WHY DID the FIRE FALL IN 1857?

WHY DID the FIRE FALL IN 1857?
-Compiled by David Smithers

The climax of the awakening came in 1857. Noonday prayer
meetings were started in New York, Philadelphia and other cities.
Then the movement spread with lightning-like speed throughout
the land. In Philadelphia it is said that three thousand people
attended the noonday prayer meetings, and in Chicago some
two thousand were in attendance day by day. In one of Mr.
Finney's meetings in Boston a man arose and said: I am from
Omaha, in Nebraska. On my journey East I have found a
continuous prayer meeting all the way. We call it two thousand
miles from Omaha to Boston; and here was a prayer meeting
about two thousand miles in extent." The entire country was
stirred by these noonday prayer meetings.

Rev. John Shearer in his book on "Old Time Revivals" said: "In
answer to the Church's united cry, ascending from all parts of
the land, the Spirit of God in a very quiet way, and suddenly,
throughout the whole extent of the United States, renewed the
Church's life, and awakened in the community around it a great
thirst for God. When the Church awoke to the full consciousness
of the miracle, it found that from east and west, and from north
and south, the whole land was alive with daily prayer meetings.
And it was in these daily united prayer meetings that the great
majority of these conversions, of all ages and classes, took
place. The divine fire appeared in the most unlikely quarters.
A large number of the elderly were converted and gathered in.
White-haired penitents knelt with little children at the Throne
of Grace. Whole families of Jews were brought to their Messiah.
Deaf mutes were reached by the glad tidings, and though their
tongues were still, their faces so shone that they became
effective messengers of the gospel. The most hardened infidels
were melted, some being led to Christ by the hand of a little child."

Continuous Prayer

C. H. Spurgeon commenting on this great move of the Spirit said:
"In the City of New York at this present moment, there is not, I
believe one single hour of the day where Christians are not
gathered together for prayer. One church opens its doors from
5 o'clock till six for prayer; another church opens from six to
seven and summons its praying men to offer the sacrifice of
supplication. Six o'clock is past, and men are gone to their
labor . Another class find it then convenient - such as those,
perhaps, who go to business at eight or nine - and from seven
to eight there is another prayer meeting. From eight to nine
there is another, in another part of the city, and what is most
marvelous, at high noon, from twelve to one, in the midst of the
city of New York, there is held a prayer meeting in a large room,
which is crammed to the doors every day, with hundreds standing
outside. This prayer meeting is made up of merchants of the city,
who can spare a quarter of an hour to go in and say word of prayer
and then leave again; and then a fresh company come in to fill
up the ranks, so that it is supposed that many hundreds assemble
in that one place for prayer during the appointed hour. This is the
explanation of the revival!"

Prayer: A Divine Attraction

Samuel Prime in his book "The Power of Prayer" described the
effects the revival had upon New York City, "The prayer-meeting
became one of the institutions of the city. Christians in distant
parts of the country heard of them. They prayed for the prayer-
meetings. When they visited the city, the prayer-meeting was
the place to which they resorted. The museum or theatre had
no such attractions. Returning, they set up similar meetings at
home. The Spirit followed, and the same displays of grace were
seen in other cities, and in the country, that were so marvelous
in New York. So the work spread, until the year has become
remarkable in the history of the Church. This revival is to be
remembered through all coming ages as simply an answer
to prayer."

-Source-

awakeandgo.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=80&Itemid=6

SPEAK unto US SMOOTH THINGS

SPEAK unto US SMOOTH THINGS
by David Wilkerson

A man recently wrote the following to our ministry: "I don´t know
who put me on your mailing list, but please remove my name
immediately. I can´t stand your gloomy gospel and your hammering
against sin. None of us is perfect, not even you. I´ve had it with
your King James gospel of doom."

Isaiah spoke of this kind of response: "This is a rebellious people,
lying children, children that will not hear the law of the Lord: which
say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto
us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits:
Get you out of the way" (Isaiah 30:9-11).

The word "smooth" in this verse means "nice, flattery." The people
of Israel were saying, in short, "Don't tell us any more bad stuff.
Describe how we´re going to prosper, how great things lie ahead
of us. If not, then get out of our faces."

No believer who hides sin in his heart ever wants to hear a holy,
sin-exposing word. That person will always flee the Holy Spirit´s
voice of truth. And he´ll turn to some preacher who is soft on sin,
offering smooth talk and flattering prophecies.

So, you ask, what hard message did God´s voice deliver to His
people on Mount Sinai? He said simply this: "I am the Lord thy
God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house
of bondage. Thou shalt have none other gods before me. Thou
shalt not make thee any graven image. . . . Thou shalt not bow
down thyself unto them, nor serve them" (Deuteronomy 5:6-9).

Here was the pure, unadulterated word of the Lord, coming directly
from His mouth. It should have sent the people flying to their tents
to smash their graven images. It should have stirred their hearts
and brought them to their knees. But instead they cried, "No more
thunder, fire, shaking. No more audible voice speaking to us. Give
us a spokesman who is like us, and let him speak to us. Then
we´ll hear and obey."

