.
WHAT A REVIVAL OF RELIGION
IS
.
Religion is the work of
man. It is something for man to do. It
consists in obeying God. It is man's duty. It is true, God induces him to do
it. He influences him by his Spirit, because of his great wickedness and
reluctance to obey. If it were not necessary for God to influence men -- if men
were disposed to obey God, there would be no occasion to pray, "O Lord,
revive thy work." The ground of necessity for such a prayer is, that men
are wholly indisposed to obey; and unless God interpose the influence of his
Spirit, not a man on earth will ever obey the commands of God.
.
A "Revival of
Religion" presupposes a declension. Almost all the religion in the world
has been produced by revivals. God has found it necessary to take advantage of
the excitability there is in mankind, to produce powerful excitements among
them, before he can lead them to obey. Men are so sluggish, there are so many
things to lead their minds off from religion, and to oppose the influence of
the gospel that it is necessary to raise an excitement among them, till the
tide rises so high as to sweep away the opposing obstacles. They must be so
excited that they will break over these counteracting influences, before they
will obey God.
.
Look back at the history of
the Jews, and you will see that God used to maintain religion among them by special occasions, when there would be a great
excitement, and people would turn to the Lord. And after they had been thus
revived, it would be but a short time before there would be so many
counteracting influences brought to bear upon them, that religion would
decline, and keep on declining, till God could have time -- so to speak -- to
shape the course of events so as to produce another excitement, and then pour
out his Spirit again to convert sinners. Then the counteracting causes would
again operate, and religion would decline, and the nation would be swept away
in the vortex of luxury, idolatry, and pride.
.
There is so little principle in the church, so little firmness and stability of
purpose, that unless they are greatly excited, they will not obey God. They
have so little knowledge, and their principles are so weak, that unless they
are excited, they will go back from the path of duty, and do nothing to promote
the glory of God. The state of the world is still such, and probably will be
till the millennium is fully come, that religion must be mainly promoted by
these excitements. How long and how often has the experiment been tried, to
bring the church to act steadily for God, without these periodical excitements!
Many good men have supposed, and still suppose, that the best way to promote
religion, is to go along uniformly, and
gather in the ungodly gradually, and without excitement. But however such
reasoning may appear in the abstract, facts demonstrate its futility. If the church were far enough
advanced in knowledge, and had stability of principle enough to keep awake, such a course would do; but the church is so little
enlightened, and there are so many counteracting causes, that the church will
not go steadily to work without a special excitement. As the millennium
advances, it is probable that these periodical excitements will be unknown.
Then the church will be enlightened, and the counteracting causes removed, and
the entire church will be in a state of habitual and steady obedience to God.
The entire church will stand and take the infant mind, and cultivate it for
God. Children will be trained up in the way they should go, and there will be
no such torrents of worldliness, and fashion, and covetousness, to bear away
the piety of the church, as soon as the excitement of a revival is withdrawn.
.
It is very desirable it
should be so. It is very desirable that the church should go on steadily in a
course of obedience without these excitements. Such excitements are liable to
injure the health. Our nervous system is so strung that any powerful
excitement, if long continued, injures our health and unfits us for duty. If
religion is ever to have a pervading influence in the world, it can't be so;
this spasmodic religion must be done away. Then it will be uncalled for.
Christians will not sleep the greater part of the time, and once in a while
wake up, and rub their eyes, and bluster about, and vociferate, a little while,
and then go to sleep again. Then there will be no need that ministers should
wear themselves out, and kill themselves, by their efforts to roll back the
flood of worldly influence that sets in upon the church. But as yet the state
of the Christian world is such, that to expect to promote religion without
excitements is unphilosophical and absurd. The great political, and other
worldly excitements that agitate Christendom, are all unfriendly to religion,
and divert the mind from the interests of the soul. Now these excitements can
only be counteracted by religious excitements. And until there is religious
principle in the world to put down irreligious excitements, it is in vain to
try to promote religion, except by counteracting excitements. This is true in
philosophy, and it is a historical fact.
.
It is altogether improbable
that religion will ever make progress among heathen nations except through the influence of revivals. The
attempt is now making to do it by education, and other cautious and gradual
improvements. But so long as the laws of mind remain what they are, it cannot
be done in this way. There must be excitement sufficient to wake up the dormant
moral powers, and roll back the tide of degradation and sin. And precisely so
far as our own land approximates to heathenism, it is impossible for God or man
to promote religion in such a state of things but by powerful excitementsÉ
.
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II.
THINGS WHICH OUGHT TO BE DONE. I
proceed to mention some things which ought to be done to continue this great
and glorious revival of religion, which has been in progress for the last
ten years. 1.
There should be great and deep repentings on the part of ministers. WE, my
brethren, must humble ourselves before God. It will not do for us to suppose
that it is enough to call on the people to repent. We must take the lead in
repentance, and then call on the Churches to follow. 4.
The Church must take right ground in regard to politics. Do not suppose that
I am going to preach a political sermon, or that I wish to have you join in
getting up a Christian party in politics. No, you must not believe that. But
the time has come that Christians must vote for honest men, and take
consistent ground in politics. They must let the world see that the Church
will uphold no man in office who is known to be a knave, or an adulterer, or
a Sabbath-breaker, or a gambler, or a drunkard. Such is the spread of
intelligence and the facility of communication in our country, that every
man can know for whom he gives his vote. And if he will give his vote only
for honest men, the country will be obliged to have upright rulers. All
parties will be compelled to put up honest men as candidates. Christians
have been exceedingly guilty in this matter. But the time has come when they
must act differently. As on the subjects of Slavery and Temperance, so on
this subject the Church must act rightly or the country will be ruined. God
cannot sustain this free and blessed country, which we love and pray for,
unless the Church will take right ground. Politics are a part of a religion
in such a country as this, and Christians must do their duty to the country
as a part of their duty to God. It seems sometimes as if the foundations of
the nation are becoming rotten, and Christians seem to act as if they think
God does not see what they do in politics. But I tell you He does see it,
and He will bless or curse this nation, according to the course they take. 5.
