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Revival! (1)
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor cana bad tree bear good fruit.” Matthew 7.15-17
Ministers of Scotland: Lectures on Revival
The Rev. John Bonar, Minister of Larbert and Dunipace
“[Revival] is not only a time when many say they are converted, but when multitudes show that they are converted. In a word, by the purity of the doctrine taught, by the spirituality of the effect produced in the soul, as well as by the gracious results in the life and conversation, does a time of true refreshing show itself; and by them is such a time for ever distinguished from those seasons of excitement which many have sought to confound them with.”
I get the feeling that our “season of excitement” in the American Church is on the wane. Our churches are not healthy, nor are they growing, not, that is, according to the model taught by Jesus and Paul. We don’t need more excitement in our churches; we need revival. In the early years of the 19th century, God visited the churches in Scotland with an extraordinary season of revival. As in each such season, voices arose denying the authenticity of the events and questioning the very idea that revivals occur in this modern era. The ministers of Scotland, who witnessed this extraordinary moving of God’s Spirit, thus combined to put their thoughts into print, and to explain and celebrate the work of God in renewing His churches. These men knew what they had seen, and they wanted the rest of the world to understand as well, to stir the followers of Christ to seek renewal from His hand. What could be more appropriate for our day?
How would you be able to tell when your church was being revived? When it was in need of being revived?
Preparing for Revival
Perhaps most pastors fall into the category of those who do not expect to see a great revival and worldwide awakening in our lifetime. But just in case God chooses to do what He has done many times throughout the history of the Christian movement, we do well to prepare for it. Join us online once a month to pray for revival. Surely you can spare 30 minutes, once a month, to join with other pastors and church leaders to seek the Lord for revival, according to His Word? We’re looking for men who will commit to seeking the Lord for revival together. If you’re interested, write to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., and I’ll give you a list of available times. Or we can discuss beginning a new group to pray for revival at a more suitable time.
To help you in preparing for revival, we have two brief books that won’t take you more than an hour to read. Preparing Your Church for Revival tells you what to expect as the Lord begins to move, and shows you how to get ready even now (click here). Restore Us! provides the rationale and means for praying together for revival. It includes 12 psalms to guide your times of praying together (click here).
All quotations in this series are taken from Ministers of Scotland, Lectures on Revival, Richard Owen Roberts, ed. (Wheaton: Richard Owen Roberts, Publishers, 1980). Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.