WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST 3b

Section B
Seasonal Evangelism

18
Revivals--How to Promote Them

PSALM 85:6-7.
HABAKKUK 3:2.
ACTS 1:8.
ACTS 2:47. "Praising God, and having favour with all
the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as
should be saved."
REVIVALS IN THE BIBLE¹
1. A revival by the brook, Genesis 32:24-30
2. A revival by a lawyer, Exodus 33
3. A revival by a judge, 1 Samuel 7:1-14
4. A revival by a prophet, 1 Kings 18:21-39
5. A revival by a king, 2 Kings 23:1-27
6. A revival of Bible reading, Nehemiah 8:1-12
7. A revival of sabbath keeping, Nehemiah 13:15-22
8. A Baptist's revival, Matthew 3:1-12
9. A revival in the streets, Matthew 21:1-17
10. A personal work revival, John 1:35-51
11. A woman's revival, John 4:28-42
12. A revival in a graveyard, John 11:30-45
13. A revival in a city, Acts 2:1-4, 14-47
14. A revival in the [local] church, Acts 4:23-37
----
¹Cf. E. D. Head, Revivals in the Bible, (Fort Worth: Seminary
Book Store, 1951).
[113]

114 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
15. A revival growing out of fear, Acts 5:1-14
16. A revival growing out of persecution, Acts 7:54 to 8:4
17. A layman's revival, Acts 8:5-25
18. A revival in a carriage, Acts 8:26-40
19. An unlawful revival, Acts 10:23-48
20. A sabbath day revival, Acts 13:44-52
21. A revival by the riverside, Acts 16:9-15
22. A revival in a jail, Acts 16:23-34
23. A Holy Ghost revival, Acts 19:1-20
24. A revival in Rome, Acts 28:30-31; Philippians 1:12-14
VALUE OF REVIVALS
The importance and spiritual value of revivals of religion
to the cause of Christ cannot possibly be set down in human
language or calculated by human mathematics. [...]
The value of these spiritual awakenings may be somewhat
estimated from the following statements:
They reap a harvest of souls. [...]
They result in lives being volunteered and dedicated to
God's work.
They lift churches and communities out of lethargy and
spiritual dearth, up to the higher planes of spiritual power.
They quicken religious zeal, strengthen faith, brighten hopes,

REVIVALS--HOW TO PROMOTE THEM 115

arouse energies, enlist forces, call out new agencies for God,
and breathe into the souls of the people the breath of God.
They are the very breath and life of missions. [...]
They are fruitful in initiating new movements for God and
humanity and in organizing new agencies for the promotion
of Christ's kingdom. [...]
They are the richest means of church extension. [...]
They have brought out and developed some of the world's
greatest leaders, including preachers, singers, and lay work-
ers of all kinds. [...]
They open up the fountains of liberality in the hearts and
purses of the people. [...]
FACTORS IN PROMOTING REVIVALS
Revivals result from the [...] "[...]
saith the Lord of hosts" (Zech.

116 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
4:6). [...]
As these two forces work together to promote a revival,
there are certain factors which are essential.
Foremost among the human factors is prayer. [...]
In [...]
Equal in importance with prayer is the preaching of the
gospel of Christ as laid down in God's inspired Book. [...]
Revival preaching [...]

REVIVALS--HOW TO PROMOTE THEM 117

be presented with [...]
This gospel preaching [...]
The great truths [...]
Brother preacher, [...]
After an awful, [...]

118 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
guiltless in that awful hour. [...]
Another essential factor in evangelism is personal work.
Results [...]
The pastor [...]
Personal work [...]
It is [...]
Nothing [...]
The worker [...]
The worker [...]
Essential to effective evangelism is [Baptist] church co-operation.
Pentecost teaches us that [...]

REVIVALS--HOW TO PROMOTE THEM 119

evangelizing. The four men [...]
Nothing is more important in a revival than the spiritual
attitude of compassion on the part of the people of God.
"They [...]
Publicity is essential to a successful revival, but it should
be marked by sanity and judgment. [...]
Thorough organization should be made, including place of
meeting, time of services, ushers to handle and seat the
crowds. [...]
Music is an important factor in revivals. [...]

120 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
should be gospel songs, true in their teaching, [...]
An after-meeting can be an instrument of great effective-
ness in a revival, but wisdom is needed in managing it. [...]
Following up the revival in conservation is an important
matter. [...]
Remember: "There isn't any easy way to have a good
revival. [...]
you must make great plans for it."

