Sun, Sep 16th - 11:59AM
37 DAYS LEFT UNTIL THE REVIVAL CONFERENCE
George Whitefield - Revival Preacher by Stan K Evers
Struggling to achieve salvation through his own efforts, the Gloucester-born student, George Whitefield, at the age of twenty, read 'The Life of God in the Soul of Man', written by a 17th century Puritan divine, Henry Scougal. Near death for seven weeks because of his constant fasting, Whitefield learnt from this book that it is Christ's dying and not our doing that gives the sinner acceptance with God. Whitefield wrote in his Journal, 'God was pleased to remove the heavy load, to enable me to lay hold of his dear Son by a living faith. With what joy - joy unspeakable - was my soul filled!' This great event took place in the spring of 1735 - three years before John and Charles Wesley trusted Christ alone for salvation.
Fifteen 'mad people'
Ordained on June 20th 1736; a week later, Whitefield preached his first sermon at St. Mary de Crypt, Gloucester. 'Fifteen people were driven mad' complained some of his hearers to the Bishop who responded with the wish that the madness would not wear off before next Sunday. These first fifteen conversions paved the way for a ministry spanning thirty-five years throughout Great Britain and in thirteen American colonies. Historians estimate that Whitefield preached 18,000 sermons before he died.
George Whitefield preaching
Miners in tears
After a visit to America in 1738, Whitefield returned to England to find closed Anglican pulpits because of his powerful Spirit-anointed preaching. J. C. Ryle, the first Bishop of Liverpool wrote, 'The Church was too much asleep to understand him, and was vexed at a man who would not keep still and let the devil alone'. The pulpit ban became a blessing in disguise when Whitefield took to open-air preaching. The evangelist described his first open-air preaching in his Journal: 'I hastened to Kingswood [Bristol]. There were about 10,000 people to hear me. The trees and hedges were full. All was hush when I began; the sun shone bright and God enabled me to preach for an hour with great power, and so loudly that all, I was told, could hear me. The fire is kindled in this country and I know all the devils in hell shall not be able to quench it'. Miners, just up from the mines, listened and the tears flowed making white gutters down their coal-black faces. Whitefield's preaching gave birth to the 18th century Evangelical Revival.
The preacher
Eyewitnesses speak of Whitefield's eloquence, envied even by actors such as David Garrick who said 'I would give a £100 to say "Oh" like George Whitefield'. Pennsylvania's Benjamin Franklin, a publisher and a Quaker with little spiritual interest in the evangelist's message gave a glowing report of his preaching. 'The multitudes of all sects and denominations that attended his sermons were enormous. I observed the extraordinary influence of his oratory on his hearers, and how much they admired and respected him, notwithstanding his common abuse of them' - he called his hearers sinners! The changed lives of Whitefield's hearers impressed Franklin even more than the preacher's oratory. An American farmer who heard Whitefield preach wrote, 'He looked almost angelical, a young slim tender youth. He looked as if he was clothed with authority from the great God. A sweet solemnity sat upon his brow. My hearing him preach gave me a heart wound. ... I saw that my righteousness would not save me'. Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones called Whitefield 'the greatest preacher that England has ever produced'.
The Message
George Whitefield skillfully adapted his message to his hearers - the noisy crowds on London's Kennington Common and at Moorfields and the aristocrats in the home of Selina, the Countess of Huntingdon. He believed that the unchanging gospel is 'the power of God' for all sorts of sinners (Rom. 1:16).
What was Whitefield's message? The doctrines known as Calvinism: the depravity of sinners and the freeness of God's grace; he rejoiced in the substitutionary atonement of Christ for God's elect; he proclaimed that all those for whom Christ died will persevere to the end of their lives and will then be glorified in heaven. Where did he learn these truths? 'My doctrines I had from Jesus Christ and His apostles; I was taught them of God', he wrote, and added two years later, 'I embrace the Calvinistic scheme, not because Calvin, but Jesus Christ, has taught it to me'. Whitefield, the convinced Calvinist, preached the gospel earnestly and persuasively urging and commanding sinners to go to Jesus Christ for salvation. A mark of revival is heartfelt gospel preaching whether the preacher is a Calvinist, such as George Whitefield, or an Arminian, such as John Wesley - both men preached that salvation is through Christ alone.
