A searchable, downloadable PDF of the original article appears below. Bob Little is Executive Director of The Renewal Fellowship.
I receive letters from people from across our nation. A young minister said in viewing our church, “The light of Christ is getting brighter all the time.’’ A middle-aged pastor who had changed professions said, “Many are stepping out to say they need revival by becoming members in the Renewal Fellowship.” From these and many other observations I can affirm that spiritual life, which is the harbinger of revival hope, is burning clearly in many areas of our church. I only wish it were more widespread than it is at the moment.
A friend from British Columbia wrote me recently and quoted Karl Barth who said, “The church has steered away from the Spirit because we do not like his unpredictability.” Then my friend said, “We try to domesticate the Holy Spirit and fit him into our preconceived notions.” These two statements reveal to us how the Holy Spirit is being hindered in expressing himself in many of our churches.
Presbyterians don’t like change or surprises, especially in worship. We also see this in the conduct of many of our basic meetings like our Courts. History itself teaches us the need for change. When we study Pentecost in the New Testament, so many extraordinary events occurred; the world thought the new community was drunk. Those influenced by the Holy Spirit knew differently. They felt the new supernatural power of God and openly expressed it.
What would happen, if at a regular Presbyterian worship, with gowned moderator, robed choir, “Holy Holy” at the inception, “Praise God” at the offering, and even during the classical three point sermon, if the unpredictable Holy Spirit were to rush in with a new exciting unction? Most would be stunned. We would not know how to handle him. As Barth says, we “steer away from the Holy Spirit” in the church.
Tradition has a tremendous grip on most of the life in our church life. Some of this is good, but when it stifles the extraordinary work of the Spirit, then it is sinful and wrong. One thing strikes me as I travel across our church. It is the sameness in most of our activities. In one way this is to be expected. Whether you visit a presbytery in Prince Edward Island, Saskatchewan, Ontario, or wherever, they are all the same. Surely if the unpredictability of the Holy Spirit was at work, some changes should become obvious, that is, if God is moving his church to meet the relevant challenges of each contemporary situation. I suppose it is always easier to domesticate the Spirit than to be moved by his inspiration and direction.
Unfortunately, not too many churches are prepared to take the step of faith and utter dependence on the Holy Spirit, then to move into a new spiritual dimension where God will reveal himself. Some churches in our denomination have already done this, for which we thank God. In the last year and a half I have watched this new unction happen in several ways, for instance, when Spirit-filled people move quietly into an old congregation, when dissatisfied and hungry souls cry to God for new life, or when God himself invades a group in his sovereignty. I have seen renewal begin and new life follow.
I want to tell you about such a church in Ontario. When I was an Evangelist-At-Large for the Presbyterian Church in Canada, I conducted a Mission in this church fourteen years ago. I was invited to the same church recently to represent the Renewal Fellowship. I could not believe the difference. St. Andrew’s, Huntsville had a definite touch of the Spirit. When God the Holy Spirit revealed himself, they did not domesticate him; instead they obeyed and followed his lead.
When I returned recently, I spoke at a breakfast and a dinner on the Saturday. I felt life there. The real thrill for me came when I entered the pulpit in the Sunday morning worship. Before me was a packed inspiring congregation which included over a hundred young people. The music was stirring, the fellowship alive, and love was real as they waited for the Word of God.
Prayer dominates this church. The Word of God is studied seriously and witness to Jesus Christ is effective. The area which impressed me most was the lay participation and leadership. On Sunday evening two members with a harp and guitar led what is called contemporary worship. It was a blessed experience. Then I spoke. Generosity marked the Christian ethos of this church. When the Spirit began to move, thankfully the people of old St. Andrew’s did not try to fit him into a preconceived Presbyterian pattern. They obediently followed the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is sovereign. He works in accordance with Scripture. My prayer is that all of you who are reading this will take heart and example from this church. Trust the Spirit. What he has done in one church, he can and will do in others, including yours.
We who are saved, and are responsible church people, have our part to play in renewal and revival. As God moves he will bring renewal when our lifestyle is under the leading of the Spirit, when we are open and obedient to his teaching, when our witness will personify Jesus Christ and when our lives will carry conviction to the lost in our society.
Renewal comes when God is permitted to take over a group in any church which is preparing themselves by the fullness of the Holy Spirit. It need not be a large number. Revivals never did begin with a great crowd. That empowerment comes when Christians abandon and surrender themselves to the grace of God, then ready themselves for the unpredictable movement of the Spirit of God. You will enjoy his presence and power as he works out his will in your lives and congregations.