19
Simultaneous Crusades

MATTHEW 9:36.
MARK 16:15.
ACTS 2:1.
1 CORINTHIANS 9:22.
THE VALUE OF A SIMULTANEOUS CRUSADE
A method of [...]
The simultaneous crusade [...]
Below are listed a few of the obvious advantages of such a
united effort:
1. It engenders a Pentecostal condition, conducive to
Pentecostal results.
[121]

122 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
2. It is church-centered, thus strengthening the local
churches and making possible the conservation of results
in each church.
3. It gives every church in the territory, large or small, the
same assistance and direction in leadership.
4. It enlists every church in prayer and promotion.
5. It makes possible more, and a higher type of, publicity.
6. It greatly strengthens the fellowship among the
churches.
7. It leads to the more effective promotion of extension
work.
8. It wins the lost, puts hell to mourning and heaven to
rejoicing, and adds stars to the crown of the Redeemer.
DANGERS TO BE AVOIDED IN A SIMULTANEOUS CRUSADE
In his Handbook for Southern Baptist Revival,¹ Dr. Roland
Q. Leavell mentions eight dangers of mass evangelism:
1. Publicity without prayer
2. Preaching without personal work
3. Sensationalism without spirituality
4. Emotion without instruction
5. Exhortation without indoctrination
6. Criticism without construction
7. Campaigns without continuity
8. Ingathering without enlistment
As one writer has put it, "there is the danger of depending
upon publicity, visiting evangelists, good music, and a
community interest rather than upon God and His Holy
Spirit. [...] that such meetings are
helpful"²
------
¹Atlanta: Home Mission Board, 1939.
²W. L. Muncy, Jr., [...] Press, 1941), p. 252.

SIMULTANEOUS CRUSADES 123

PRECEDING A SIMULTANEOUS CRUSADE
As is true of any endeavor, the results will very largely
depend upon the amount of wise preparation and work that
has gone before.
Prayer.--[...]
Organization.--[...]
Preparatory meetings.--[...]
DURING THE CRUSADE
Many effective plans have developed as a natural out-
growth of methods used in simultaneous crusades. These
include--

124 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
Fellowship meetings.--[...]
High attendance day.--[...]
Dr. C. E. Matthews, [...]
The pastor and [...]
Preceding the [...]

SIMULTANEOUS CRUSADES 125

In this [...]
Have a [...]
The signing [...]
Another method [...]
Specially sponsored meetings.- -Different groups may spon-
sor the evening services during the second week and en-
------
³C. E. Matthews, The Southern Baptist Program of Evangelism
(Atlanta: Home Mission Board, 1949), pp. 94-96.

126 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
deavor to secure [...]
Sunday school at night.--Dr. C. Y. Dossey, [...]
The plan is [...]
After the making of the reports [...]
The reports of the [...]

SIMULTANEOUS CRUSADES 127

Prayer meetings.--Each evening service [...]
AFTER THE CRUSADE
The results of a simultaneous crusade should be conserved
in each [...]
The period just after [...]
The new members--
have a readiness for the [...]
A good revival is always [...]
The churches should be organized to continue their
evangelistic work.
------
⁴Bernard King, "[...], 1949, pp. 44-45.

20
Youth Revivals¹

Youth is God's best time with the soul. [...]
The youth revival is not a new or [...]
The youth revival is, in its simplest definition, an evange-
listic effort aimed at young people. [...]
------
¹This chapter was prepared by Charles Wellborn, pastor of Seventh
and James Baptist Church, Waco, Texas. [...]
[128]

YOUTH REVIVALS 129

BASIC PRINCIPLES
The youth revival must be youth- centered.
If young people are to be [...]
The revival leadership--[...]
Local young people should be enlisted to do [...]
Insofar as possible, young people should be in [...]
The music used [...]
The youth revival must be church- centered.
In the emphasis placed upon conversion and in the zeal
[...]

130 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
place proper value on the place [...]
In specific application to [...]
The youth revival must be Christ- centered.
It is a [...]
TECHNIQUES
In the [...]

YOUTH REVIVALS 131

Types of revivals.--Generally, two types of evangelistic
campaigns have been used: the city-wide meeting and the
local church meeting. [...]
Organization.--[...]
The following committee plan is only suggestive and must
be modified to fit the need of any individual situation:
1. Finances.--[...]
2. Publicity.--[...]

132 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
not smack of cheap [...]
When all is said and done, [...]
3. Arrangements. -- [...]
4. Music.--[...]

YOUTH REVIVALS 133

5. Spiritual Preparation.--[...]
6. Seminars and fellowship activities.--[...]
Seminar groups will discuss such subjects as the problems
[...] One seminar leader uses these titles:
How to Win Friends and Marry One
I Have My Doubts
On the Witness Stand

134 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
Getting Through to God
One Life--What to Do with It
What's Wrong with This--If Anything?
I'm a Baptist--So what?

