"This is that which hath been spoken by the prophet
Joel; And it shall be in the last days, saith God, I will pour forth of
My Spirit upon all flesh" (Acts 2:16).
There are certain characteristics that mark this divine activity we call
"revival", and distinguish it from other and more normal operations
of the Spirit. Some have already been mentioned, but it will now be necessary
to set them forth in order, and consider them in their relation to the whole.
As Pentecost was the first distinctive outpouring of the Spirit, a careful
examination of that great event will reveal the distinctive features of
every subsequent outpouring. Let Acts 2 be the textbook. Divine
Sovereignty
This first mark is implicit in the statement, "When the day of Pentecost
was now come". Every genuine revival is clearly stamped with the hallmark
of divine sovereignty, and in no way is this more clearly seen than in the
time factor. The moment for that first outpouring of the Spirit was not
determined by the believers in the upper room but by God, who had foreshadowed
it centuries before in those wonderful types of the Old Testament. "The
slaying of the paschal lamb told to generation after generation, though
they knew it not, the day of the year and week on which Christ our Passover
should be sacrificed for us. The presentation of the wave sheaf before the
Lord 'on the morrow after the sabbath' (Lev. 23: 11-16) had for long centuries
fixed the time of our Lord's resurrection on the first day of the week.
And the command to 'count from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day
that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering, seven sabbaths', determined
the day of Pentecost as the time of the descent of the Spirit. . . . They
tarried in prayer for ten days, simply because after the forty days of the
Lord's sojourn on earth subsequent to His resurrection, ten days remained
of the 'seven sabbaths' period" (A. J. Gordon).
But there was something more than the fulfilling of prophecy in the choice
of the day of Pentecost for the great outpouring. It was a strategic moment
which God had foreseen would give to the event of that day the maximum possible
effect. God saw to it that this mighty outpouring of the Spirit was felt
throughout the world of that day, for the feast had brought to Jerusalem
"Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven" (Acts 2:5).
Not only the day, however, but the time of day had been appointed by God,
that the mocking charge, "they are filled with new wine" (verse
13 might be easily rebutted, seeing it was but "the third hour of the
day" [9 a.m.] (verse 15).
Similarly God has His time for every subsequent outpouring, a time that
must surely be related to a thousand other plans He has on foot, and therefore
a time that He alone can determine. It has already been mentioned that God
promised His people Israel, if they were obedient, the rain of their land,
but only "in its season" (Deut. 11: 13-17; Ezek. 34:26).
It would not help the spiritual harvest that God desires if we could have
the outpouring of the Spirit any time or all the time; any more than it
would have helped their harvest if the Israelites could have had the former
and latter rain at any time or all the time. "Ask ye of the Lord rain."
When ?-----"In the time of the latter rain" (Zech. 10:1). A sober
view of the sovereignty of God will not lessen a God-given burden, or discourage
fervent praying in the Spirit, but it may deliver us from extravagance in
which some have erred, or despondence in which some have failed, in their
quest for revival.
It may seem strange to go to Charles Finney for an example of the sovereignty
of God in revival, as that great revivalist tended to overlook this aspect
in battling against the hyper-Calvinism of his day. However, he once recounted:
"While I was in Boston on one occasion, a gentleman stated that he
had come from the capital of Nebraska, and he had found prayer meetings
established throughout all the vast extent of country over which he had
travelled. Think of that--a region of 2,000 miles, along which the hands
of the people were lifted tip to God in prayer! From north to south, till
you come within the slave territory, a great and mighty cry went up to God
that He would come down and take the people in hand and convert souls; and
He heard, and everybody stood astounded." Such a vast, unorganized,
and yet coordinated prayer movement cannot be explained except that God
in His sovereignty had taken the initiative. What is true of the promise
of future blessing for Israel, is true also of the promise of revival, "I
the Lord will hasten it in its time" (Isa. 60: 22).
