Last Wednesday night a group of youth attended the Ignition, a youth revival spearheaded by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association of Canada. As I sat in a group of 8 Adventist kids, amidst the thundering ear-wax blowing sounds of rock, I did some math: about 3,000 Christians partially filled the John Labatt Arena, which setup for the end stage concert is capable of fitting 9,000 people. That‘s about 3% of Christians attending churches any given weekend, about 0.5% of people living in the area from where this even drew attendance. It did not even make the front page of the London Free Press – in our beloved city which is considered the “Evangelical Mecca” of Canada. How can we impact the community for Christ? Is the public Evangelism dead? Is there any other way?
Reflecting on the whole process of preparing for this event, I remember discussions among pastors about lack of spirituality, lack of conversion among “churched” youth. Sending people out who are not transformed themselves is more than faking it, it is hurtful to all. Religious people call it hypocrisy, pretending.
What is needed is an urgent revival of personal godliness. Charles Spurgeon said on this matter “This is the secret of church prosperity. When individuals fall from their steadfastness, the church is tossed to and fro; when personal faith is steadfast, the church abides true to her Lord.”
In his famous Revival Sermon he listed another factor of revival - a revival of domestic religion. Writing more than a hundred years ago he penned: The Christian family was the bulwark of godliness in the days of the puritans, but in these evil times hundreds of families of so-called Christians have no family worship, no restraint upon growing sons, and no wholesome instruction or discipline. How can we hope to see the kingdom of our Lord advance when His own disciples do not teach His gospel to their own children? Preach by your hands if you cannot preach by your tongues. When our church members show the fruits of true godliness, we shall soon have inquiries for the tree which bears such a crop….May every gathering of faithful men might be a lure to attract others to Jesus! May many souls fly to Him because they see others speeding in that direction.
We have begun our Revival Week. With words we say that we want to see our church grow, and then look at the pastor to do something supernatural. As your pastor I share this simple faith and hope that I would be able to say “as for me and my family – we will serve the Lord.” As your pastor all I can do is pray "Lord, turn us all from these foolish procrastinators to Thyself. Lord, turn them and they shall be turned! By their conversion, pray that a true revival has commenced tonight! Let it spread through all our households, and then run from church to church till the whole of christendom shall be ablaze with a heaven-descended fire!"
Revival Week has begun! Every night church family is coming together to pray, to hear the Word of God, to seek God and His purpose for our lives. Do not miss this opportunity to revive your family, to lead your young to the Lord, to pull backsliders into the fellowship of Grace. Let there be no excuses, but renewed commitment.
Our pioneers lived by this motto: A revival of true godliness among us is the greatest and most urgent of all our needs. To seek this should be our first work. (Review and Herald, March 22, 1887).
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