It is tempting to reframe the Asbury Revival in ways that are palatable to one’s existing viewpoint on the things of the Spirit, worship, and everything connected. The purpose of this article is to call for humility and integrity in response. Recent events might not fit comfortably in your box, but then maybe your box is too small.
Personally, I am overjoyed by what is happening in Lexington – I’ve been prophesying, writing about, and praying for this for months, and after watching the live streams worshippers are sharing, I’m content that this is a move of God. Several factors stand out to me:
- This is not a cult of personality. There is no individual overseeing this, and the ongoing nature of the outpouring means that different teams have to help each other out by taking over the worship. Testimony coming out of the renewal includes regular observations that whoever is leading, the touch from God remains consistent.
- There is no evidence of hysteria. Videos popping up on TikTok and YouTube, taken on hand-held phones, show a gentle kind of unfolding. People stay for hours, soaking in the presence of God and communing with him and each other in love. The most tangible feature of the atmosphere is peace.
- There is no lights show, no hype; just average musicians playing in the background much of the time, in broad daylight, in an old fashioned chapel.
I recommend watching the video below, which is of the sermon that preceded the initial outpouring. The bloke speaking is down to Earth, and there is, in my view, no evidence of manipulation. Some might argue that the piano accompaniment during the last section of his sermon is emotionally manipulative, but that’s a stretch, in my view. If revival could be manufactured through a softly spoken sermon and a few minutes at the piano it’d be happening all over the world.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGvvGbgUmMU
Sadly, the anti-revival apologetics are already creeping in, including from people I like and respect. The outbreak of revival was first greeted by silence – a sure sign that many were shocked, unable to accept evidence of true renewal without challenging their existing theology and stance. I wondered who’d get there first, and was saddened to discover it was progressives. I love Progressive Christianity, and the many important questions it asks, but when it comes to the things of the Spirit, most seem to have thrown the Baby out with the bathwater. This has become one of the main thrusts of my writing here on Patheos, as a result.
The initial arguments being put forth are thin, in my opinion – that what is happening is Asbury is a natural phenomenon due to a combination of two criteria:
- The youthful, and therefore impressionable age of the participants, at a time in life where answers are strained after and the brain is still developing
- The fact that it has happened in Asbury before, therefore laying a foundation for a kind of repeated but nevertheless predictable phenomenon
To counter the first point, though the students at Asbury University are mostly young, the outpouring has drawn visitors of all ages, and their testimonies are the same as those of young participants. Even cynical old professors whose first response was suspicion, have confessed that their doubts were banished on arrival.
As for the second argument, it’s true that there have been revivals at Asbury before, but that could be seen as evidence for rather than against its authenticity. 2 Kings 13:20-21,
Then Elisha died, and they buried him. And the raiding bands from Moab invaded the land in the spring of the year. So it was, as they were burying a man, that suddenly they spied a band of raiders; and they put the man in the tomb of Elisha; and when the man was let down and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet.
When a dead man was placed on the prophet’s bones, the power of the Spirit raised the man from the dead. I understand that this Old Testament story is unlikely to convince any cynics, but I’m merely demonstrating that the notion of a lingering blessing is not unbiblical.
Personally I have experienced the enduring nature of a blessing from God. There’s a church in my city which at one time served as an outpouring of the Toronto Blessing – a revival which took place at the Toronto Airport Vineyard Fellowship, which lasted for years. I’ve visited the Vineyard Fellowship in Toronto and sat in the power of that blessing, but I was unaware of the connection with this quiet, Anglican church in Nottingham.
It was Sunday evening and my wife and I wanted to visit a church in town, so we dropped in at the local Anglican fellowship (not our usual denomination). The band was a group of teenagers doing their best, but there was nothing professional or polished about the performance. As they began to play, I was utterly and unexpectedly swept up by the Spirit. I sat there, full of joy and yet crying my eyes out, my hands and limbs trembling throughout the service.
I went for prayer at the end, barely able to stand, and had to explain to the concerned individuals in the ministry team that I wasn’t having a crisis – the Lord was simply doing a deep work, and I was yielding to him. I’ve been to that church a few times since, and every time the same thing happens. It was only later that I discovered the connection to Toronto. So yes, maybe the well which was once dug at Asbury has been opened again, but that does not make it anything less than true revival.
I realise that some readers will hate the suggestion that the presence and power of God lingers in a physical place, that blessings don’t just vanish, and that the life of a believer can include such supernatural realities. But please hear me – the life of faith is one of submission, of yielding, like one dancer to another. We must absolutely abandon the addiction to control all human beings are cursed with if we want to walk closely with the Lord. The Lord is a Spirit, and we are spirit beings. 1 Corinthians 2: 10-16,
But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.
These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. For “who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
To those who are scrambling to find a way to dismiss what’s happening in Asbury, I offer a challenge – instead of rushing to judgement, who not go on a pilgrimage? Visit the place, sit in the presence of God, and allow him to minister to you. Doing so might just change your life.
Note from the author: I love writing about faith and will continue to do so for as long as Patheos’ welcome is extended, but to be clear, doing so is a personal sacrifice as well as a passion project. The time devoted to putting out spiritual articles could be spent earning a crust, so I am hoping that some who are ministered to or otherwise helped by my writing will become partners/financial supporters – any regular amount pledged through Patreon will be gratefully received, as well as a considerable encouragement.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In