RELIGIOUS WORLD.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXII, Issue 129, 1 June 1901, Page 2 (Supplement)

RELIGIOUS WORLD.

THE REVIVAL OF THE FUTURE.

(By Charles M. Sheldon.) (Author of "In His Steps," etc.)

The interesting question has been raised often within the last few years ■whether the religious revival, as it has been known in the Church, should be anticipated, and prayed and asked for, by the Church of to-day. Certain Tendencies, common to the preaching of the times, have seemed to point toward a religious awakening different in many striking respects from the circumstances which have been historic-

ally true of past revival movements, la many religious quarters, where there is no suspicion as to orthodox faith, the question is seriously raised concerning the use of past methods under present conditions. Where there has been no thought of abandoning the teaching of salvation through faith, and a complete regeneration by means of the atonement, there is an honest, and in many places positive, conviction that the appeal which formerly was made to emotion can now be better, and with more permanent results, made to the will. It is a fair question to ask, What is a revival? Is it simply characterised by nn outward manifestation of emotional feeling, generated by a series of protracted meetings or evangelistic services? May there not be just as truly a revival in the Church, or community, if, as a result of the preaching of the Gospel, men are daily and qnietly living a Christian life, instead of an nn-Christian life?

Let me illustrate with concrete cases. Suppose I preach a sermon on the necessity of doing1 the Christian thing iv business, of following1 Christ to the extent of losing- money, if one cannot make money without disobeying His commands; and then suppose as a direct result of that sermon a dozen business men in my church go down to their business the next day and begin to put into actual practice the teachings of the Gospel in their commercial lives. And suppose some of these men, nominal Christians, members of the church, have not been doing the Christian thing in their money-making, and as a result begin to suffer loss in the following of Christ commercially. If these results should flow out of the application of a sermon on that subject, I, as a preacher, would consider that I had a revival in my church, and a pretty strong revival, too, even though no one of these business men had risen in meeting, or held up his hand, or come forward for prayers during a series of religious gatherings. Again, supposing that next Sunday I should preach on the meaning of Christian discipleship in a man's civic life, and as a result of that presentation of the meaning of discipleship a lialf-dozen parishioners in my congregation should begin the following week to practise in their political life the teaching of Jesus, and bear the Cross, and take up Christian duties in the municipality, then I should consider that I had a revival going on in my parish, and, as in the other instance, I should count it a very deep and important revival.

Suppose the following Sunday I should pneach a sermon on the Christian in his relation to recreation or amusements, and as a direct result of that preaching1 a score of my young people who had been wasting- their •time and strength in questionable dissipation, called amusement, should begin to choose that week only those amusements which were truly Christian, and give the time formerly spent on questionable diversions to active Christian work, then, as in the other case, I should consider that I had a revival going on in ray parish, even if not one of those young people had stood up to testify in a public meeting, or had asked the prayers of. Christian people, or had declared their intention to live a more consecrated Christian life.

These illustrations will suggest some thoughts csncerning the possible revival of the future. It may be that the Church of Christ to-day will realise its greatest triumphs and its most permanent additions to the faith from the quiet, unemotional, persuasive teaching of righteousness in daily life, and of these important truths, without any •protracted meetings, or even what may be oalled evangelistic efforts.

I do not mean to say, of course, that the regular work of the evangelist in the Church is gone by. On the other hand, I most firmly believe that his work to-day is better understood than ever before, and the results from it may be, and are, in many instances, fuliy as permanent and effective as they ever were.

But for the great majority of pastors and churches, I see no reason* why. in the future, there should not be a daily and yearly revival of righteousness in daily life, and that will be the best revival a pastor or church can ever know.

There is no question but that we are at the beginning of a great, profound, religious awakening in the Church and throughout the world. The particular form in which that awakening shall take expression will, I most firmly believe, be the form of a practical daily application of the Christian life in places where men live, in business, citizenship, recreation, education, church training, home culture, the marriage relation, the dealings of men with men in every human relation; and whether that awakening is produced by the steady, constant, fearless, undeviating presentation of the love of Christ to living men, or whether it is going to be produced by great gatherings of multitudes, influenced more or less by the emotions, will make very little difference with the final result.

I am inclined to believe that the revival of the future will be more remarkable for its permanent results, through the presentation of Christ as a Saviour of daily life, and that the most effective preaching of the future will be. not a summons to men to accept Christ as a Saviour from punishment, as a rescuer from hell, but to accept Christ as a living source of strength and of power for the daily living of His teaching..

A revival which means, Do the things which Jesus commanded, is a revival which will bring this old world to the feet of its Lord and Master, and toward that kind of a revival in the new century, it is my deep conviction *be Church of to-day is moving.