-Source-

http://sermons.worldchallenge.org/en/node/27275

© 2012 World Challenge. All rights reserved. PO Box 260, Lindale,
TX 75771-0260, (903) 963-8626

6 Really BAD CHARISMATIC DOCTRINES We SHOULD RETIRE

6 Really BAD CHARISMATIC DOCTRINES We SHOULD RETIRE
-by J. Lee Grady

I will never apologize for being a charismatic Christian. I had a
dramatic experience with the Holy Spirit many years ago, and
nobody can talk me out of it. I love the Holy Spirit´s abiding
presence in my life and His supernatural gifts. I love to prophesy,
speak in tongues, pray for the sick and see people changed by
the Spirit´s power.

At the same time, I´m aware that since the charismatic movement
began in the 1960s, people have misused the gifts of the Spirit and
twisted God´s Word to promote strange doctrines or practices.
Seeing these errors never caused me to question the authenticity
of what the Holy Spirit had done in my life. But I knew I had to stay
true to God´s Word and reject any false teachings I encountered.

My simple rule is based on 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22: "But examine
everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from
every form of evil" (NASB). In other words: Eat the meat and spit
out the bones.

As I have traveled throughout the body of Christ in recent years,
I´ve experienced the good, the bad and the ugly. I love God´s
people, and I know there is a healthy remnant of Spirit-filled
churches that are striving to stay grounded in biblical truth. But
I also know we have reached a crossroads. We must clean up
our act. We must jettison any weird doctrines we might have
believed or practiced that are hindering our growth today.

Here are a few of the worst errors that have circulated in our
movement in the past season. You may have others that need
to be added to this list. I believe we are grieving the Holy Spirit
if we continue to practice these things:

1. "Touch not My anointed." Chances are you´ve heard this weird
doctrine based on 1 Chronicles 16:22. In an attempt to discourage
any form of disagreement in the  church, insecure leaders tell their
members that if they ever question church authority, they are
"touching the Lord´s anointed" and in danger of God´s judgment.
Let´s call this what it is: spiritual manipulation. It creates worse
problems by ruling out healthy discussion and mutual respect.
Church members end up being abused or controlled - or even
blacklisted because they dare to ask a question.

2. Dual covenant. We charismatics love and respect Israel. Some
of us even incorporate Jewish practices in our worship - such as
wearing prayer shawls, blowing shofars or celebrating Hebraic
feasts. These things can enrich our Christian experience-but
some leaders go too far when they begin to teach that Jews don´t
need to believe in Jesus Christ to experience salvation. They imply
that Jews have special access into heaven simply because of their
ethnic heritage. This is a flagrant contradiction of everything the
New Testament teaches.

3. Inaccessible leadership. In the 1980s, some charismatic
ministries began to teach pastors and traveling ministers that
in order to "protect the anointing," they must stay aloof from people.
Ministers were warned to never make friends in their congregations.
Preachers began the strange practice of skipping worship on Sunday
mornings - and then appearing on the stage only when it was time
for the sermon in order to make a dramatic entrance. Shame on
these people for attempting to justify arrogance. Jesus loved
people, and He made Himself available to them. So should we.

4. Armor-bearers. The same guys who developed item No. 3
started this strange fad. Preachers began the practice of
surrounding themselves with an entourage: one person to carry
the briefcase, another person to carry the Bible, another to carry
the handkerchief. Some preachers hired bodyguards ... and even
food-tasters! The armor-bearers were promised special blessings
if they served preachers who acted like slave-owners. Reminder:
True leaders are servants, not egomaniacs.

5. The hundredfold return. Before his death in 2003, Kenneth
Hagin Sr., the father of the faith movement, rebuked his own
followers for taking prosperity teaching to a silly extreme. In
his book The Midas Touch, he begged preachers to stop
misusing Mark 10:28-30 to suggest that God promises a
hundredfold return on every offering we give. Hagin wrote,
"If the hundredfold return worked literally and mathematically
for everyone who gave in an offering, we would have Christians
walking around with not billions or trillions of dollars, but
quadrillions of dollars!" Hagin taught that the hundredfold
blessing refers to the  rewards that come to those who
leave all they have to serve God in ministry.

6. Money cometh. Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for giving money
publicly to be seen by others. Yet in the 1990s, some charismatics
got the wild idea that God would release a magical blessing if we
would drop wads of dollar bills at the preacher´s feet while he was
in the middle of his sermon. Leroy Thompson of Louisiana
popularized this flamboyant practice with his infamous 1996
sermon, in which  he encouraged people to shout in King
James English, "Money! Cometh to me now!" Then the people
would run to the front of the auditorium to pour cash into his
coffers. The money came, for sure, and more cash-hungry
preachers jumped on the  bandwagon. Taking an offering
became a form of exhibitionism, and Christians began viewing
their offerings like lottery scratch-offs.

God requires holiness not just in our behavior but also in our
doctrine. Let´s discard these and any other foolish teachings
that have brought confusion and dishonor to the body of Christ.

-Source-

http://www.charismamag.com/blogs/fire-in-my-bones/20325