I was holding a men's meeting years ago,
friends, in a church down south, and I
was to have about 45 minutes with these
men that late Saturday afternoon before they went
home to their families, and the subject that
I was preaching on was backsliding, and in
that message I read off to those men
75 marks of a backslider, and one by
one those men came under conviction of sin,
and they forgot all about their dinner plans,
and five hours later we were still at
that church on our faces before God and
brokenness, and when I preached the next morning
in the sanctuary, all hell broke loose as
a little touch of revival fell on that
congregation, because the men of the church had
gotten serious with God, and made the crooked
places straighten their lives so God could move
through them.
The title of my message today, friends, is
Making Crooked Places Straight, and my text can
be found in the book of Isaiah in
chapter 45.
You can turn in your Bibles there now,
friends.
We will be in verses 2 and 3.
Let me read us this striking passage of
scripture at this time, and it is my
prayer that the Spirit of the Lord will
be pleased to attend the reading of his
holy word.
I will go before thee and make the
crooked places straight.
I will break in pieces the gates of
brass, and cut and sunder the bars of
iron.
And I will give thee the treasures of
darkness and hidden riches of secret places, that
thou mayest know that I the Lord, which
called thee by thy name, am the God
of Israel.
I believe, friends, that if we could get
our arms around this passage of scripture, and
allow its truths to penetrate our hearts and
act upon them, I believe we would see
revival.
I don't think there's anything that could stop
it, even all the demons in hell.
For when we get serious with God, and
get serious about turning from our sins in
repentance and making the crooked places straighten our
lives, then there is no limit to the
blessings and power that can fall from heaven
upon us.
I believe the main hindrance to revival is
you, friend.
I don't care how good of an opinion
you have about yourself, if you were really
honest before God, and you asked him to
show it to you.
I'm almost certain there is an area in
your life that is crooked and bent out
of shape by sin.
And before God can go to work and
break in pieces the gates of brass in
your life that are holding you back, you
must be made willing to make the crooked
places straight through confession and repentance, and even
restitution if necessary.
God won't reveal to you the treasures of
darkness and the hidden riches of secret places
until you are right with him.
Not from your perspective, friend, but from his
vantage point in heaven.
I believe if the church would only come
to her senses, and awaken from her slumber,
and confess her sins, and turn from her
wicked ways, then a holy ghost revival would
break out to such a degree that it
could be said of Christians today, they are
those who turn the world upside down.
How serious are you, friend, about your walk
with God?
How serious are you about wanting God to
use you further in unexplainable ways?
How serious are you, friend, about wanting to
see revival in our time?
Then it's time to do business with God.
The hour is late, friend.
Very late.
Just look at society all around us.
Surely the Lord is on his way to
get his bride.
He's not going to come back for a
dirty bride, friend.
We must get cleaned up.
We must make the crooked places straight in
our life.
It's time to do business with God.
It's time to ask the Holy Spirit to
get out his pure white spotlight and shine
it on our lives, on our public and
private lives.
I'm going to take the time now, friends,
to read you that list.
I read those men those many years ago.
And just maybe some of you would be
like them to be made well and to
make the crooked places straight in your own
life, friend, and straight so God can go
to work in you.
And by doing so, make you a clean,
empty vessel that he can flow through in
rivers of mercy and grace.
Quiet yourself now, friends, before the Almighty as
I read you the 75 marks of a
backslider.
Number one, sin no longer shocks you.
Number two, the world possesses your heart.
Number three, you are bitter against another person.
Number four, you complain frequently and grumble about
your circumstances in life.
Number five, you seldom read your Bible.
Number six, seldom if ever do you pray.
And if you do, they are selfish prayers
centered around I, me, and us.
Number seven, you care little for those around
you perishing and going to hell.
Number eight, you do not support mission endeavors
either with your time or with your finances.
Number nine, your time and your money are
yours to do what you please and to
please yourself.
Number ten, the things of God hold little
importance in your life.
Number eleven, attending church is a bother.
Number twelve, throughout the day your focus is
on everything but God.
Number thirteen, you continue to repeat the same
sins.
Number fourteen, you have a habitual sin which
you keep confessing but you never get victory
over.
