Having looked in some detail at the numerous and large outpourings of the Spirit which characterised the 20th Century (and to which reference is made in the new pamphlet “A Sign of the Times – The Gentiles), I am left musing on the enormous possibilities for the spread of the gospel in the 21st Century. I cannot believe it will be a century when we shall see a pause in the outpourings of the Spirit, but very much the opposite.
God’s purposes come “in the fullness of time”. It’s easy to see that Jesus came at a time that was very appropriate in purely human terms. At his birth the Roman Empire spanned much of the known world, communications were extremely good across the Empire, and the stage was set for the spread of the gospel right across the Empire. That duly happened over a number of centuries and the gospel was firmly embedded in the Western world.
God’s purposes come “in the fullness of time”. It’s easy to see that Jesus came at a time that was very appropriate in purely human terms. At his birth the Roman Empire spanned much of the known world, communications were extremely good across the Empire, and the stage was set for the spread of the gospel right across the Empire. That duly happened over a number of centuries and the gospel was firmly embedded in the Western world.
Likewise in the 18thC new Western empires were about to dominate the world, and global communications were about develop on an unprecedented scale. As a consequence, over the last three centuries the gospel has become embedded in most nations across the world. Global communication now, however, in the 21stC has reached an unbelievable peak with the technological revolution. If, in the Reformation age, the printing of books had such an impact on the spread of the gospel and on the process of making disciples how much more the web age! The stage is set for an advance that could easily eclipse the 20thC.
Important and relevant as this human scenario of communication may be, the dynamic of revival remains crucial. A church full of spiritual life and vigour, impelled by the Spirit has to make use of the opportunities of communicating. Even when opportunities are not favourable for communication, as was the case in China in the 1950s-70s a Spirit-filled church will insist on communicating with extraordinary fruitful effect.
What can we see of revival in the first decade of the 21stC? One comment might be made: something very powerful is happening in the Muslim world. Communication with the Muslim world is at a level much higher than ever before, and there are many manifestations of the Holy Spirit at work right across those nations. Supernatural witness and witness from believers are combining to produce an extraordinary leavening. Pray God it may be a precursor to an ingathering of Moslems which outnumber even the continuing gathering of the Chinese. We may not have had our 21stC Welsh revival or Azusa St. revival in the West, but we must watch for outpourings on a greater scale from other continents and nations.
Bob
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Important and relevant as this human scenario of communication may be, the dynamic of revival remains crucial. A church full of spiritual life and vigour, impelled by the Spirit has to make use of the opportunities of communicating. Even when opportunities are not favourable for communication, as was the case in China in the 1950s-70s a Spirit-filled church will insist on communicating with extraordinary fruitful effect.
What can we see of revival in the first decade of the 21stC? One comment might be made: something very powerful is happening in the Muslim world. Communication with the Muslim world is at a level much higher than ever before, and there are many manifestations of the Holy Spirit at work right across those nations. Supernatural witness and witness from believers are combining to produce an extraordinary leavening. Pray God it may be a precursor to an ingathering of Moslems which outnumber even the continuing gathering of the Chinese. We may not have had our 21stC Welsh revival or Azusa St. revival in the West, but we must watch for outpourings on a greater scale from other continents and nations.
Bob
To make a comment: click on word “comments” below, write your comment in the white box which appears and add your name and e mail address (if you wish), choose “select profile”, click “anonymous” and then continue.
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