'I die to be with him'
Whitefield died, during an asthmatic attack, in America on Sunday morning September 30th 1769, having reached the age of 55, and was buried at Newbury Port, New England. Shortly before dying he said, 'Lord Jesus, I am weary in the work, but not of it. If I have not yet finished my course, let me go and speak for You once more in the fields and come home to die'. God answered this prayer and he preached for two hours. While preaching this last sermon he cried out, 'Works! Works! A man get to heaven by works! I would as soon as think of climbing to the moon on a rope of sand! How willingly would I live forever to preach Christ, but I die to be with him'.
The Secret of Whitefield's Success
1. Natural eloquence - a gift from God - used by the power of God's Holy Spirit.
2. Fellowship with God. Whitefield gives us a glimpse in his Journal of his walk with God. 'Early in the morning, at noonday, evening and midnight, nay, all day long, did the blessed Jesus visit and refresh my soul. At other times I would be overpowered with a sense of God's Infinite Majesty'.
3. Godliness. 'Above all he was a great saint, and Wesley and others bore tribute to this during his life and his death. This was the ultimate secret of his preaching power' (Lloyd-Jones).
4. Concern for the lost and the conviction that sinners are in danger of an everlasting hell.
5. Wholehearted commitment to God. 'If ever a man burnt himself out in the service of God, it was Whitefield. He was tireless and relentless in his efforts to win souls. Throughout his life he enjoyed the presence of God in his preaching. Even on his last day in this world he preached, though he was very ill. He was a man whose sole desire was to preach Christ crucified' (Nigel Clifford, Christian Preachers, Bryntirion Press).
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Sat, Sep 15th - 10:57AM
38 DAYS LEFT UNTIL THE REVIVAL CONFERENCE
1904 - 1905
That movement lasted for a generation, but at the turn of the century there was need of awakening again. A general movement of prayer began, with special prayer meetings at Moody Bible Institute, at Keswick Conventions in England, and places as far apart as Melbourne, Wonsan in Korea, and the Nilgiri Hills of India. So all around the world believers were praying that there might be another great awakening in the twentieth century.
* * * * * * *
In the revival of 1905, I read of a young man who became a famous professor, Kenneth Scott Latourette. He reported that, at Yale in 1905, 25% of the student body were enrolled in prayer meetings and in Bible study.
As far as churches were concerned, the ministers of Atlantic City reported that of a population of fifty thousand there were only fifty adults left unconverted.
Take Portland in Oregon: two hundred and forty major stores closed from 11 to 2 each day to enable people to attend prayer meetings, signing an agreement so that no one would cheat and stay open.
Take First Baptist Church of Paducah in Kentucky: the pastor, an old man, Dr J. J. Cheek, took a thousand members in two months and died of overwork, the Southern Baptists saying, 'a glorious ending to a devoted ministry.'
That is what was happening in the United States in 1905. But how did it begin?
* * * * * * *
Most people have heard of the Welsh Revival which started in 1904. It began as a movement of prayer.
Seth Joshua, the Presbyterian evangelist, came to Newcastle Emlyn College where a former coal miner, Evan Roberts aged 26, was studying for the ministry. The students were so moved that they asked if they could attend Joshua's next campaign nearby. So they cancelled classes to go to Blaenanerch where Seth Joshua prayed publicly, 'O God, bend us.'
Evan Roberts went forward where he prayed with great agony, 'O God, bend me.'
Upon his return he could not concentrate on his studies. He went to the principal of his college and explained, 'I keep hearing a voice that tells me I must go home and speak to our young people in my home church. Principal Phillips, is that the voice of the devil or the voice of the Spirit?'