Fellowship periods provide [...]
7. Follow through.--[...]
DANGERS
Because [...]
There is a danger that the [local] church will adopt the attitude
that a youth revival is purely the concern of the young
people and will take no active part in the preparation for
the services. [...]

YOUTH REVIVALS 135

There is a danger that if the revival is successful, the young
people of the [local] church may feel that they have a "corner" on
spirituality. [...]
There is a danger that after a week or more of intensive
youth revival activity, the regular youth program of the [local]
church may seem tame and unsatisfactory to many young
people. [...]
There is a danger that immature young Christians will go
off on tangents and become radical or badly confused. [...]
CONCLUSION
This attempt [...]

21
Brotherhood Revivals¹

1 SAMUEL 10:26.
MARK 16:15.
ACTS 6:8.
ACTS 8:5.
Although Jesus called men, [...]
As far as we are able to learn from the Scriptures, the
[...]
------
¹This chapter was prepared by Clifton Brannon, lay evangelist and
president of the Baptist Brotherhood of Texas.
[136]

BROTHERHOOD REVIVALS 137

Jesus Christ, the Messiah. [...]
Revivals led by laymen are not a new thing. [...]
PURPOSES OF BROTHERHOOD REVIVALS
The purpose of the Brotherhood revival is the mobiliza-
tion of the manpower of every community into a mighty
army for God and righteousness. [...]
A Brotherhood revival will stir up men who are saved,
showing them that the harvest fields are white, and causing

138 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
them to come to a realization that the laborers are few.
[...]
The object of the Brotherhood is [...]
METHODS
Church-authorization.--[...]
Schedule.--[...]
Organization.--[...]
Preparation.--[...] Careful preparation
will include the following: (1) the dates set well in advance;
(2) prayer meetings in homes or at the [local] church, led by
laymen; (3) generous publicity through printed matter,

BROTHERHOOD REVIVALS 139

church bulletins, announcements, and letters or cards sent
by mail to the church membership, to unaffiliated Baptists,
and to nonchurch members; (4) the preparation of the lay-
men speakers, the men's choir, the personal workers, and also
the laymen who are to preside over the services; (5) visita-
tion to homes and to individuals to invite them to the service
and to urge the claims of Christ; and (6) a conference of
Brotherhood officers, the pastor, and all committees to make
certain everything is ready.
The services.--All services should be characterized by a
spirit of friendliness to all. [...]
A Brotherhood revival [...]
Gideon was used of the Lord to bring a revival to Israel,
[...] "[...]
as I do, so shall ye do" (Judges 7:17). "And they stood
[...]
host ran, and cried, and fled" (Judges 7:21).
RESULTS
The results of [...]

140 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
become [...]
Individual [...]
New [...]
The success [...]

22
Evangelism in the "[H]ighways and [H]edges"

MATTHEW 28:18-20.
LUKE 14:21, 23.
LUKE 15:4.
Christ's churches were not meant to be indoor institutions
only, but outdoor agencies as well. [...]
[141]

142 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
dition [...]
This chapter is a plea for an [...]
POSSIBILITIES FOR WITNESSING IN HIGHWAYS AND HEDGES
The following list of possibilities for witnessing beyond
the church building is directive in nature:
1. Tent and tabernacle meetings in the summer in un-
churched country places and in neglected parts of cities.
2. Open air services in parks and on the streets in crowded
centers and cities.
3. Gospel missions in rented buildings on the main streets
of cities.--[...]
4. Services on vacant lots near churches in the towns and
cities.--[...]
5. Services in jails and other penal institutions, in sani-
tariums, old folks' homes--wherever there are people who
cannot go to church to hear the gospel.
ESSENTIALS IN WITNESSING IN HIGHWAYS AND HEDGES
There are certain necessary factors in all this "outdoor"
effort to win people to Christ.

IN THE HIGHWAYS AND HEDGES 143

There should be plenty of good music, with emphasis on
the congregational part in it. [...]
The right sort of preaching is essential to the success of
such meetings. The preaching should be: (1) spiritual and
evangelistic; (2) brief, pointed, and positive; (3) personal,
hortatory; (4) passionate, full of enthusiasm; (5) plain,
simple, with frequent use of illustrations; (6) scriptural,
packed with the vital fundamentals of the gospel--sin and
its awful guilt, [...]; Hell
and Heaven; repentance and faith; [...].
Personal work is essential. [...]
Much attention should be given to prayer. [...]
Special and wise attention should be given to the proper
advertisement of meetings. [...]
Care should be given to following up the converts in every
meeting. [...]
The expenses of such meetings should be cared for
promptly.

