What Is Revival According to Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones?

What did Dr. Lloyd-Jones say was the meaning behind the stones in Joshua 4?

According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, the stones mentioned in Joshua 4 were set up as a memorial to God's miraculous act of dividing the Jordan River. The text explains that when future generations asked "What mean these stones?", they were to be told: "The Lord your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you until ye were passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea." The purpose was "that all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty." Dr. Lloyd-Jones uses this as a parallel to help us understand revival - it represents a miraculous divine intervention that cannot be explained by human means.

What are the general characteristics of revival according to Lloyd-Jones?

According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, the general characteristics of revival include: - It begins with the Spirit of God coming upon people - People become aware of God's glory, majesty and greatness - People are humbled, convicted, and conscious of sin - They cry out to God and become aware of His provision in Christ - They're filled with praise, joy, and thanksgiving - They develop a burden for others' souls - The Holy Spirit seems to preside and be "in the atmosphere" - People of all classes, ages, temperaments, and intellectual types are affected - It has a distinct beginning and ending - it comes, lasts for a while, then passes - The results are abiding - converts continue in the faith, unlike in many evangelistic campaigns

How did Dr. Lloyd-Jones distinguish revival from regular evangelistic campaigns?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones made several clear distinctions between revival and regular evangelistic campaigns:

1. In evangelistic campaigns, people must be pleaded with to come forward; in revival, "they come without you asking them"
2. In campaigns, perhaps only 10% of those who come forward remain; in revival, it's "a very exceptional thing for people not to hold"
3. In campaigns, churches often remain unchanged; in revival, churches become filled to overflowing and new churches must be built
4. In evangelistic campaigns, statistics on vice and crime may continue to rise; in revival, the moral tone of the entire community is visibly raised
5. Revival cannot be produced by human methods, whereas campaigns are planned and executed by human effort

What did Dr. Lloyd-Jones say about how revival can start?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones emphasized that revival can start in numerous ways: - It may come suddenly or gradually - It may follow a period where people have been burdened and praying for months or years - It can break out in a small prayer meeting (like in Northern Ireland with just three men) - It can happen in a regular preaching service - It can even transform a planned evangelistic campaign into something different - It might follow a tragedy or calamity that makes people realize the fleeting nature of life - It can start in a great city or a small village or hamlet - It can begin with a small number of people or a large crowd

He specifically mentioned that "the next revival may break out in a little hamlet that you and I have never heard of."

What types of men does God use in revival according to the sermon?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones noted that God uses various types of men in revival:

1. Sometimes God uses "very great men" of exceptional intellect and ability, such as:
2. Jonathan Edwards (philosopher)
3. George Whitefield (orator)
4. John Wesley (organizer and intellectual)

5. Martin Luther, John Calvin, and John Knox

6. But at other times, God uses "simple, ignorant, unknown, most ordinary men" like:

7. James McQuilkin in Northern Ireland
8. David Morgan in Wales (an "ordinary minister, an unknown minister, a man of no gifts whatsoever")

He emphasized that this variety shows God "taketh hold of the weak things of the world to confound the things that are mighty."

Why does Dr. Lloyd-Jones call revival a miracle?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones called revival a miracle for several reasons:

1. It can only be explained by "the direct action and intervention of God"
2. Men cannot produce it (despite Finney's teaching that certain methods can guarantee revival)
3. Men cannot explain it ("If you can explain what is happening in a church, it isn't revival")
4. Men cannot control it (its beginning, course, or end)
5. It has an overwhelming character like "a tornado" or "a flood"
6. It produces results far beyond what the human instruments could achieve
7. It transforms ordinary men into powerful preachers (like David Morgan who "for two years preached like a lion")
8. It often breaks out in unlikely places (small villages rather than capital cities)

As he stated: "A miracle is the direct, sovereign, immediate, supernatural action of God, and it cannot be explained. And that is the essential truth about a revival."