Old Fashioned Revival and the Role of Forgiveness

 

Many years ago when I was a young preacher churches would schedule revival meetings with both evening and morning services. To the bystander looking on from a distance these services just seemed like a lot of robust singing, hard preaching and altar calls. In reality they were carefully orchestrated to culminate at the end of the week with the baptism of a large number of people who came to faith in Christ during the week.  

Now the evening services were given over to evangelistic efforts. The music would be robust and he preaching would be earnest, simple and focused on salvation. These evening services generally went from Sunday to Sunday with the first part of the week (Sunday through Wednesday) focused on getting the redeemed (church members) recommitted and rededicated to serving the Lord through lifestyle and witness.  

The second half of the week (Thursday through Sunday) was generally focused on winning the non-Christian (unbeliever) to the Lord. Members of the church would invite their neighbors and friends to the services in hopes that God would do something wonderful in their lives, namely call them to salvation. 

Morning service (Monday through Friday) were generally more informal and often followed by some sort of meal or fellowship time. During these sessions the visiting preacher would usually do some sort of Bible study or teaching series related to enabling God's people to experience the joy of the Lord in their lives. 

For me it was a time to deal with issues that years later would become the focus of much of the Sunday morning preaching by replacing our emphasis on evangelism and salvation with "how to have a successful Christian life," i.e., discipleship. It was the idea of scratching people where they itch.  

Much can be said about this and maybe one day I will say it but the most important thing I can say is, "It was a mistake to ever replace the gospel preaching of Sunday services with discipleship training style sermons."  We should never replaced our preaching repentance and faith with our philosophical and psychological gospel drivel. The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation . . . and walking in the Spirit is the challenge of the saint. Pulpits across Great Britain used to have carved into them the phrase, "Sir, we would see Jesus."  As preachers of the Gospel our job in preaching is to make sure that our preaching results in congregants seeing Jesus.  Our job is to preach in such a way as to "make disciples." It is the Holy Spirit's job to do the work in the disciples life to produce spiritual maturity.    

At any rate I usually used the Monday morning Bible study time to talk with the church members about the power and necessity of forgiveness in the believers life. After all, if God for Christ sake has forgiven us should we not, if we are going to walk in the Spirit, forgive those who offend us.  Besides, the preaching that night was going to focus of Christians getting rightly aligned with God and with each other. In short, revival begins in the family of God, i.e., the church.

I still believe that forgiveness lies at the heart of revival and evangelism.  In fact, forgiveness is the bridge over which one must cross in order to forgiven. Jesus said, "If you will not forgive men their trespasses against you neither will your Father in heaven forgive you your trespasses." In the model prayer Jesus again stresses the important role forgiveness plays in our Christian lives when we are told to pray that God would "forgive us our trespasses in the same manner as we forgive those who have trespassed against us." 

We need to get rightly aligned with God through confession, repentance and receiving His forgiveness and we need to do the same with each other.  This results in our being able to love God and to love one another in a way that becomes the children of God and welcomes those outside of the faith to experience the same forgiveness as we have received and which we model before them.  

Nearly everyone I know has been offended by something someone has said or done to them. Perhaps you over heard another church member being critical of how you were raising your children; Maybe your husband or wife had an affair; perhaps you felt neglected by the pastoral staff when they didn't visit you in the hospital; It could be any one  or even more of a hundred different things 

Regardless of their source or legitimacy these offenses leave you with lasting feelings of anger, bitterness or even vengeance. I remember many years ago visiting with a lady in her home about baptizing her children who had been saved in our VBS. All she could talk about was how angry she was about something that in her mind a fellow pastor and friend of mine had done.   

I began by asking her if she had spoken with him about her concerns . . . her answer was no. I asked her if she thought he even knew she had any concerns and again the answer was no. Finally, I asked her who she believed was hurting the most about all this and the light went of in her heart and she replied, "I guess I am the one doing all the hurting." — you see. if you don't practice forgiveness, you might be the one who pays the highest price.  I am happy to report that she prayed that night that God would enable her to forgive . . . and He did. However, by understanding and embracing forgiveness, you can also embrace peace, hope, gratitude and joy. 

Fundamentally forgiveness is a conscious decision to let go of resentment and any attendant thoughts of "getting even."  I cannot tell you that the day will come when you will never recall the offense but it will lesson the grip the offense has on your heart and life and enable you to focus on your own spiritual maturity.  It might even eventually result in feelings of understanding, empathy and compassion for the person you hold responsible for your pain.  When you refuse to forgive you are consigning yourself to a life of pain and spiritual stunting if not spiritual death. 

Forgiveness, even God's forgiveness, does not deny the other person's responsibility for causing pain and it certainly doesn't minimize or justify the wrong. You can forgive the person without excusing the act. Forgiveness brings a kind of peace that helps you go on with life.  

When we forgive we let go of grudges and bitterness and  we make way for compassion, kindness and peace. Over the years I have seen forgiveness restore a multitude of people to God and each other. I know it produces better relationships; reduces stress and anxiety; and generally improve spiritual as well as psychological well-being. I remember one fellow who was saved during a revival meeting coming by the office to tell me the psychologist he was seeing in counseling told him he didn't know what had transpired but I sense a "new" you and I really don't think you need my help anymore. 

Once I learned the power of forgiveness in my own life I found it hard to understand why I didn't see it sooner and I had trouble understanding why more people didn't practice forgiveness.  Then it dawned upon me, If I forgive you your offense I have to do something with my anger, bitterness and maybe even bad behavior. I have forgiven you so I can no longer blame it on you. Now I have to own it as my own and that is a heavy load to carry. Once I forgave the offense I often found myself swallowed up by your own bitterness or sense of injustice.  That is when I discovered the secret of "casting all my care on Him (Jesus) because He cares for me."   

Forgiveness is a commitment to a process of change. It is a decision to be more like Jesus. In the process I have to become more Christ-like than ever.  I have to love God enough and be grateful to the Lord for His sacrificial life and death for me that I am willing to give the people who offend me not what they deserve but what they need . . ., my forgiveness.  After all, is that not what God in Christ has offered to us.   

Think about it: From God's perspective we have "all sinned and continually come short of His expectations; the wages of sin is death and the soul that sins will surely die; but, the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord; Therefore, whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. 

So begin by realizing the essential role and importance God's forgiveness plays in your life all the time. Your life is to be reflective of Christ's life. Indeed, you are his hands and feet in this world. As you forgive you let go of grudges and resentments. When you turn loose of the grudges and resentments of an offense through forgiveness they no longer define you and you discover you have a freedom to be the person God created and redeemed you to be.  

For the child of God it really does just come down to, "Letting go of the hurt and anger and just do it!"

Got any rivers you think are un-crossable
Got any mountains you can't tunnel through
God specializes in things thought impossible
If you'll let him have his way He'll make away for you

Let go and let God have His wonderful way
Let go and let God have His way
Your sorrow will vanish
You night turned to day
Let go and let God have His way

Let the Lord have His way
In your life everyday
There's no peace, there's no rest
Till the Lord has you best
Place your life in His hand
Rest secure in His plans
Let the Lord, let the Lord have His way

Let the Lord have His way
In your life everyday
There's no peace, there's no rest
Till the Lord has you best
Place your life in His hand
Rest secure in His plans
Let the Lord, let the Lord have His way

Place your life in His hand
Rest secure in His plans
Let the Lord, let the Lord have His way