Principal Phillips answered wisely, 'The devil never gives orders like that. You can have a week off.'
So he went back home to Loughor and announced to the pastor, 'I've come to preach.'
The pastor was not at all convinced, but asked, 'How about speaking at the prayer meeting on Monday?'
He did not even let him speak to the prayer meeting, but told the praying people, 'Our young brother, Evan Roberts, feels he has a message for you if you care to wait.'
Seventeen people waited behind, and were impressed with the directness of the young man's words.
Evan Roberts told his fellow members, 'I have a message for you from God.
* You must confess any known sin to God and put any wrong done to others right.
* Second, you must put away any doubtful habit.
* Third, you must obey the Spirit promptly.
* Finally, you must confess your faith in Christ publicly.'
By ten o'clock all seventeen had responded. The pastor was so pleased that he asked, 'How about your speaking at the mission service tomorrow night? Midweek service Wednesday night?'
He preached all week, and was asked to stay another week. Then the break came.
Suddenly the dull ecclesiastical columns in the Welsh papers changed:
'Great crowds of people drawn to Loughor.'
The main road between Llanelly and Swansea on which the church was situated was packed with people trying to get into the church. Shopkeepers closed early to find a place in the big church.
Now the news was out. A reporter was sent down and he described vividly what he saw: a strange meeting which closed at 4:25 in the morning, and even then people did not seem willing to go home. There was a very British summary: 'I felt that this was no ordinary gathering.'
Next day, every grocery shop in that industrial valley was emptied of groceries by people attending the meetings, and on Sunday every church was filled.
The movement went like a tidal wave over Wales, in five months there being a hundred thousand people converted throughout the country. Five years later, Dr J. V. Morgan wrote a book to debunk the revival, his main criticism being that, of a hundred thousand joining the churches in five months of excitement, after five years only seventy five thousand still stood in the membership of those churches!
The social impact was astounding. For example, judges were presented with white gloves, not a case to try; no robberies, no burglaries, no rapes, no murders, and no embezzlements, nothing. District councils held emergency meetings to discuss what to do with the police now that they were unemployed.
In one place the sergeant of police was sent for and asked, 'What do you do with your time?'
He replied, 'Before the revival, we had two main jobs, to prevent crime and to control crowds, as at football games. Since the revival started there is practically no crime. So we just go with the crowds.'
A councillor asked, 'What does that mean?'
The sergeant replied, 'You know where the crowds are. They are packing out the churches.'
'But how does that affect the police?'
He was told, 'We have seventeen police in our station, but we have three quartets, and if any church wants a quartet to sing, they simply call the police station.'
As the revival swept Wales, drunkenness was cut in half. There was a wave of bankruptcies, but nearly all taverns. There was even a slowdown in the mines, for so many Welsh coal miners were converted and stopped using bad language that the horses that dragged the coal trucks in the mines could not understand what was being said to them.
That revival also affected sexual moral standards. I had discovered through the figures given by British government experts that in Radnorshire and Merionethshire the illegitimate birth rate had dropped 44% within a year of the beginning of the revival.
The revival swept Britain, Scandinavia, Germany, North America, Australasia, Africa, Brazil, Mexico, Chile.
As always, it began through a movement of prayer.
What do we mean by extraordinary prayer? We share ordinary prayer in regular worship services, before meals, and the like. But when people are found getting up at six in the morning to pray, or having a half night of prayer until midnight, or giving up their lunch time to pray at noonday prayer meetings, that is extraordinary prayer. It must be united and concerted.
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Fri, Sep 14th - 4:00PM
39 DAYS LEFT UNTIL THE REVIVAL CONFERENCE
Stirring Ourselves To Prayer
The prophet Isaiah lived in a time when Israel was in a backslidden condition. Her cup of iniquity had become almost full and she was soon to be carried away captive to a heathen land. There were mountains of difficulties in the way of God's work. The people were divided, and nothing, it seemed, could bring them together. The worst thing was their lukewarmness--the hardest thing in the world with which to deal.