It has been said of the Welsh Revival, "The outpouring of the Spirit
came dramatically with precision, in the second week in November, 1904,
on the same day--both in the north and in the south." Undoubtedly there
were those in both regions who had met the conditions and were ready for
God to work, but we cannot account for this strange co-ordination apart
from that divine strategy which lies behind the sovereign ways of God. In
the 1859 Revival that spread to many parts of the British Isles, there was
an immediate movement in some places when Christians met to pray and fulfil
God's conditions. In other parts, however, although it would appear that
the preparation of heart and burden of prayer were quite as real, the believers
were kept waiting for one or even two years. It is significant that when
revival came after a longer waiting period, the work was often deeper and
more widespread. "Behold, He withholdeth the waters, and they dry up;
again, He sendeth them out, and they overrun the earth" (Job 12:15).
The same principle is seen in the great variety of manifestations that have
accompanied different movements. God is sovereign, and His sovereignty is
revealed not only in the timing of every revival movement, but in
the manner and measure of the Spirit's working.
Where believers have been encouraged by God to expect revival, and where
they have with all their hearts sought to prepare themselves and pray through,
but the blessing has been delayed, there is a danger of giving way to despondence,
or undue introspection. Let such remember that if He has promised, then
"God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that
He should repent: hath He said, and shall He not do it? Or hath He spoken,
and shall He not make it good?" (Num. 23: 19). Let such be emboldened
to "hold on" by a sober view of the sovereignty of God, and the
immutability of His purposes. "The Lord of Hosts hath sworn, saying,
Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed,
so shall it stand.
For the Lord of Hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it? and His
hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back?" (Isa. 14:24, 27).
Let them wait on the Lord, and wait for the Lord, and they
shall not be ashamed (Isa. 49:23). Spiritual Preparation
This feature was also in evidence, for "they were all together in one
place" (verse 1). How these believers in the upper room had reached
this state of preparedness is shown in Chapter 1, where we find that they
"all with one accord continued steadfastly in prayer" (verse 14).
The word of God presents to us side by side the two foundation stones of
every revival - the sovereignty of God and the preparedness of man. Because
we cannot understand how they harmonize is no reason for emphasizing one
at the expense of the other. There is an extreme view of the sovereignty
of God that argues, "If God wills to send revival it will come. Nothing
that we do can effect this, so why need we be concerned?" The word
of God and history teach us that such an attitude of indifference and fatalism
must be abandoned before revival can be expected. If the blessing comes
then we may be sure that somewhere someone has met the conditions and paid
the price. Such a view of divine sovereignty ignores the conditions of spiritual
preparedness.
There is also an extreme emphasis on spiritual preparedness that ignores
the fact of divine sovereignty; it suggests that God is at our beck and
call, and that we can have revival any day we care to pay the price, much
as we can have electric light the moment we care to turn the switch. The
word of God gives us the proper balance by presenting, as here in the first
verse of Acts 2, the two aspects side by side. Similarly David declared,
"Thy people offer themselves willingly in the day of Thy power"
(Ps. 110:3). The day of His power is determined by God alone, and emphasizes
His sovereignty; but in that day His people have met the conditions by being
ready and willing, which reveals the fact of spiritual preparation. God
reminds us of His sovereignty when He declares, "I will cause the cities
to be inhabited, and the waste places shall be builded . . . I the Lord
have spoken it, and I will do it"; but He adds, "For this moreover
will I be inquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them", reminding
us of the conditions that must be fulfilled (Ezek. 36: 33-37).
War is not all attack, but there is a strategic moment for offensive action.
The place, the time, and the manner of any attack are of crucial importance
in the interests of the campaign as a whole; therefore such matters are
not left to the soldier in the fighting line, but are determined beforehand
by the supreme commander in the conference room. He alone can see the whole
picture and keep his hand upon the whole situation. If, however, the plans
made at the highest level are to be carried through successfully, the soldier
in the line must be fully prepared for all that is involved. Revival, as,
we have seen in the previous chapter, is a strategic attack by God upon
the strongholds of Satan. The place, the time, and the manner of working
are in the sovereign hands of the Lord the Spirit; but His subordinates,
through whom He works, must be spiritually prepared when God's zero hour
strikes.
