The Kind of Revival We Need
by Charles Haddon Spurgeon
How can we expect
a blessing if we are too idle to ask for it? How can we look for a
Pentecost if we never meet with one another, in one place, to wait upon
the Lord? Brethren, we shall never see much change for the better in
our churches till the prayer meeting occupies a higher place in the
esteem of Christians.But now that we
have come together, how shall we pray? Let us not degenerate into
formality, or we shall be dead while we think we live. Let us not
waiver through unbelief, or we shall pray in vain. Oh, for great faith
with which to offer great prayers!We have been
mingling praise and prayer together as a delicious compound of spices,
fit to be presented upon the altar of incense through Christ our Lord;
may we not at this time offer some special far-reaching petition? It is
suggested to me that we pray for a true and genuine revival of religion
throughout the world.
A Real and Lasting Revival
I am glad of any
signs of life, even if they should be feverish and transient, and I am
slow to judge any well intended movement, but I am very fearful that
many so called revivals in the long run wrought more harm than good. A
species of religious gambling has fascinated many men, and given them a
distaste for the sober business of true godliness.But if I would
nail down counterfeits upon the counter, I do not therefore undervalue
true gold. Far from it. It is to be desired beyond measure that the
Lord would send a real and lasting revival of spiritual life.We need a work of
the Holy Spirit of a supernatural kind, putting power into the
preaching of the Word, inspiring all believers with heavenly energy,
and solemnly affecting the hearts of the careless, so that they turn to
God and live. We would not be drunk with the wine of carnal excitement,
but we would be filled with the Spirit. We would behold the fire
descending from heaven in answer to the effectual fervent prayers of
righteous men. Can we not entreat the Lord our God to make bare His
holy arm in the eyes of all the people in this day of declension and
vanity?
Old-fashioned Doctrine
We want a revival
of old-fashioned doctrine. I know not a single doctrine which is not at
this hour studiously undermined by those who ought to be its defenders.
There is not a truth that is precious to the soul which is not now
denied by those whose profession it is to proclaim it. To me it is
clear that we need a revival of old-fashioned gospel preaching like
that of Whitefield and Wesley.The Scriptures
must be made the infallible foundation of all teaching; the ruin,
redemption and regeneration of mankind must be set forth in
unmistakable terms.
Personal Godliness
Urgently do we
need a revival of personal godliness. This is, indeed, the secret of
church prosperity. When individuals fall from their steadfastness, the
church is tossed to and fro; when personal faith is steadfast, the
church abides true to her Lord.It is upon the
truly godly and spiritual that the future of religion depends in the
hand of God. Oh, for more truly holy men, quickened and filled with the
Holy Spirit, consecrated to the Lord and sanctified by His truth.Brethren, we must
each one live if the church is to be alive; we must live unto God if we
expect to see the pleasure of the Lord prospering in our hands.
Sanctified men are the salt of society and the saviours of the race.
Domestic Religion
We deeply want a
revival of domestic religion. The Christian family was the bulwark of
godliness in the days of the puritans, but in these evil times hundreds
of families of so-called Christians have no family worship, no
restraint upon growing sons, and no wholesome instruction or
discipline. How can we hope to see the kingdom of our Lord advance when
His own disciples do not teach His gospel to their own children?Oh, Christian men
and women, be thorough in what you do and know and teach! Let your
families be trained in the fear of God and be yourselves "holiness unto
the Lord"; so shall you stand like a rock amid the surging waves of
error and ungodliness which rage around us.
Vigorous, Consecrated Strength
We want also a
revival of vigorous, consecrated strength. I have pleaded for true
piety; I now beg for one of the highest results of it. We need saints.
We need gracious minds trained to a high form of spiritual life by much
converse with God in solitude.Saints acquire
nobility from their constant resort to the place where the Lord meets
with them. There they also acquire that power in prayer which we so
greatly need. Oh, that we had more men like John Knox, whose prayers
were more terrible to Queen Mary than 10,000 men! Oh, that we had more
Elijahs by whose faith the windows of heavens should be shut or opened!This power comes
not by a sudden effort; it is the outcome of a life devoted to the God
of Israel! If our life is all in public, it will be a frothy, vapoury
ineffectual existence; but if we hold high converse with God in secret,
we shall be mighty for good. He that is a prince with God will take
high rank with men, after the true measure of nobility.Beware of being a
lean-to; endeavour to rest on your own walls of real faith in the Lord
Jesus. May none of us fall into a mean, poverty-stricken dependence on
man! We want among us believers like those solid, substantial family
mansions which stand from generation to generation as landmarks of the
country; no lath-and-plaster fabrics, but edifices solidly constructed
to bear all weathers, and defy time itself.Given a host of
men who are steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the
Lord, the glory of God's grace will be clearly manifested, not only in
them, but in those round about them. The Lord send us a revival of
consecrated strength, and heavenly energy!Preach by your
hands if you cannot preach by your tongues. When our church members
show the fruits of true godliness, we shall soon have inquiries for the
tree which bears such a crop.Oh the coming
together of the saints is the first part of Pentecost, and the
ingathering of sinners is the second. It began with "only a prayer
meeting", but it ended with a grand baptism of thousands of converts.
Oh that the prayers of believers may act as lode stones to sinners! Oh
that every gathering of faithful men might be a lure to attract others
to Jesus! May many souls fly to Him because they see others speeding in
that direction."Lord, we turn
from these poor foolish procrastinators to thyself, and we plead for
them with thine all-wise and gracious spirit! Lord, turn them and they
shall be turned! By their conversion, pray that a true revival has
commenced tonight! Let it spread through all our households, and then
run from church to church till the whole of christendom shall be ablaze
with a heaven-descended fire!"