Real Revival: The Portrait and Practice of the Spirit-Filled Life

By A Thomas Kozubal

An examination of spiritual revival through the lens of Scripture, addressing how the Bible defines a Spirit-filled life and what it looks like in the life of a Christian.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Oxford Book Writers
• Release date: Jan 6, 2023
• ISBN: 9781088295496

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Real Revival

The Portrait and Practice of the

Spirit-Filled Life

Thomas Kozubal

Copyright © 2022

All Rights Reserved

Dedication

For my brothers and sisters who seek to walk by the Spirit,

and long to hear Jesus say ‘well done’ at the end of life’s walk.

Acknowledgements

I imagine all worthwhile endeavors start out as an idea that takes root deep within us.  I also imagine that the idea within us is like a seed, and that if it is left there in its unmolested state, well, nothing happens to it.  Real Revival is an idea that was planted deep within me nearly 20 years ago.  In the ensuing years, there have been more than a few (far too many to mention here) who have watered, pruned, provided sunlight to, and otherwise nurtured the idea and encouraged me to keep it alive.  The truth is that what you are holding in your hands is the result of much study and soul-searching and accompanied by numerous relationships, some short and some long, over the course of many years.

The dominating relationship in this endeavor is the one I enjoy with my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  I owe Him a debt I cannot repay, and in response to His precious gifts of salvation and eternal life I owe Him my life.  Without His indwelling and longsuffering spirit, there is simply no reason for me to write. 

I thank those in my life who have walked with me through the years.  These dear souls have patiently listened to me and encouraged me to not let go of the message you will read herein.  Indeed, the seed of this work would have not come to fruition without these precious saints.  To them I also owe a great debt.

I would like to thank my editor, Celine Carter, for her boundless patience with me as I took a good deal of time to re-work a decades-old manuscript, and for her ability to take my (sometimes far too many!) words and sharpen them with skill and grace.  You are a jewel!

And lastly, I would like to thank my family.  Thank You for enduring all of the time I spent away from you and hidden away in my office researching, reading, and writing.  Thank You for putting up with the intensity of my fits and starts through the years, and for the sacrifices you made that enabled me to write and now share this message.  You are as much a part of these pages as I am.

Table of Contents

Dedication

Acknowledgements

Preface

Introduction

Chapter 1  Real Revival

Chapter 2 The Root of Revival

Chapter 3 The Realities of Revival

Chapter 4 The Revived Response

Chapter 5 Revival Reflected

Chapter 6 Revival Resolved

About The Author

Preface

Spiritual revival is the most pressing need in the Body of Christ today.  The irony of spiritual revival is though it is so needed, its meaning has been marginalized and misunderstood over time by cultures in general and Christians in particular.  In response, I have written to reaffirm what spiritual revival is according to Scripture and to encourage the Body of Christ to rediscover the simple truth about what God has to say concerning it.  I have also written to identify the eternal truths that historically have, and will never fail, to bring revival to pass.

At the outset, I would like to briefly address how and why I have constructed the text as I have.  In addressing this, I hope to enhance the time you invest in this book.

To begin, with the exception of the Scriptures, you will not find other works on spiritual revival referenced in this book.  Though it is uncommon to take this tack in the course of writing any theology in this day and age, I have done so for three reasons.  First, I am convinced that the Bible itself is its greatest, most accurate, and complete commentary.  In other words, Scripture best interprets Scripture.  There is much truth in the notion that what God has to say about the affairs of man and the world in which he lives is of far greater importance than what man has to say about them, and I do not exclude myself from this lot.  A dedicated and systematic study of Scripture on this subject, or any spiritual matter, will surely yield more understanding than any human observation alone can produce.  And so, the aim of this volume is to simply affirm and explain what God has already stated within the pages of Scripture concerning spiritual revival.

Secondly, if nothing new or substantive can be added to the topic of spiritual revival, then nothing more should be written concerning it.  To do so would either fail to aid a further understanding of spiritual revival or, worse, mindlessly repeat what someone else has already expressed.  In this regard, I believe the goal of any theological work should be to shed new light or at least reaffirm a timeless truth of Scripture from a different perspective.  If any literary work fails to do so, it should not be occupying space on a bookshelf.

Lastly, if another author has sufficiently addressed a specific theological point on a selected topic, then the reader would be better served by studying that work in its original context.  Indeed, much ink has been spilled in error, and honorable men have been unjustly wronged because they have been quoted out of context.  I would hasten not to fall into such an unfortunate circumstance by my own hand.

Lastly, these steps have not been taken with the assumption that those who have previously written on spiritual revival are either wrong or irrelevant.  In fact, nothing could be further from the truth.  I have not written to slight what others have already stated about revival, but instead to focus the reader on the truth of Scripture as it relates to spiritual revival.

In closing, I offer a few words of both encouragement and caution to the reader.  By way of encouragement, dozens of Scripture references have been cited throughout the text.  I have identified them for the purpose of increasing an understanding of the principles set forth.  I invite you to take the time to study not only the cited verses but to investigate them in their context as well.  I am confident that doing so will be time well spent and a journey worth taking.

By way of caution, please remember I have written with the express intent of bringing the reader to the point of decision concerning his walk with Jesus Christ.  I have not written to leave you, the reader, unchanged.  With this in mind, preparing to read by praying beforehand will open the door and windows of your heart that might otherwise remain closed to the light of Divine truth.  Simply put, asking for Divine understanding will assuredly aid you in understanding the principles set forth herein.

And by way of both encouragement and caution, be careful to take the truths of this book to heart.  Allow them to sink and settle into the deep places within you.  After reading, allow the Lord to continue to speak by meditating on