Editorial
September/October, 2001
Volume 36, Number 5
Evangelism and revival are not quite the same thing. Evangelism is the preaching of the Gospel, the Good News of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, in order to win those who are lost and outside the fold of God. By way of contrast, revival is the work of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of the Lord’s own people whereby they turn to a closer walk with God and with each other.
A mighty revival in the country of Wales began in the year 1904. It was nationwide in its scope. Church attendance had been poor. Iniquity and sin abounded on every hand. But the revival came in response to the penitence and prayers of God’s people. Once again the churches were crowded. Shocking sins were confessed. Old debts were paid up. People began living a new kind of life. During the days of the Welsh Revival, two men from the city of London traveled to Wales. They said they wanted to see the revival. When they arrived at the railroad station in Wales, they asked the ticket agent where the revival was. The agent put his hand over his heart and said, “Gentlemen, it’s here, underneath the buttons.” Revival is the work of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of the Lord’s own people.
We continue the theme of revival in this issue of the BRF Witness. Brethren Revival Fellowship was begun in a prayer meeting where the focus of the prayers centered upon a cry for revival in the Church of the Brethren. Likely very few at that 1959 prayer service (at Ocean Grove, New Jersey) thought it would ever happen that Annual Conference would choose “revival” as its theme. But in 2001 at Baltimore, revival was the theme.
The major article printed in the current Witness has been adapted from an essay written by Linford J. Rotenberger, and published in the September/October, 1976 issue of the BRF Witness. Linford Rotenberger was a charter member of the BRF movement. He would have rejoiced at the theme chosen for the 2001 Annual Conference, and would have been delighted with the sermons during the Conference worship services. He would also have shared the concerns about the Annual Conference listed on pages 10 and 11 of this Witness.
The Church of the Brethren needs an old-fashioned revival of simple doctrinal teaching, and a renewed sense of calling to obey the simple mandates of the New Testament. We trust a renewed spirit of revival will be evident in the days ahead.
A Call To Repentance and Revival
By Linford Rotenberger
The Brethren Revival Fellowship came into being at the Annual Conference in June, 1959 at Ocean Grove, New Jersey. More than fifty brethren and sisters (who were burdened about the direction in which the Church of the Brethren was moving) gathered together in a prayer meeting. Many prayers ascended to the Throne of God that night, seeking direction from the Lord. The great need for revival in the Church of the Brethren was the burden of their prayers.
It was evident that the Church was departing from the clear teachings of the Word of God. One by one, the principles and practices of the Brethren, as recorded in the Bible and espoused by Alexander Mack and the early Brethren, were being disregarded. The prayer covering had long since largely given way to worldly fashions. Open membership, no longer requiring baptism by immersion, was a natural follow-up to affiliation with the ecumenical National and World Council of Churches. There was a weakening of our stand against drinking, smoking, immodesty of dress, and other evidences of worldly living. Divorce and remarriage were becoming more and more the order of the day. Moral and spiritual standards for the called out ministry were gradually being lowered. In 1967 the Annual Conference abolished the office of elder (and the Elder’s Body). Discipline in our churches is practically unheard of.
Today, leaders can be ordained to the ministry without clear standards concerning what they believe (or don’t believe). The church is paying a painful price for her compromise. Those who earlier advocated open membership, gave as their reason that the church might grow. But what has been the result? In 1960 our membership was over 200,000, and today (in 1976) it is less than 180,000. My Brethren, isn’t it time for a call to repentance and revival? (Editorial note: In the year 2000, Church of the Brethren membership was less than 136,000.)
The church at Ephesus (Revelation 2:1-7) was a church with much activity, It was a working church which labored hard and long and had great patience. There was a great concern for meeting human need. It is recorded of this church that it labored patiently in Christ’s name and did not faint. This is truly commendable. And yet, hear the solemn word: “I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember, therefore, from where you have fallen; repent, and do the first works” (Revelation 2:4-5). This is a clear call to repentance and revival.
YOU HAVE LEFT YOUR FIRST LOVE
Is this not a serious charge? What does it mean to have left our first love. The greatest commandment is the call to love God with all the heart, soul, mind, and strength (Mark 12:30). When we consider God’s love, in that He spared not His own Son, but gave Him for us at Calvary-what shall we say? We can only respond with the words of Isaac Wafts: “Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.”
