change churches completely carnal and worldly. Any church that doesn't pray is Lukewarm and is in danger of being cursed.

Jesus said he didn't even say my house will be a house of preaching. My house will be a house of what I Want to ask you do you come and pray at this church? Um, it's Tuesday Wednesday. What is it? Sunday evening.

I encourage you, you know, don't stay home and watch TV. The whole world's perishing as people are going to hell all around us and I'll tell you the world is in a dime mess. Come out here and pray unless you have some kind of illness that prevents you come out here.

I want to tell you God will hear your prayer. God hears and answers the prayers of people who will humble themselves and it's not because we're righteous but because he's merciful. God is good. Amen. Programs and activities, but no holiness committees, you know is not on the day judgment is not well done good and faithful committee.

Well done good and faithful servant ceremonies, but no true repentance and faith in the people sometimes, you know. Many visible churches have been cursed by Jesus and they've withered and we're going to look at a few of them here.

For you know, but they don't have the fruit of the Spirit. They don't have they're not obedient. They think that obedience is something that you can do subsequent. You know Jesus said if you love me keep my commandments.

Amen. The man who says I know him but does not keep his commandments. 1st John chapter 2 verse 3 is a liar and the truth Is not in him. So there's no such thing as having Jesus as Savior. But him not as Lord as a matter of fact in Luke chapter 9 when he back in the people come unto him he said deny yourself take up your cross and follow me daily.