English version of a sermon of pastor Teun J.de Ruiter to the people of God in Holland
Isaiah 64:1 "Oh, that You would rent the heavens and come down, that the mountains would tremble before You!"
A little rain is alright. We might even enjoy it. We might sing 'Walking in the rain'. But a cloudburst is usually a disaster. Whoever asks for a cloudburst is not in his right mind.... But Isaiah was asking for a cloudburst, but, of course, not for an atmospherical, but an heavenly: "Oh, that You would rent the heavens, that You would come down..." When Isaiah cried this prayer, he had, perhaps, a ministry of thirty years behind him. A ministry of prophetic exhortation, calling the people to repentance and conversion. But there had been very little positive response. The nation slid slowly, but surely away from God. His heart was broken as he was watching the people going deeper and deeper into sin. He knew that only one thing could change the people: God Himself had to come down from heaven and pour Himself out in His mighty Spirit so that people, proud as mountains, would be shaken and the fire of divine holiness would burn everything that was useless, dry and barren. Yes, Isaiah dreamed of a revival that God would start through a mighty outpouring, a cloudburst of His Presence and holy Power over the nation.
I want to dream, in this our day and generation, about a revival for our country. I want to dream of a mighty cloudburst of Gods Presence and Power, a mighty outpouring of His Holy Spirit.
Please, listen people, I tell you: Nothing less than this is necessary to bring our nation to repentance. We can preach, prophesy and pray and we have done this for so many years, like Isaiah, but Gods Spirit himself has to come down, not merely as a nice little rain, not only as a soft, pleasant breeze, but as a cloudburst, as a mighty rushing wind! People, listen! We have sung in previous times: God, let drops fall on me! But that song is outdated, it is not relevant anymore. We need a cloudburst of God upon and over our nation! Believe me, this is our only hope!
When the Spirit falls in mighty power something unusual, something startling, something shattering will happen! Some object to people who tremble, shake and fall in our services. But, I tell you, when the power of Gods Spirit falls on you and moves in you, then you have a hard time controlling yourself! I like to see people who say: I will never shake, never fall, I am against falling and shaking, I like to see them under the power of an electric current of, let's say 500 Volt going through them, how much they can keep 'calm, cool and collected!' They will shake, tremble and fall! I pray: "God, shake the mountains! God, let the powerful fire of your Holy Spirit burn out the complacency, the uncleannes, the self-elevating pride and shake the people!" Many dear people of God know nothing of the mighty power of the Spirit of God! When people are under the power of the Holy Spirit, which even effects them physically, they are freed from objections and are loosenend from intellectual- and emotional blockages. Then, conviction of sin and repentance, the breaking down of pride, even natural pride, might take place and they will call on the Name of the Lord!
Let me say this too: We must not think that we can control the Spirit of the Lord. When I listen to the prayers of some, it seems that they think that they can direct and control the Spirit of God, but we cannot! It would be absurd and foolish stupidity if weather-forecasters would think that they can arrange the weather! Not one forecaster can say: "We have ordered nice weather next week for the north of Holland, and rain for the south!" If this would be possible, roads to the north would be conjested and people in the south would protest: "We want to have nice weather too! You folk in of the weather-forecast are crazy!" I tell you it would be chaos! It is impossible! Nobody can control the atmospherical conditions, too immense, too gigantic, entirely above our control! Neither can anyone of us control the Spirit of God. We cannot command or control the Spirit, but we can pray! Isaiah could pray for a cloudburst, so can we!
Did God answer the prayer of Isaiah? I can say that centuries later anyway his prayer was answered, when the Spirit of the Lord came down and the church was empowered! He interceded and prayed in his days. He left the business of answering his prayers in the hand of God, the Possessor and Manager of everything, the Lover of His people.
The Spirit of God looks for intercessors today, who will pray with great conviction for a cloudburst of Gods Spirit upon our nation. If we will not see the clouds of a mighty downpouring of the Spirit of the living God, we might see some future day the dark clouds of divine judgement, that will be devastating. Please, take this to heart, dear people. Let's cry to God, let's lift our hearts to Him, who seats in heaven. Let's pray, pray and pray and.... expect! Let's believe to receive! God is mercyful and He loves people. He is not in business to destroy, but to save! We have a loving heavenly Father. We have an Advocate at His right hand, Jesus Christ, the Righteous One, the Saviour! Let's have great expectations, for the Spirit has come and wants to come, wants to pour himself out and come again and again and again! Let's beseech God and believe God! He can do it again! "Lord, we ask You for that mighty cloudburst of Your Presence upon our nation. O God, that You would rent the heavens, that You would come down....!" Amen.
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Questions? E-mail.... Pastor T. J. de Ruiter