How clearly these two important factors are set forth in the promised rain
of Canaan. Divine sovereignty was seen in that the rain was confined to
its God-appointed "season", but it was also strictly conditioned
by the obedience of the people. "If ye shall hearken diligently unto
My commandments which I command you this day, to love the Lord your God,
and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul, that I will
give the rain of your land in its season" (Deut. i x: 13). God declared
with equal emphasis and on the same occasion, that if on the other hand
they turned aside and served other gods and worshipped them, He would "shut
up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that the land yield not her fruit"
(verses 16, 17).
How spiritual preparedness, or the absence of it, may influence God's working
is vividly illustrated by the visit of the Saviour to Nazareth. "He
could there do no mighty work . . . and He marvelled because of their unbelief"
(Mark 6: 5,6). What this spiritual preparation involves, and how it may
be effected, is a subject so large and so important that it must be considered
separately. Suddenness
Here is the third feature, "And suddenly there came. . "
(verse 2). Since revival may be likened to a strategic attack, it is plain
that, as in the realm of human conflict, so in the spiritual, the effect
of every attack is heightened by the surprise factor. In revival God works
suddenly and unexpectedly. Often even the mass of believers are taken unawares,
while wonder and astonishment grip the hearts of unbelievers. It was so
at Pentecost where we read of those who came together, "They were all
amazed and marvelled" (verse 7), and again, "They were all amazed,
and were perplexed" (verse 12). As to Christians being taken by surprise,
Charles Finney often noticed it and remarked, "They would wake up all
of a sudden, like a man, just rubbing his eyes open, and running round the
room pushing things over, and wondering where all this excitement came from.
But though few knew it, you may be sure there had been somebody on the watch-tower,
constant in prayer till the blessing came." How vital it is for the
ears of the saints to be open to the voice of God in these days, for He
speaks first to those whose ears are attuned to Him, and then He acts suddenly.
"Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but He revealeth His secret unto
His servants the prophets" (Amos 3:7). God's methods have not changed
down the centuries: it may be the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry
trees, it may be a tiny cloud arising out of the sea; such insignificant
tokens are all that is needed for the listening ear or the watchful eye.
"I have declared the former things from of old; yea, they went forth
out of My mouth, and I shewed them: suddenly I did them, and they
came to pass" (Isa. 48:3); "Behold, the former things are come
to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I
tell you of them" (Isa. 42:9).
In 2 Chronicles 29 there is a detailed account of the revival that took
place under Hezekiah. The house of the Lord was cleansed and the people
were moved to offer sacrifices and thank-offerings in such abundance that
the few priests who had sanctified themselves could not handle them, and
they had to be assisted by the Levites. Scripture records, "Hezekiah
rejoiced, and all the people, because of that which God had prepared for
the people: for the thing was done suddenly" (verse 36). Who
knows all that God is preparing for His people in these days? May we not
be found unsanctified, and so unfitted for the work, when the day of God's
power shall dawn.
The effect of the sudden working of the Spirit in revival is very striking
in the conviction of sinners. Often without any preparatory concern or even
thought for spiritual things, a sinner will be suddenly seized with overwhelming
conviction of sin. "But God shall shoot at them; with an, arrow suddenly
shall they be wounded . . . and all men shall fear; and they shall declare
the work of God, and shall wisely consider of His doing" (Ps. 64:7,
9). Describing the course of the Ulster '59 Revival at Ballymena and elsewhere,
John Shearer writes of some who "were suddenly pierced as by a sharp
sword, and their agonized cry for help was heard in the streets and in the
fields. Here, for example, is a farmer returning from market in Ballymena.
His mind is wholly intent upon the day's bargain. He pauses, takes out some
money, and begins to count it. Suddenly an awful Presence envelops him.
In a moment his only thought is that he is a sinner standing on the brink
of hell. His silver is scattered, and he falls upon the dust of the highway,
crying out for mercy" (Old Time Revivals).