The adversaries were ridiculing and mocking, saying, "Where is your God?" These taunts did not trouble Israel very much, because there was very little fear of God among the people. In the midst of this situation, Isaiah perceived that if God would only come down, that is, if He would manifest His presence, it would solve every problem of the nation.
"Oh that thou wouldest rend the Heavens, that Thou wouldest come down, that the mountains might flow down at Thy presence, as when the melting fire burneth, the fire causeth the waters to boil, to make Thy name known to Thine adversaries, that the nations may tremble at Thy presence!" (Isa 64:1,2).
The mountains would flow down at His presence. Nothing could stand in the presence of Almighty God, and His manifested presence would break down every barrier and sweep away everything that hindered. He saw that God's fire would melt the people and bring them together by His power. He saw that the waters would be made to boil, so that lukewarmness would vanish.
Best of all, God's name would be made known to the adversaries. Skepticism would be swept away, and His people would tremble in His presence.
Similar Conditions Today
Without a doubt we are living in a time similar to that of Isaiah's day. We see conditions in America are terrible. There are divisions among God's people. False doctrines and cults have swept thousands into fanaticism and delusions of vast variety. On every hand there is a lukewarmness that is appalling.
Thousands have lost their faith and left their first love. The only thing that can solve the problem is the manifest presence of God! All our programs, our great preaching, our organizations, our choirs and orchestras, radio and TV--everything that man can do--has failed to solve the problem.
But if we can get God to come down and manifest Himself, the mountains will flow down at His presence, the divisions among God's people will vanish, and we will be brought into one great united body.
More than that, the lukewarm people will be set on fire for God. The waters will be made to boil. The enemies of Christ will be made to know that His power is real, and His name will be made known to the adversaries.
The words of Isaiah take us to the very heart of today's problem of getting God to come down and manifest His presence among us:
"There is none that calleth upon Thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of Thee: for Thou hast hid Thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities" (Isaiah 64:7).
Let us face the truth. God has declared exactly why He does not come down. His people are backslidden, and not a man can be found who will stir himself up to take hold of God in effectual prayer. It is clearly the meaning of this Word that God will come down, however bad conditions may be, provided He can get His people to call upon His name.
Many instances in the history of the Church prove this. The greatest men who have lived to shake the world with God's power have been, every one of them, men of prevailing prayer. The one effectual means for bringing back the presence of God to the people is prevailing prayer!
The greatest lack among God's people is that of travailing prayer. We should be reminded that there has never been a Holy Ghost revival in the history of the world that has not been prayed down! And the praying had to be prevailing prayer--prayer that was desperate; prayer that stirred people up to such fervency of spirit that they fairly took hold of God.
I have seen many times in revival meetings when God's Spirit began to move on people whose hearts were open, and who were hungry for God until that heavenly urge was upon them, and they would pray all night long, wrestling with God like Jacob of old! (Gen. 32:24-30).
I have seen such tremendous results come after such travailing prayer that I am certain that wherever there is real travailing prayer that takes hold of God, it will bring the presence of God down.
"As soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children" (Isaiah 66:8).
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Fri, Sep 14th - 3:59PM
40 DAYS LEFT UNTIL THE REVIVAL CONFERENCE
The World’s Greatest Need Today- God by Jonathan Goforth
“These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brethren.” - Acts 1:14
They were seeking God the Holy Ghost. The one thing which the Master emphasized when He was leaving the disciples was God the Holy Ghost, and their need of Him. Without Him they could not hope to be true representatives of Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth. So they just went to work in one accord and sought for Him. We find them here appreciating the value of God the Holy Ghost for them in their work. They were not for one moment turned aside by any other issue. It was according to the promise of God the Father and the promise of the Lord Jesus to wait in Jerusalem until the promised One should come; and then He would convict of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; He would guide into all truth; He would glorify Jesus.