Number fifteen, you seldom pray for revival.
Number sixteen, you are content with watered down
preaching.
Number seventeen, your conversation is filled with sports,
with the world, with entertainment, but seldom do
you ever speak of God or spiritual things.
Number eighteen, you continue to have lustful thoughts.
Number nineteen, you enjoy sexually stimulating entertainment.
Number twenty, you have no witness to the
world that you are a saved individual.
Number twenty-one, you have ceased to pursue
God like the heart after the brooks of
water.
Number twenty-two, you do not want to
know God.
Number twenty-three, you do not want an
intimate relationship with God.
Number twenty-four, Jesus is not your master.
Number twenty-five, you love your sins.
Number twenty-six, there is no delight in
church worship.
Number twenty-seven, you do not pursue holiness.
Number twenty-eight, the most important things to
you are your job and your family.
Number twenty-nine, you are not moved to
indignation with the wicked society around you.
Number thirty, you are given to fits of
anger.
Number thirty-one, you have unforgiveness toward another.
Number thirty-two, you resent certain individuals, and
they disturb your peace.
Number thirty-three, someone has offended you, and
you seethe when you see them.
Number thirty-four, you are comfortable in the
world and its amusements.
Number thirty-five, you have little thoughts regarding
eternity.
Number thirty-six, things of an eternal nature
do not grip you nor stir you.
Number thirty-seven, you have no joy of
the Lord.
Number thirty-eight, you have a spirit of
ingratitude.
Number thirty-nine, you care little for advancing
the kingdom of God.
Number forty, you have a lack of love
for God.
Number forty-one, a self is king.
You know nothing about the cross and the
life of the believer.
Number forty-two, your mind is set upon
material things.
Your thoughts are occupied with things.
Number forty-three, you are a very prideful
person.
Number forty-four, you tell lies.
Number forty-five, you are a hypocrite.
Number forty-six, you are envious of others.
Number forty-seven, you have no taste for
spiritual things.
You are unthoughtful around real believers, speaking about
deeper things of God.
Number forty-eight, religion is a chore to
you.
Number forty-nine, you do not like to
hear the word of God preached.
Number fifty, you have no interest in disciple
making.
Number fifty-one, your prayers are formal and
without heat or heart.
Number fifty-two, you have dry eyes when
you pray.
Number fifty-three, your heart does not break
over the lost condition of others.
Number fifty-four, it is all about you.
Number fifty-five, you have no desire to
find out what is on God's heart.
Number fifty-six, you have no desire to
go deeper with God.
Number fifty-seven, Jesus is welcome as your
Savior, but he is not welcome as your
Lord.
Number fifty-eight, your heart has grown cold
and callous toward spiritual things.
Number fifty-nine, you seldom hear the voice
of God.
Number sixty, you would rather play golf or
any other hobby than read your Bible.
Number sixty-one, you have little conscience regarding
sin in your life or around you.
Number sixty-two, you are a legalist and
a Pharisee.
Number sixty-three, you feel you are above
others.
Number sixty-four, you are proud of your
academic achievements and feel you're better than others
because of them.
Number sixty-five, you have little concern over
the plight of starving children in the world.
Number sixty-six, you have behaved badly toward
another and you feel no remorse.
Number sixty-seven, you are full of yourself.
Number sixty-eight, you are dissatisfied with your
life and you harbor resentment toward God.
Number sixty-nine, you have hatred in your
heart toward another.
Number seventy, lust easily consumes you.
Number seventy-one, you like to boast and
brag about what you have and what you've
done.
Number seventy-two, you have an ungrateful heart
toward God who saved you.
Number seventy-three, your feet are quick to
evil.
Number seventy-four, you feel that God does
not hear your prayers.
Number seventy-five, you are insensitive to spiritual
things.
Dear friend, let us go to God and
ask him to make us willing to make
the crooked places in our lives straight so
we can be empty vessels, completely empty of
ourselves, empty of the things that are hindering
God to show us deep treasures in our
lives so he can move in a powerful
revival in a personal way and in a
corporate way and in a national way in
such a way that a spiritual awakening could
come and shake this nation from coast to
coast.
Let us pray.