Spontaneous Working
With the brevity and simplicity characteristic of Scripture we are shown
in four words the source of the outpouring, "there came from
heaven" (verse 2). 'This provides the fourth feature of revival; it
is spontaneous because it is "not forced or suggested or caused
by outside agency" (Oxf. Dict.). It is the result of a divine and not
a human impulse. In language plain to all, it cannot be "worked up".
It is true that spiritual conditions must be met before revival can be expected,
but fulfilled conditions do not provide the motive force of revival. At
Pentecost it was "the windows of heaven", not the windows of the
upper room, that were opened. The source of the blessing was the heart of
God, not the heart of man. It cannot be too strongly emphasized that such
"seasons of refreshing" have always come "from the presence
of the Lord" (Acts 3:19). We may believe that during those ten days
of waiting there were revived hearts in that upper room, but there was no
revival; there were empty vessels, but no outpouring. When it came, it came
direct from heaven and found in that waiting band a channel through which
to flow.
A missionary, recounting what he had seen of the 1860 Revival in South India,
wrote, "Man seems to have little part in it, the Spirit's work is all
predominant, fulfilling that blessed promise, 'I will work'." Another
who wrote of the 1904 Revival stated, "The hidden springs of the Awakening
in Wales lay deep in the heart of God", and this is where we may find
the springs of every awakening. The origin of all revival must be traced
back, further than human factors and fulfilled conditions, to the heart
of the Eternal that yearns to bless, and to bless superabundantly. "God
so loved . . . that He gave" and "He that spared not His
own Son . . . shall He not also with Him freely give us all things ?"
Once again the rain of Canaan, with the remarkable accuracy of Scripture
types, aptly illustrates this very feature of revival. Contrasting Egypt,
which typifies the world, with Canaan, which speaks of that which is heavenly,
God said: "For the land, whither thou goest in to possess it, is not
as the land of Egypt, from whence ye came out, where thou sowedst thy seed,
and wateredst it with thy foot, as a garden of herbs; but the land, whither
ye go over to possess it, is a land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water
of the rain of heaven" (Deut. 11:10, 11). Egypt was stamped with the
workmanship of the creature; it was "as a garden of herbs", carefully
laid out, planned and arranged. Canaan, on the other hand, was stamped with
the workmanship of the Creator; for everywhere the eye was refreshed and
delighted with the unorganized order of creation, it was "a land of
hills and valleys".
Egypt's fertility, as dependent upon water as was Canaan's, was watered
with the foot. In other words, a simple device worked by the foot, which
can still be seen in Egypt today, pumped water from the Nile, and conveyed
it by a system of irrigation channels to where it was required. Thus the
supply of water was dependent upon human energy and ingenuity, and a dirty
supply it was when men had finished manipulating it, and it had reached
the thirsty soil. But the heavenly country - oh, how different--"a
land that drinketh water of the rain of heaven". Canaan was made fruitful
by that which came down in all its freshness and purity from above. God
had designed that it should be dependent upon the heavens for water, and
if these were shut up, the spiritual reason must be sought out and the matter
rectified; there was no suggestion of devising any artificial substitute.
It was said of redeemed Israel that they "turned back in their hearts
unto Egypt" (Acts 7:39). Someone has put it thus: "It was one
thing to get the people out of Egypt, but quite another to get Egypt out
of the people." Said the prophet, "Woe to them that go down to
Egypt for help . . but they look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither
seek the Lord" (Isa. 31:1). This tendency of going back for assistance
into the land whence we have come out, of borrowing from the world and its
ways, is as evident today as ever. There are still too many who have more
confidence in the working of the foot to produce results, than in the bowing
of the knee. This spontaneous feature of revival, however, cuts right across
this human tendency. There is no mightier corrective to worldly methods
in Christian service than a heaven-sent revival. Who would want to continue
to work the pump when the heavens are pouring down a copious rain?
A movement bears this mark of spontaneity when men cannot account for what
has taken place in terms of personalities, organization, meetings, preachings,
or any other consecrated activity; and when the work continues unabated
without any human control. As soon as a movement becomes controlled or organized,
it has ceased to be spontaneous - it is no longer revival. The course of
the 1904 Welsh Revival has been outlined thus: "God began to work;
and then the Devil began to work in opposition; and then God began to work
all the harder; and then man began to work, and the revival came to an end."