Agreement About Our Need for the Holy Spirit
Now, can we do better than to unite and imitate them? My whole theme today will be the need of unity in seeking God’s best gift for us. If we had been in the right attitude, with one accord, seeking God as for hidden treasure, He would have come long ago with such tremendous power that the whole world would come to know our Jesus. But the world does not know the Lord Jesus through us, for there is not a mighty manifestation of Holy Ghost power in this land today; so that the need is still—God.
I am sure that if the King of Britain were to come to this tent, we would make way for him and we would give him the best place. There is a greater King—God the Father, and God the Son, represented by God the Holy Ghost. We may rightly say that the Holy Spirit is the executive of the Godhead. The worlds were made by Him, Jesus performed all His miracles by Him and Jesus spoke the words of the Father through Him. The disciples preached the Word of God with the Holy Ghost sent from above, and there were results following prayer.
It’s this same mighty Holy One that we are called to seek for today - Isn’t He worthy? Oh, how could we keep anything in our hearts that would keep Him out? What can be compared with this Holy One? All down through the Christian ages, whenever any mighty manifestation of power was seen which glorified Jesus Christ, He was the Author. He has never changed; He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He is just as almighty; He is just as full of love; He is just as thoughtless of self today as of old. He never will glorify Himself. But oh, we should honor ourselves in honoring Him; we should honor and help others by honoring Him, by allowing Him to come that Christ might be exalted.
The Holy Spirit will never glorify Himself. He always keeps in the background. He lifts up Jesus Christ so high, and makes Him appear so glorious that all eyes are fixed upon Him, all hearts are drawn to Him; and so it is easy for every lip to confess Him, every knee to bow before Him.
Could we do better, than to seek for God the Holy Ghost to come—to come without any condition? God forbid that we should make any condition for the coming of One so great and so wise! He understands everything; He understands every need and He can come in and supply all the fullness of the Godhead. He will come in, when He is allowed to reign in the heart. Then, why not agree? Why not come in one accord in seeking for God the Holy Ghost?
Why Do We Want the Holy Spirit to Come?
But we must be in one accord in our motives. Why should we seek God the Holy Ghost? If God the Holy Spirit comes there will be signs, mighty ones. I believe that if He were allowed to come and if He were appreciated as in the beginning, there would be more wonderful signs than ever before. There is more material to catch fire in the world today; there are more hearts alive to Jesus Christ today than there were at Pentecost; so that if He came today there would be tremendous movements in the world.
Now, how about our motives? The Holy Spirit, if He had control, could not be idle. He would transform our lives, save the children in our homes, save our neighbors, sweep out giant evils everywhere. Yes, He would come with glorious power. And what would be the consequence? Would we be declaring our own fame, that we through our own holiness or goodness had been the means of bringing down the Holy Ghost in such a way as the world never knew before? If such a thought enters our heart, we are far from Pentecost, far form having the Holy One to come and take possession.
If out of a million parts, we are not prepared to give every part to Jesus Christ, and to crown Him Lord of all, we are far from receiving such a blessing. Christ must have all the glory. No matter how high He exalts us, we must fall prostrate at His feet, as dead to the world, as dead and risen with Him, sitting in the heavenly places and exalting Him as King. Are we prepared for this? Can we with one accord, seek that condition before God? It is God’s right to claim it, and our duty to grant it. Oh, may God make us willing in this day of His power, to let Him once and for all reign as King in our lives, our homes, our churches, our land, that no God-dishonoring thing shall be allowed to remain. We will be zealous for God, and will remember that all the glory shall be His.