We can be so busy doing our good works that we tend to forget daily loyal devotion to Christ. God most of all wants our love and our obedience. Jesus said, “if anyone loves me, he will keep my words” (John 14:23). It is our duty to listen to what the Lord has to say and then do it. Let us spend much time in His presence that we might hear from Him. God says, “I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the contrite ones” (Isaiah 57:15). May it be our highest joy to experience Christ living in and through us.
REMEMBER FROM WHERE YOU HAVE FALLEN
What a pity if we cannot see that we have fallen. Perhaps we are like Laodicea, thinking we are rich and increased with goods, and have need of nothing–not realizing our poverty-stricken condition. If this is our problem, let us go to our knees and ask God to anoint our eyes that we might see. Let us remember the joy and peace and blessedness experienced when we first came to know Christ. We wanted others to experience the same joy and peace that comes from believing. But what has happened? Perhaps those personal devotions occurred a long time ago and we hardly remember how precious those times were. Do not our hearts long for reality, to reach out in faith and touch Him and behold His glory? O Church of Christ, remember therefore from where you have fallen! Let us behold the New Testament pattern of living, and compare it with where we are today that we might truly repent.
AND REPENT
The time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God (1 Peter 4:17). God is calling the church to repentance. This is not a popular subject but it is a very necessary one. The trend today is to seek a religion in which we can do as we please, and then expect God to put His stamp of approval upon us. But Jesus said, “Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish” (Luke 13:3). And the Lord Jesus says that unless we repent and do the first works, He “will come quickly and remove our lampstand (“the church”) from its place” (Revelation 2:5).
We want to notice the place of repentance in the Bible. The message of John the Baptist was one of repentance (Matthew 3:2, 7-8). It was because he told Herod about his sin of adultery that John was beheaded. When Jesus sent out the disciples, they went out and “preached that people should repent” (Mark 6:12). On the Day of Pentecost, Peter declared, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38). Paul, in his public ministry, preached repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 20:20-21). Christ’s parting message before His ascension into heaven, was that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem” (Luke 24:47). Our Lord’s earnest desire was that none should perish, but that “all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). As we study the Old Testament, we find that the message of the prophets was also one of repentance. How is it that we are so silent on a message that is of such primary importance in the Scriptures?
Let us notice also the meaning of true repentance. In the Old Testament, the word means “to grieve about one’s doing.” The New Testament word literally means “to change one’s mind.” R. A. Torrey defined repentance as being “such a sorrow for sin, such an abhorrence for sin, such a change of mind about sin, so that it leads sinners to turn away from sin with all their hearts.” An example of genuine repentance appeared in the journal The King’s Business:
Perhaps the quaintest letter in the whole White House collection is one which came from a youth, addressed to President Cleveland in September, 1895. This is what the letter said:
“Dear President. / am in a dreadful state of mind, and / thought / would write and tell you all. About two years ago, / used two postage stamps that had been used before on letters; perhaps it was more than two stamps, but / can only remember of doing it twice. / did not realize the seriousness of what / had done until lately. My mind is constantly turned on that subject, and / think about it night and day. Now, dear President, will you please forgive me, and / will promise you that / will never do it again. Enclosed find the cost of three stamps, and please forgive me, for / was then but thirteen years old. / am heartily sorry for what / have done. From one of your subjects.”
Oh, that the church today would have such an eager desire to be right with God. Oh that we would do as our founders did-return to the Scriptures to find out what God wants us to do and then do it! What tremendous blessing could result if the church would turn to God in true repentance and do the first works.
AND DO THE FIRST WORKS
What did our Lord mean when He told the Church at Ephesus to do the first works? First of all He wants our love to be focused on Him. God wants to be first in our lives. All of our works should be motivated by our love for Him. If we truly love Him and want to serve Him, we will not set up our programs of service without consulting Him and His Word. The first work which Christ came to do was to die for our sins (Luke 19:10). The Great Commission He left with His followers was to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15). It seems very clear that the first work of the church is to seek the eternal salvation of the lost.