The Churches must take right ground on the subject of Slavery. Here the
question arises, What is right ground? (1)
First of all, a bad spirit should be avoided. Nothing is more calculated to
injure religion, and to injure the slaves themselves, than for Christians to
get into an angry controversy on the subject. It is a subject upon which there
needs to be no angry controversy among Christians. Slave-holding professors,
like rum-selling professors, may endeavor to justify themselves, and may be
angry with those who press their consciences, and call upon them to give up
their sins. Those proud professors of religion, who think a man to blame, or
think it is a shame to him, to have a black skin, may allow their prejudices
so far to prevail, as to shut their ears and be disposed to quarrel with
those who urge the subject upon them. But I repeat it, the subject of
Slavery is a subject upon which Christians, praying men, need not and must
not differ. (2)
Another thing to be avoided is an attempt to take neutral ground on this
subject. Christians can no more take neutral ground on this subject, since it
has come up for discussion, than they can take neutral ground on the subject
of the sanctification of the Sabbath. It is a great national sin. It is a
sin of the Church. The Churches, by their silence, and by permitting
shareholders to belong to their communion, have been consenting to it. All
denominations have been more or less guilty, although the Quakers have of
late years washed their hands of it. It is in vain for the Churches to
pretend it is merely a political sin. I repeat, it is the sin of the Church,
to which all denominations have consented. They have virtually declared that
it is lawful. The very fact of suffering slave-holders quietly to remain in
good standing in their Churches, is the strongest and most public expression
of their view that it is not sin. For the Church, therefore, to pretend to
take neutral ground on the subject, is perfectly absurd. The fact is that
she is not on neutral ground at all. While she tolerates slave-holders in
her communion SHE JUSTIFIES THE PRACTICE:. And as well might an enemy of God
pretend that he was neither a saint nor a sinner, that he was going to take
neutral ground, and pray, "good Lord and good devil," because he
did not know which side would be the most popular! I
will mention several things that, in my judgment, the Church is imperatively
called upon to do, on this subject: (1)
Christians, of all denominations, should lay aside prejudice, and inform
themselves on this subject, without any delay. Vast multitudes of professors
of religion have indulged prejudice to such a degree, as to be unwilling to
read and hear, and come to a right understanding of the subject. But
Christians cannot pray in this state of mind. I defy any one to possess the
spirit of prayer while he is too prejudiced to examine this or any other
question of duty. (2)
Writings, containing temperate and judicious discussions on this subject,
and such developments of facts as are before the public, should be quietly
and extensively circulated, and should be carefully and prayerfully examined
by the whole ChurchÉ [P]raying men should act judiciously, and that, as soon
as sufficient information can be diffused through the community, the
Churches should meekly, but firmly, take decided ground on the subject, and
express, before the whole nation and the world, their abhorrence of this
sin. * * * I
believe the time has come - although I am no prophet, I believe it will be
found to have come, that the revival in the United States will prevail no
further and no faster than the Church takes right ground upon this subject. The
Church is God's witness. The fact is, that Slavery is, pre-eminently, the
sin of the Church. It is the very fact that ministers and professors of
religion of different denominations hold slaves, which sanctifies the whole
abomination, in the eyes of ungodly men. Who does not know that on the
subject of Temperance, every drunkard in the land will skulk behind some
rum-selling deacon, or wine-drinking minister? It is the most common
objection and refuge of the intemperate, and of moderate drinkers, that it
is practiced by professors of religion. It is this that creates the
imperious necessity for excluding traffickers in ardent spirit, and
rum-drinkers, from the Communion. Let the Churches of all denominations
speak out on the subject of Temperance; let them close their doors against
all who have anything to do with the death-dealing abomination, and the
cause of Temperance is triumphant. A few years would annihilate the traffic.
Just so with Slavery. It
is the Church that mainly supports this sin. Her united testimony upon the
subject would settle the question. Let Christians of all denominations
meekly, but firmly, come forth, and pronounce their verdict; let them wash
their hands of this thing; let them give forth and write on the head and
front of this great abomination, "SIN," and in three years, a
public sentiment would be formed that would carry all before it, and there
would not be a shackled slave, nor a bristling, cruel slavedriver, in this
landÉ 6.
If the Church wishes to promote revivals, she must sanctify the Sabbath.
There is a vast deal of Sabbath breaking in the land. Merchants break it,
travelers break it, the Government breaks itÉ 7.
The Church must take right ground on all the subjects of practical morality
which come up for discussion from time to time. There
are those in the Churches who are standing aloof from the subject of moral
reform, and who are afraid to have anything said in the pulpit against
lewdness. On this subject, the Church need not expect to be permitted to
take neutral ground. In the providence of God, it is up for discussion. The
evils have been exhibited; the call has been made for reform. |
Source: http://wesley.nnu.edu/related_traditions/finney/revival/lecture15.htm
And
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~HYPER/DETOC/religion/finney1.html