It is most needful in times of revival that a careful watch should be kept
so that nothing should gain a foothold which is not of the Spirit, but great
care must be taken not to interfere with what is evidently the work of God.
When God is working let man keep his hands off. Many a revival has ended
through human interference. God-Consciousness
Here is another conspicuous feature that characterizes revival. "There
came . . . a sound as of the rushing of a mighty wind there appeared unto
them tongues . . . like as of fire" (verses 2, 3). Wherever the Spirit
of God is poured out saints and sinners alike are made acutely aware of
the presence of the Almighty. The spirit of revival is the consciousness
of God. Just as the "light from heaven, above the brightness of the
sun" struck down the zealous Pharisee, Saul of Tarsus, and brought
him to his knees, convicted and repentant (Acts 26), so does the Eternal
Light, in days of revival, burst upon the slumbering consciousness of men
with much the same result. On the day of Pentecost God manifested His presence
first to those in the upper room, and then to the multitude who had gathered
outside, who were soon "pricked in their heart" (Acts 2:37), until
that strange, mysterious influence from heaven had spread over the whole
city, "and fear came upon every soul" (verse 43).
The effects of such manifestations of God are twofold: men are made aware
both of His power and of His holiness. What awe must have come to the hearts
of that waiting band, as they listened to that "sound as of the rushing
of a mighty wind" - what a sense of the irresistible power of God!
But there was also the appearance of "tongues parting asunder, like
as of fire". Fire typifies the activity of God's holiness in relation
to sin; fire consumes and fire purifies. When the Spirit came upon Christ
it was not as the fire, but "as a dove", for there was no sin
in Him, as the Father then declared, "Thou art My beloved Son; in Thee
I am well pleased" (Luke 3:22). But here the tongues like as of fire
sat upon each of them, bringing not only a sense of the infinite holiness
of God, but of the activity of that holiness in dealing with all that was
unholy in themselves.
This manifestation of God in power and holiness was intensely personal.
The sound of the wind appeared to bear down upon them until it filled the
very house where they were sitting. The tongues of fire parted asunder and
sat upon each one of them. It was God moving in power and holiness, and
moving toward them; they themselves were the objects of God's activity.
Here is an outstanding feature of revival, and it is not difficult to see
why it results in overwhelming conviction both among the saved and the lost,
whenever there is unjudged sin. Those waiting hearts in the upper room were
doubtless cleansed and prepared for the coming of the Spirit, consequently
there is no evidence of conviction, though no doubt there was a deeper work
of purging accomplished by the fire of the Spirit. Usually, however, it
is otherwise. At such times man is not only made conscious that God is there;
but that He is there, as it seems, to deal with him alone, until he is oblivious
of all but his own soul in the agonizing grip of a holy God.
If these facts are borne in mind the extraordinary effects of past revivals
will not seem incredible. The ruthless logic of Jonathan Edwards' famous
discourse, Sinners in the hands of an angry God (from Deut. 32:25),
preached in his usual plain and undemonstrative manner, at Enfield, New
England, in 1741, could never have produced the effect it did had not God
been in the midst. "When they went into the meeting-house the appearance
of the assembly was thoughtless and vain; the people scarcely conducted
themselves with common decency", recorded Trumbull, but he goes on
to describe the effect of the sermon: "the assembly appeared bowed
with an awful conviction of their sin and danger. There was such a breathing
of distress and weeping, that the preacher was obliged to speak to the people
and desire silence that he might be heard." Conant says, "Many
of the hearers were seen unconsciously holding themselves up against the
pillars, and the sides of the pews, as though they already felt themselves
sliding into the pit."
Similar is the scene described by Charles Finney when he preached in the
village school-house near Antwerp, N.Y. "An awful solemnity seemed
to settle upon the people; the congregation began to fall from their seats
in every direction and cry for mercy. If I had had a sword in each hand,
I could not have cut them down as fast as they fell. I was obliged to stop
preaching." Of course the measure of conviction is not often so overwhelming
as this, and varies even with different individuals affected on the same
occasion, but the explanation is always the same, the manifestation of God
in holiness and power.