Agreement About the Promise of the Holy Spirit
There is another thing upon which we can unite. It is this: Believe that God means just what He says. We must cast away unbelief forevermore. It is unbelief and hardness of heart that keep God out. Mind you, they were all with one accord in believing that Jesus meant just what He said, when He promised that the Spirit of God should come with power, and with power to witness for Him to the ends of the earth. They believed that the Lords words would come true. Heaven and earth should pass away rather than the words of Jesus should be unfulfilled. “It is the promise of the Father to us,” they would say, “and we must stay right on here praying.” Not a soul in the company doubted for one instant, but all went on praying. It took them ten days, its true; but it was ten days to get emptied out. There were many things to set right, a good deal in their hearts to be emptied out, but they believed God’s word. It might take us twenty days to get emptied out, and the time would be well spent. God would have taken possession of many of us long ago, if we were only ready.
I imagine that on the first morning that the brethren and sisters met in the upper room prayer meeting, if everything had been emptied out God would have come in and filled them. Yet, it required them ten days to get right with God. Are we prepared, with one accord, to seek in faith God the Holy Spirit? They realized that He desired to use them; they believed that they needed Him; they believed that the world needed Him; they believed that the very honor of Jesus Christ was at stake and that God’s glory was at stake. Beloved, no one but the Spirit of God could truly represent Jesus Christ in them. Do we believe that?
We Have NO Excuses!
Now, remember, we have not as much excuse for sinful unbelief as they would have had. They had no Pentecost to look back to. God’s Holy Spirit was never been poured out in any extraordinary measure before. They had no experience to base their faith upon. They had the word of Jesus Christ; but you have that much and you have a Pentecost as well to fall back upon. You know that when the brethren sought God at Pentecost it was not in vain. All who were in one accord received the Holy Ghost and did wonders. Whenever we have decided to do work for God, we have to go back to Pentecost for our models. God is a reality in the world; and God the Holy Ghost can do wonders beyond what we ask or think. Everyone, after He came at Pentecost, received exceeding abundantly above all that he had asked or thought. Jesus did not deceive. His words are as true today; He has never changed, never weakened in His power. God the Holy Ghost is just as ready to take possession in our lives today, as He was in Jerusalem in that upper room. Do you believe it?
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Fri, Sep 14th - 3:59PM
41 DAYS LEFT UNTIL THE REVIVAL CONFERENCE
Jim Packer, in a paper given at the Puritan Conference in London in 1961, helpfully summed up Edwards’ teaching on revival under three headings, which, with a few principal comments of explanation, are set out in the following paragraphs
1. Revival is an extraordinary work of God the Holy Ghost reinvigorating and propagating Christian piety in a community. Revival is an extraordinary work because it marks the abrupt reversal of an established trend and state of things among those who profess to be God’s people. To envision God reviving His Church is to presuppose that the Church has previously grown moribund and gone to sleep.
2. Revivals have a central place in the revealed purposes of God. “The end of God’s creating the world,” declared Edwards, “was to prepare a kingdom for His Son (for He was appointed heir of the world).” This end is to be realized first through Christ’s accomplishing redemption on Calvary, and then through the triumphs of His kingdom. Thus, according to Edwards, “All the dispensations of God’s providence henceforward (since Christ’s ascension), even to the final consummation of all things, are to give Christ His reward, and fulfill His end in what He did and suffered upon earth.”
A universal dominion is pledged to Christ, and in the interim, before the final consummation, the Father implements this pledge in part by successive outpourings of the Spirit. Revivals, therefore, prove the reality of Christ’s kingdom to a sceptical world and serve to extend its bounds among Christ’s enemies.
3. Revivals are the most glorious of all God’s works in the world. Edwards insisted on this in order to shame those who professed no interest in the divine awakening that had come to New England. He believed they insinuated by their attitude that a Christian’s mind could be more profitably occupied with other matters:
Such a work is, in its nature and kind, the most glorious of any work of God whatsoever. It is the work of redemption (the great end of all the other works of God, and of which the work of creation was but a shadow). It is the work of new creation, which is infinitely more glorious than the old. I am bold to say that the work of God in the conversion of one soul . . . is a more glorious work than the creation of the whole material universe.
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Name: Greg Gordon