There was a day in the life of the Church of the Brethren, that when we spoke of missions, it meant to seek the salvation of the lost, either at home or abroad. Now the word “missions” seems to include all kinds of service projects, even though they might not be even remotely connected to the salvation of people from their sins. Let us never forget that the good news of Jesus is this: “You shall call his name Jesus (Saviour), for he shall save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). It is a tragedy that our brotherhood has been phasing out the evangelistic emphasis in missions, and as a result, many of our churches are looking to independent missions for missionaries to support. Why should the Church of the Brethren not provide evangelistic missionaries to go into all the world? Many of our churches would gladly and liberally support such ambassadors for Christ. My Brethren, let us return to do the first works, and God will bless us and send refreshing from His glorious presence.
(Editor’s note: BRF has established a Brethren Mission Fund which is financing “sound Brethren mission work, or Brethren workers where the gospel of Jesus Christ is being promoted for the salvation of souls.” Your name can be added to BRF’s Brethren Mission Fund newsletter mailings, by writing to Brethren Mission Fund
P.O. Box 543
Ephrata, PA 17522-0543
. Contributions for BMF can be sent to the same address.)
REVIVAL IS THE CHURCH’S GREATEST NEED
What is the meaning of the word “revival”? In the Old Testament we read of revivals under such leaders as Hezekiah, Josiah, and Nehemiah. We are told how God’s people (Israel) had departed from the Lord and were living in disobedience. The spiritual life of the people had deteriorated until many ungodly practices were being looked upon with favor. The nation became weak and often was in bondage to other nations. It was then that God moved prophets and other spiritual leaders to read the holy Scriptures, and upon reading His Word they found how far they had departed from His commandments. In His Word they saw God’s plan and purpose for His people. As the Word was read to the people, repentance and confession of sins took place and revival followed. Revival in the Old Testament means “to recover,” “to restore,” or “to return to God’s standard for His people.” In the New Testament the word means “to stir up or rekindle a fire which is slowly dying,” or “to keep in full flame.” Revival assumes that there is still life, but that it has ebbed and waned, and needs to be quickened and restored.
The church needs revival when there has been a deterioration, a declension, or a failing away from God’s original plan and purpose. God’s plan for His church is that it should be holy and without blemish, a glorious church without spot or wrinkle (Ephesians 5:27). God wants His church to be filled with the Holy Spirit, to walk in obedience to His Word, and to be followers of God as dear children. One needs only to carefully read the New Testament to see how far we have slipped, and how greatly we need revival. The church today is in need of a fresh blood transfusion from Calvary. We need to acknowledge our coldness and indifference toward a lost world. We are concerned for their bodies (and we should have that concern), but we should be even more concerned for their eternal welfare. Remember that if we meet their physical needs but do not bring to them the message of life in Jesus Christ-and if they do not come to know Him they will spend eternity in Hell, and God will require it at our hands (Ezekiel 33:8). May God help us to see a world lost in sin, a world that needs Jesus Christ and His saving grace and power.
DO WE REALLY WANT REVIVAL?
Revival will not come to a self-satisfied church. The church at Laodicea claimed that it was rich and had need of nothing (Revelation 3:17). God could not bless this church until it was willing to acknowledge its need and fall before Him in true repentance. He waits to bless the church that will humble itself before Him and seek His face. Dr. R. A. Torrey said, “I can give a prescription that will bring a revival to any church or community or any city on earth. The prescription is as follows: First, let a few Christians (they need not be many) get right with God themselves. This is a prime essential. If this is not done, the rest of what I say will come to nothing. Second, let them bind themselves together in a prayer group to pray for a revival until God opens the heavens and comes down. Third, let them put themselves at the disposal of God, for Him to use as He sees fit in winning others to Christ. That is all!”
Torrey said that following the steps named above is sure to bring a revival to any church or community. He explained that many churches and many communities tried this prescription and in no instance has it ever failed.
God says, “if my people, who are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then I will hear from heaven; and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).
Will the church hear the call to repentance and revival, or will it remain in a state of self-sufficiency and complacency? Our earnest prayer is that the Church will reexamine its spiritual state, look at its program and policy, and do it in light of the Scriptures. If we do this with an honest heart, it will surely drive us to our knees in true repentance, seeking God’s face for a heaven-sent revival. The Holy Spirit will revive the church which diligently seeks His fullness. Let each one of us pray, “Lord, send a mighty revival, and let it begin in me.”
