|
Revival
This is from pages 5 and 16 of the March 1956 edition of The Pentecostal Herald
Revival
by the Late W.T. Witherspoon
For some months we have been greatly stirred over the matter of a world-wide, Holy Ghost revival We have been preaching this, admonishing the saints to pray and believe God for it, and we have every reason to believe that it is coming. We are believing God for something beyond that which has ever been in our day. With all that can be said about our knowledge of God and His wonderful plan for salvation, we must still admit that we are yet far from the New Testament mark. The world around us can still consistently say-"Where is your God?" -in view of our lack of power to deliver from sin, sickness and death.
On a recent visit to a distant state, we visited what we call a "nominal" church. The minister faithfully denounced the sins and customs of the day, and preached what truth he knew with great fervor. We were much impressed with his honesty and wholeheartedness. Later in the day, we visited a Pentecostal Church, where we were not known, and while we stayed
through most of the service, we were glad to seize an opportunity to get out. There was considerable deadness and formality in the nominal church, but this was no more grievous to God than the disorder and fleshly manifestations in the Pentecostal Church. The Pentecostal Church had truth,and its members had a real experience far beyond that of the denominational preacher, but the trouble was they had no one to teach them "how to behave themselves in the house of God, which is the pillar and ground of the truth." In the
nominal church they had no foundation upon which to build; in the Pentecostal Church they had no one to show them how to build on the real foundation. For this, and other reasons, the true way of God is evil spoken of.
In some places the pastor is so weak that he just lets anything and everything go on, rather than to offend anyone, and especially some good "tither." Pastors should take an independent stand in God; allow no one to get an influence over them; preach the word straight; and tell anyone if he doesn't like it, that the door swings both ways. If he can't trust God to supply his needs by straight preaching, he can at least go to work, and not bring reproach on the Gospel by catering to flesh to get his support. I know of no more sickening sight than a pastor running around after members, and almost getting down under their feet to raise money for the house of God and the support of his family. We notice in many cases where a young minister opens up a new work, he makes the fatal mistake of looking for support rather than for spirituality. There are always folk who are carnal, and only too glad to join in with a young minister, feeling that they can get in on the "ground floor" and control the preacher through their offer of support.
You may think we have wandered from the subject of a revival; but I wonder where we got our idea of a revival? Revival means a repetition, or refilling, or reenlivening. All the workers of the church, including the evangelists, are partly for the perfecting of the saints. For instance, if you had a church of twenty members and five of them were on fire, and fifteen had grown cold, and an evangelist came and held a series of meetings, during which 100 were baptized and received the baptism of the Holy Ghost, you would probably report it as a big revival, but it would not be a revival unless the fifteen cold ones got revived.
And this is what we have in mind as the necessary preparation for a great Holy Ghost awakening, i. e., if "we are to be the head, and not the tail."
'No Pentecostal church can be built upon evangelistic meetings, no matter how good they are or how efficient the evangelist is. A church must have plenty of prayer, fast days, saints meetings, and Bible teaching. We were asked one time to give Bible teaching in a
certain Pentecostal church. We tried it once or twice and had to quit. The very minute you quit "manifesting," the meeting was dead to the poor , starved saints, who had been raised on "milk," and were not able to take any "meat."
We preached in a large church one time, where there was a large company of saints. The very minute we would branch out into some of the deep things of God, which had been so anointed in other places, the anointing would lift. We were confused for a little bit, wondering why God would not anoint His truth. Like a flash the Spirit showed us that we were trying to put meat into weak stomachs, so we got away from the subject that was on our heart, and
began to deal with repentance, baptism, speaking in tongues, etc., and there was a shout in the camp. Has Paul not admonished us to "leave the principles of the doctrine of Christ and go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, laying on of hands, faith toward God, the doctrine of baptisms, etc?" And following this, he goes on to show that it is impossible to keep this up, for there must be a going on or a falling away.
I have a very clear conception in the Spirit that the Holy Ghost is going to sweep over our country, and perhaps the world, and is going to deal only with honest hearts, and those who will go on with Him. This will sweep thousands out of their cold, dead, formal churches, into a real experience necessary for the rapture, for God is going to do a quick work on the earth, and cut it short in righteousness. I fear, also, that it will leave behind many who have been playing with these precious truths for years. Therefore, we will have to obey God and walk in all the light we have, and so conduct ourselves in and out of the church as to prove the precious truth which has been committed to us.
It is a matter of history that preceding every major move of God on earth His children have humbled themselves before Him in confession, repentance, and strong crying for God to move in their midst. Throughout the Bible you will notice that God always heard the cry of His children when they humbled themselves and acknowledged their need. It is time for us, not only to rejoice in this wonderful Jesus' name revelation, but to cry for God to make us worthy to bear His name; and that He will grant that we will be able to preach this truth with all boldness, by stretching forth His hand that signs and wonders may be done in the name of the Holy Child Jesus
__________________
Sam also known as Jim Ellis
Apostolic in doctrine
Pentecostal in experience
Charismatic in practice
Non-denominational in affiliation
Inter-denominational in fellowship
|
Linear Mode
