Revival in the West

"Revival in the West"
-Brother Yun.

Many pastors in Europe and America have told me they want to 
see great revival. I'm frequently asked why China is experiencing 
revival but most places in the West are not. This is a big question
to answer, but some reasons are very apparent to me.

When I'm in the West, I see all the mighty church buildings and all
the expensive equipment, plush carpets, and state-of-the-art sound
systems. I can assure the Western church with absolute certainty
that you don't need any more church buildings. Church buildings 
will never bring the revival you seek. The pursuit of more 
possessions will never bring revival. Jesus truly stated, "A man's
life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions." -Lk 12:15.

The first thing needed for revival to return to your churches is the 
Word of the Lord. God's Word is missing. Sure, there are many 
preachers and thousands of tapes and videos of Bible teaching,
but so little contains the sharp truth of God's Word. It's the truth
that will set you free. 

Not only is knowledge of God's Word missing, but obedience to 
that Word. There's not much action taking place.

When revival came to believers in China, the result was
thousands of evangelists being sent out to all corners of the 
nation, carrying fire from the altar of God with them. When God
moves in the West, it seems you want to stop and enjoy His
presence and blessings too long, and build an altar to your experiences.

You can never really know the Scriptures until you're willing to 
be changed by them.

All genuine revivals of the Lord result in believers responding with 
action and soul winning. When God truly moves in your heart you
cannot remain silent. There will be a fire in your bones, like 
Jeremiah, who said, "His word is in my heart like a fire, a fire 
shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot."
Jeremiah 20:9.  

Furthermore, it's only when we step out in obedience and share
the gospel with people that we come to know God's blessing in 
every area of our lives. That is why the Apostle Paul wrote to his
co-worker Philemon, "I pray that you may be active in sharing 
your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every 
good thing we have in Christ." -Philemon v.6.

I've seen people in Western Churches worshiping as if they're 
already in heaven. Then someone invariably brings a comforting
message, like, "My children, I love you. Don't be afraid, I'm with
you." I'm not opposed to such words, but why is it that nobody
seems to hear a Word from the Lord like, "My child, I want to 
send you to the slums of Asia or the darkness of Africa to be my
messenger to people dying in their sin."?

-From the book 'The Heavenly Man' by Brother Yun - pg 296-297.