144 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
VALUE OF WITNESSING IN HIGHWAYS AND HEDGES
The value of open-air meetings is seen in the manifold
results in the life of church and community.
They give a gospel, soul-saving atmosphere to a church
and prevent spiritual dry rot. They bring a militant and
martial spirit.
They deepen the evangelistic fervor and zeal of God's
people and keep them ever after lost men. [...]
They constantly add to the church membership and Sun-
day school enrolment, and quicken all the life of the [local] church.
[...]
They stimulate the liberality of the people and open up
their hearts and purses to the worldwide cries for help.
They reach people who could never be reached by meet-
inghouse services.
They call out, enlist, and develop new workers as nothing
else ever does. [...]
They take the chill, iciness, and stiffness out of the people,
break down class walls and distinctions, and democratize
the churches, causing them to have "favor with God and
man."
They enrich in spiritual power the pastor who wisely leads
his church thus to go out after the lost. [...]
They establish and develop new churches and spiritual
centers, and the "regions beyond and round about" are taken
care of.
They glorify Christ in the streets, lanes, highways, and
hedges, and fill His house.

23
Drawing the Net¹

LUKE 5:4-5.
2 CORINTHIANS 5:11.
2 CORINTHIANS 5:20.
REVELATION 22:17.
"Some will use only the rod and reel of personal evange-
lism. [...]
public evangelism."
The term "drawing the net" is applied to the preacher's in-
vitation, at the close of his sermon, to the unchurched, the in-
different, and the unsaved to make a public response to the
claims of Christ. [...]
It has been said that in the matter of drawing the net
probably lies the chief difference between a successful
evangelist and an unsuccessful one. Therefore the most
------
¹Acknowledgement is hereby made to Dr. C. E. Matthews and
Dr. F. D. Whitesell for helpful material in their respective books:
[...] (Atlanta: Home Mis-
sion Board, 1949) and [...], 1945).
[145]

146 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
earnest study humanly possible on the matter of net-drawing
should be made by every preacher of the Word of God.
"[...]"
The invitation is the logical climax of the evangelistic
sermon. Without it the message is incomplete and its effect
unknown. The gospel deserves a response. Christ's call
to men expects an answer. [...]
SCRIPTURAL AUTHORITY FOR DRAWING THE NET
The Bible is full of appeals, exhortations, entreaties,
pleadings, and even commands to hear and heed the calls
of God to men. Moses gave an invitation when, after the
[...]" (Ex. 32:26). Joshua appealed to Israel to make a
[...]" (Josh. 24:15).
Jesus gave invitations. [...]" (Matt.
4:19). [...] On the day of Pentecost, Acts 2:40 tells us, Peter
"with many...words did...testify and exhort, saying,
Save yourselves from this untoward generation." On sev-

DRAWING THE NET 147

eral occasions Paul "persuaded" people (Acts 19:8,26; 26:28;
28:23). If he did not use our methods of invitation, he
must have used something akin to them. In 2 Corinthians
5, he says, "The love of Christ [...]" (v. 14), and
"[...]" (v. 20). In an [...]
DEFINITE STEPS IN DRAWING THE NET
Certain well-defined steps have been found most effective
in drawing the net in an evangelistic meeting. [...]
In the first step, invite all present who have their church
membership elsewhere to come forward to unite with the [local]
church by letter, [...]
A second step is to be made when all have responded who
will in answer to the first invitation. [...]
In making the third step, which comes, of course, when
response to the second exhortation has ceased, ask the
congregation to be seated and bow in prayer. [...]

148 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
of God, such as: "Behold, now is the accepted time; behold,
now is the day of salvation" (2 Cor. 6:2); "[...]
forth" (Prov. 27:1); "[...]" (Prov. 29:1).
Now ask all [...]
Thus we come [...]
POWERS USED IN DRAWING THE NET
Drawing the net involves every power and every gift
known to the Christian. [...]
Use the power of persuasion. [...]

DRAWING THE NET 149

Use the power of example. You [...]
Use the power of suggestion. If [...]
Use the power of psychology. Always begin [...]
The music is a vital part of the invitation. It [...]
MANNER OF DRAWING THE NET
Give the invitation clearly. [...]
Give the invitation confidently. [...]
Give the invitation earnestly. Plead as with dying men.

150 WITH CHRIST AFTER THE LOST
Give the invitation courteously. Do not embarrass your
hearers or resort to tricks or deception.
Give the invitation naturally. Be yourself. [...]
Give the invitation prayerfully. [...] We can pray as we plead for souls.
Give the invitation in entire dependence upon the Holy
Spirit. [...] Expect his pres-
ence, count upon him, and he will not disappoint you.