inspired by the spread of theological liberalism which manifested itself in the latter part of the nineteenth century. The publication had its desired effect as people from all denominations saw the dangers of liberalism clearly portrayed for them. Fundamentalism has often been called a re actionary movement and has been accused of being a departure from the continuous history of the church. However, such is not the case! It was a clear-cut challenge to a barren liberalism which had crept into the church, sometimes unawares. It was a clarion call to devout and concerned Chris tians to return to the purity and power of the apostolic church. Its fruits were evident in the creation of Bible institutes, colleges, seminaries, and mission boards which are true to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, denominations as a whole did not respond positively, and as a result new denominations and churches had to arise to provide faithful Bible-believing Christians with churches with which they might agree and where they might find fellowship with those of like pre cious faith. Unrelated to the above movements as a protest of any sort, and yet vitally related to them because of its nature, was revivalism. This is an American phenomenon and contribution to the church of Jesus Christ. The first of these revivals was the Great Awakening which began in 1720 under the ministry of Theodore Frelinghuysen in New Bruns wick, New Jersey. This great revival, however, was not the work of any one man though Frelinghuysen was instrumental in its beginning, Jonathan Ed wards in giving it prestige, and George Whitefield in binding it together in one great movement. Rather, it was an independent series of revivals which broke out up and down the Atlantic sea board until all the colonies were aflame with re vival fires. It was characterized by preaching which emphasized the seriousness of sin, the necessity for personal conversion, and the agency of the grace of God in bringing the sinner to salvation. Gen erally speaking, the preaching was emotional though that was certainly not the case with Ed wards or Whitefield, perhaps the best-known preachers of that era. Accompanying this emotion al preaching, naturally, was some emotional demon stration on the part of people who attended. This was a natural outgrowth of the fear which the Gospel implanted in people as they saw their sin and the just judgment of God. Then, as they found peace through accepting Christ as Saviour, they could not restrain themselves from crying out in admiration and praise of the mercy of God. The Great Awakening had a profound influence upon all colonial America. People and communities were changed for the better, and questionable prac tices were abruptly halted in many areas. Some of all ages gave up their drinking habits, profane lan-
standards, and giving to laymen a vital and re sponsible place in the church’s life and ministry. Akin to Pietism in many respects and yet ex erting a greater influence upon the church through out the world was the Methodist movement, born out of the experience and life of John Wesley. Wesley, born in 1703, was trained for the Angli can ministry. Graduated with high honors from Christ Church College, Oxford, and ordained as a deacon to the ministry, Wesley still had no peace of mind, because he had never received Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour. In this condition he la bored for twelve years as an assistant to his min ister-father and as a missionary in the American colonies. Largely through the ministry of the Mora vians, successors of the pietists, Wesley was con verted on May 21, 1738. Immediately he felt a sense of peace and power never experienced before. Methodism represented a revolt against deism, skepticism, and the lethargy of the Anglican church. It successfully challenged and defeated the barren rationalism of the day. It recognized the place of emotionalism in religion and emphasized a heart-felt type which warmed and revolutionized the individual and the churches. Its spiritual im pact was felt beyond its own group as it extended to a revival of the Baptists and Congregationalists through the preaching of the Methodist ministers. It acted also as a stimulant to missionary endeavor. But its impact was more than spiritual. It brought about important changes in the social conditions of the times. It had a direct influence upon the aboli tion o f slavery in the person of William Wilber- force who was converted through Methodism. It expressed concern for the reform of the penal code, prison conditions, and the care of the mentally ill. However, perhaps its outstanding social impact was in the area of factory reform. Ostracized from the pulpits of Anglicanism, Wesley took the Gospel to the working men where they were. He gave them an opportunity to hear the Gospel. He told them of One who loved them; he gave them love and hope. Following in his footsteps, Methodist leaders com bated intolerable working conditions. Not without reason has it been said that Wesley saved England from social revolution in the eighteenth century. Quite different from pietism and Methodism, and yet reacting against liberalism and coldness, is the fundamentalist movement of the twentieth cen tury. Pietism flourished among the Lutherans, and Methodism grew within the Anglican church, but fundamentalism has cut across denominational lines to find its adherents in most of the major denominations in the United States. It arose in 1909 in California when The Bible Institute of Los Angeles, Inc. issued The Fundamentals. This was originally a twelve-volume production to which contributions on theological themes had been made by outstanding conservative theologians. It was
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