Revival or Reformation?
Words of Faith 8-28-26
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2026
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
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Nehemiah 13
[1] On that day the Book of Moses was read aloud in the hearing of the people and there it was found written that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever be admitted into the assembly of God, [2] because they had not met the Israelites with food and water but had hired Balaam to call a curse down on them. (Our God, however, turned the curse into a blessing.) [3] When the people heard this law, they excluded from Israel all who were of foreign descent.

       The reforms instituted by Ezra and Nehemiah were motivated by a commitment to not fail again. They did not want the Babylonian exile to be repeated. Good point. The reforms that came after the rebuilding of the walls in Jerusalem were dramatic. "Foreigners" were rejected. A strict separation from non-Jewish people was enforced. Observance of the Sabbath, mandatory tithes, and public readings of the Torah became the order of the day. Would this really protect Israel from another disaster?

       There is a difference between revival and reformation. Revival is something that God does in us, transforming us by His Spirit. Reform is something we do in response to revival— changes we make so that we will reflect Him more accurately and be protected from falling away.

        Revival has to do with Relationship. Reform has to do with Religion. Can reforms go too far? Can the fervor of repentance spill beyond the leading of the Holy Spirit? Can acts of "reform" even become a kind of religious bigotry?

        The Nehemiah revival had moved in such a direction. There was an air of national triumphalism. You see it in the dedication of the wall. That triumphalism billowed into an exclusion of all who were foreign.

         If we read the Word carefully, we realize this could not have been of God. It was fearful leaders that excluded the foreigners, not God. The motivations of the people may have been as old as time— fear, prejudice, or even greed— masked by religious fervor and justified by the Law.

         In the reading of the law, the people heard that two specific foreign peoples were not to be allowed into the assembly of God. The specific text was Deuteronomy 23:3 5: "No Ammonite or Moabite or any of his descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord, even down to the tenth generation. "That was all that was needed. Sadly, human sin is capable of justifying itself even with Scripture.

        So, was this a movement of God? Or were things going too far? After all, this situation took place nearly twenty generations after the date of Deuteronomy, not ten. Even more, the response of the people to this text was to exclude ALL foreign peoples, not just the two mentioned.

        It seems that in the religious fervor of the moment, the people missed Deuteronomy 10:18, which speaks of the Lord who "defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the alien, giving him food and clothing." The people also forgot that the Law even made a special provision for foreigners to make sacrifices as a part of worship (Numbers 15:15 16). And somehow the voice of God through the Prophet Isaiah was forgotten: "I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles."(Isaiah 42:6). It is hard to be a “Light to the Gentiles” if they are all run out of town.

        The danger of being human is that somewhere in the post-revival there may come a "reform" that is not of God. Somewhere in our fervent response to God's work, we may take into our own hands the things of God. We may attempt to legislate spiritual purity through social reforms. It never works.

         Revival is vital and thrilling. Reformations are important. But we must always remember that most of the "reforms" are still only a human response to the move of God— they are not God. Try as we may, we cannot preserve the experience of revival. The wind of God's Spirit comes and goes as He wills. All we can do is be available— and be renewed.

Lord, forgive us our frail human efforts to make ourselves and others holy. There is none that is holy but You. Only You can make me holy. Cleanse me today. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2025
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2025 Jeffrey D. Hoy.