When the world was facing a new millennium in 1999 the Y2K scare prompted much talk about the end of the world “as we knew it.” Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on your worldview, the threat never materialized. Today, there is a spiritual threat, much more catastrophic than Y2K was ever predicted to be, knocking on the door of the Church. And although I am usually an optimist, especially when it comes to the Church, I am concerned that we may be at a crossroads which will determine the future of the Church as we know it.

Before you start quoting Scripture, I want to reassure you of my belief that Jesus’ promise, guaranteeing that the Church will prevail, is still true. But the history of Christ’s Church also teaches us that certain iterations of said Church, did not survive the onslaughts brought against it by the gates of hell. I have never seen that illustrated more dramatically than the last three weeks as we have researched Church history in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. Laying in waste in practically every corner of the United Kingdom are the ruins of church buildings which represent the Church “as they knew it.”

Many of those partial church walls surrounded with piles of rubble are the result of the Viking invasions which pillaged the buildings for their icons, relics and treasures. But others remind visitors of the wicked invasion of lukewarmness which led to apathy and eventually spiritual death. It is those ruins which should concern the Western Church. While we hear of revival and renewal in distant parts of the world and occasionally catch a glimpse of what could be on university campuses, for the most part, the Church as we know it is cold, isolated from God’s supernatural power, diminished in congregants, and in many cases, on the verge of collapse. Hundreds of congregations every year, sing their last hymn, hear their last sermon, and liquidate the assets of the local church, because they can no longer afford the cost of keeping the doors open.

Why is that? Why the apathy and nonchalant attitude toward Christ’s Church? Why the disconnect between what we sing and preach on Sunday morning and what we live the remainder of the week? Why an unwillingness to sacrifice one’s personal treasure to sustain the family of God’s corporate worship experience? Why? Because we have lost our first love, if we ever had it. We have all but extinguished the fire of the Holy Spirit because the conviction of sin made us uncomfortable, and we have opted instead for a tepid faith, absent of any zeal, which allows us to wallow in our sin, indistinguishable from a world which increasingly looks like the one in the days of Noah.

Is there hope? Absolutely, there is! Revival, renewal, rededication, and a recommitment to become the Jesus Church once again. Call it what you will, the early Church, the first century Church or the Jesus Movement, we must return to a life of total and complete commitment to our Savior which transcends every other allegiance in our lives. We must be controlled by the Spirit of God and compelled to sacrifice all for the cause of the Kingdom. Even life itself cannot be more precious to us than Jesus Christ.

I heard an old preacher say years ago that revival starts when we draw a circle around ourselves and pray for revival to start inside that circle. That’s only partially true. That circle needs two people in it: Me and Jesus. You and Jesus.  Why not get out your spiritual pencil write now, draw a circle and invite Jesus to join you. If you do, your revival is on the way!