This strange sense of God may pervade a building, a community, or a district,
and those who come within its spell will be affected. At the beginning of
the 1904 Awakening near the town of Gorseinon a revival meeting was in progress
throughout the night. A miner, a somewhat hardened notorious case, returning
from his shift about 4 a.m. saw the light in the chapel and decided to investigate.
As soon as he opened the chapel door he was overwhelmed by a sense of God's
presence, and exclaimed, "Oh, God is here!" He was afraid either
to enter or depart, and there on the threshold of the chapel a saving work
began in his soul.
No town in Ulster was more deeply stirred during the 1859 Revival than Coleraine.
It was there that a boy was so troubled about his soul that the schoolmaster
sent him home. An older boy, a Christian, accompanied him, and before they
had gone far led him to Christ. Returning at once to the school, this latest
convert testified to the master, "Oh, l am so happy! have the Lord
Jesus in my heart." The effect of these artless words was very great.
Boy after boy rose and silently left the room. On investigation the master
found these boys ranged alongside the wall of the playground, everyone apart
and on his knees! Very soon their silent prayer became a bitter cry. It
was heard by those within and pierced their hearts. They cast themselves
upon their knees, and their cry for mercy was heard in the girls' schoolroom
above. In a few moments the whole school was upon its knees, and its wail
of distress was heard in the street outside. Neighbours and passers-by came
flocking in, and all, as they crossed the threshold, came under the
same convicting power. Every room was filled with men, women, and children
seeking God.
Similar stories could be told of the 1858 American Revival. Ships as they
drew near the American ports came within a definite zone of heavenly influence.
Ship after ship arrived with the same tale of sudden conviction and conversion.
In one ship a captain and the entire crew of thirty men found Christ out
at sea and entered the harbour rejoicing. Revival broke out on the battleship
"North Carolina" through four Christian men who had been meeting
in the bowels of the ship for prayer. One evening they were filled with
the Spirit and burst into song. Ungodly shipmates who came down to mock
were gripped by the power of God, and the laugh of thc scornful was soon
changed into the cry of the penitent. Many were smitten down, and a gracious
work broke out that continued night after night, till they had to send ashore
for ministers to help, and the battleship became a Bethel.
This overwhelming sense of God, bringing deep conviction of sin, is perhaps
the outstanding feature of true revival. The manifestation of it is not
always the same. Sometimes it is predominantly the unconverted who are convicted,
as in the cases quoted. At other times it is Christians or professing Christians,
as in the revivals in Manchuria and China (1906-9) under Jonathan Goforth;
or the recent awakening in the Belgian Congo (1953). But the explanation
is always the same, Of the revival in Northampton, Mass., Jonathan Edwards
wrote: "In the spring and summer, A.D. 1735, the town seemed to be
full of the presence of God. It never was so full of love, nor so full of
joy, and yet so full of distress, as it was then." To cleansed hearts
it is heaven, to convicted hearts it is hell, when God is in the midst.
Anointed Vessels
Here is a further vital feature--"they were all filled with the Holy
Spirit". In times preceding revival it is common to find among believers
of various persuasions a fresh emphasis on the person and work of the Holy
Spirit. Many have been lost in a maze of theological controversy. Others
have moved for years in the rut of traditional interpretation, concerned
with an explanation rather than an experience, a definition instead of a
dynamic. But with those stirrings of the Spirit that are the precursor of
revival, there is born in many such hearts a wholesome dissatisfaction with
that vague and mystic view of being filled with the Spirit that leaves one
in the dark as to what it is, how it comes, and whether or not one has received
it. There is not scope here to deal with this important subject as it needs
to be dealt with, but let us briefly mention three important facts regarding
the anointing of the believer with the Holy Spirit that emerge from this
and other parallel cases in the New Testament.
