Lectures on Revivals of Religion (Paperback)

These are powerful lectures on what constitutes a religious revival, how to encourage or promote a religious revival, and what can be done to maintain a revival experience in the life of the Christian and in the life of the church. Charles Finney understands a religious revival to be the work of man, when we renew our first love with Christ. A religious revival is a new beginning of obedience to God. It results in the backslidden person or church returning to its first love (Jesus), and in the conversion of sinners. God is involved in the revival process insofar as he providentially arranges for men and women to be encountered with the truth of the gospel. Yet a revival cannot take place without the cooperation of the penitent sinner, he or she must repent of their sins and seek the Lord with all their heart (Jeremiah 29:13). This understanding of a revival shows that Finney emphasizes the work of man right alongside the work of God, which would be anathema for Calvinists. Finney also stresses that people need many revivals. If our love grows cold, or our hearts become crusty, it is because we need to remember the height from which we have fallen and repent and do the things we did that led to our first revival. Finney contends that we need to be reconverted, or a person who was once a revived believer could end up in hell. He points out that a revival can be expected when God reveals to His people that the time is right for one. Also, when the Christian community and the clergy are united in their intense desire to see a revival that will bring about the salvation of the wicked, an awakening can be expected. Finney would also point out that the church would need to be open to God doing it any way He wants.