Firstly, the anointing was a definite experience. It had to be, for
the risen Christ had left the believers of the upper room with a promise
and a command: the promise was that of the Spirit coming upon them, "Ye
shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days hence" (1:5);
and the command was that they were to "wait for the (1:4) to be fulfilled,
"tarry ye - until" (Luke 524: 49). Apart from the expectation
of a definite experience they could not have obeyed the command to "tarry
until". However, they took their Lord at His word, they waited, and
in due time the promise was fulfilled. They knew that they had received
the promised Holy Spirit, and very soon others knew also that something
remarkable had taken place.
These who but a few days before had slunk into the upper room and bolted
the door for fear of the men who had murdered their Master, are now standing
in the open and alleging that this Jesus is alive, and accusing their hearers
of His murder. Peter, who a month and a half before had denied his Lord
at the jibe of a servant-girl, now stands before the multitudes in the very
city where He was crucified, and asserts that God had made this Jesus "both
Lord and Christ". Certainly something very definite has happened to
these believers. Every other instance in the New Testament of individuals
being filled with the Spirit confirms that it is a definite experience.
There may or may not be emotional accompaniments. There may or may not be
striking manifestations, but it is the birthright of every child of God
to receive that anointing, and to know that he (or she) has received it.
Secondly, the anointing was a dynamic experience. It was not given
that they might enjoy a spiritual uplift. It was not given primarily that
they might be more holy. It was given to make them powerful and effective
for God. Through it they would be "clothed with power from on high"
(Luke 24: 49). "Ye shall receive power, when the Holy Spirit is come
upon you: and ye shall be My witnesses," said the Saviour (Acts 1:8).
As the Father had sent Him, so was He sending them (John 20:21i), and it
was in view of this commission that He breathed on them as a symbolic act,
and commanded them to receive the Holy Spirit, which they did on the day
of Pentecost. Thenceforth they were to be like their Lord, 'anointed . .
. with the Holy Spirit and power" (Acts 10:38). Being filled or anointed
with the Spirit is always related to spiritual service. This alone can make
the fearful believer a courageous and effective witness for Christ. It does
not result in all becoming evangelists or great soul-winners. The gifts
bestowed may vary with each individual (1 Cor. 12), and this is in the hands
of the same Spirit "dividing to each one severally even as He will"
(1 Cor. 12:11). But with each there is an imparting of power, and an equipping
to function for God in whatever way He may choose.
Finally, it was a desired experience, intensely desired. It was then,
and still is, born out of soul thirst. It is the experience of the one who
cannot do without it. "If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and
drink" (John 7:37). "I will pour water upon him that is thirsty"
(Isa. 44:3). Thirst is a more intense desire than hunger, and in the realm
of the Spirit "thirst" is the word that God has used to illustrate
the desire that should characterize His people. How ready the Lord is to
satisfy the longing soul, and to lead His people to the "fountains
of living water". Child of God, are you thirsty to be filled with the
Spirit?
Characteristically revival is a time when large numbers of believers are
filled with the Spirit. Such an event, as here at Pentecost, may set off
a revival. Charles Finney received a mighty anointing of the Spirit on the
evening of the day of his conversion. As a result a revival broke out the
following day in Adams, N.Y., the town where he lived. When the waiting
vessel cannot contain the abundance of the heavenly anointing, there must
of necessity be floods upon the dry ground, and such are often the beginning
of revival. Said Finney, "Many times great numbers of persons in a
community will be clothed with this power, when the very atmosphere of the
whole place seems to be charged with the life of God. Strangers coming into
it and passing through the place will be instantly smitten with conviction
of sin, and in many instances converted to Christ."
God has not only said, "I will pour water upon him that is thirsty,
and streams upon the dry ground", but also "I will pour My Spirit
upon thy seed, and My blessing upon thine offspring" (Isa. 44: 4 Both
are blessedly true of revival, for it is then that God not only pours out
His Spirit upon the church, but also upon the seed and offspring of the
church, so that new-born souls are at once filled with the Spirit and become
effective for God. A revival will often increase in power and influence
in this way. |