A Brief History of Revival:


A.      Old Testament Revivals
1.  Jacob's Revival. (Gen. 35:1-5)  They put away their foreign
    gods and build a proper altar.
2.  Nineveh. (Jonah 3)  A whole city apparently repented and God's
    judgment was averted.
3.  Hezekiah's Revival. (2nd Chronicles 29-35)  True worship established.
4.  Josiah's Revival (Nehemiah 8-9).  The Law was rediscovered.
B.      New Testament Revivals
     1.  Pentecost. (Acts 2)  Heavenly phenomena and three
         thousand saved.
     2.  Philip's revival in Samaria. (Acts 8:4-8)
         Deliverance from evil spirits and miraculous healings.
         Whole city believes.
     3.  Pauline Revivals. (i.e. Acts 14:21; 19:11-20)
C.      Pre-Reformation Revivals
     Augustine of Canterbury, (601) St. Dominic, St. Francis,
     St. Anthony of Padua. (1220-1231)  John Hus. (1400-1415)
     Savonarola, Florence, Italy. (1494 to 1498)
D.      The Reformation. (1500's)  Luther, Calvin, Zwingli, Tyndale, etc.
E.      The Puritan Era.  Scotland, New England  (1600's)
F.      The Great Awakening. (1730's)  Jonathan Edwards,  Wesleys,
     Whitefield.
G.      Second Great Awakening. (1792-1842)
     1.      Scotland.
     2.      Frontier Revival.  Cane Ridge Revival, Burbon County, KY.
          10,000-25,000.  Methodism grew from 15,000 in 1784 to almost
          1 million 1830;  1802 to 1812 the number of Baptists doubled.
H.      The Third Great Awakening. (1857-1859)  Jeremiah Lanphier, NY.
     D.L. Moody and Hudson Taylor were boosted out of this awakening.
I.      The Fourth Great Awakening. (1900-1930)  Wales, Pentecostal Movement.
J.      Recent Revivals. (1948 ff.)  The Latter Rain Movement,
     the Forest Home Briefings and College Revivals, Jesus Movement,
     Charismatic Movement, Lausanne Movement.


Revival Characteristics:


A.      Usually follow crisis or trauma. (could be atmosphere of
     spiritual and moral decline, or intense spiritual dryness)
B.      Intense awareness of God's presence.
     (with accompanying love, joy, and peace)
C.      Prayer.
D.      Wholehearted worship.
E.      New music.
F.      Conviction of sin and resulting confession.
G.      Renewed sense of God's favor.
H.      Return to an Orthodox understanding of Christianity.
I.      Renewed love for an understanding of Scripture.
J.      Exhilarating sense of expectancy.
K.      Restitution of broken relationships.
L.      Miracles and gifts of the Spirit.
M.      Boldness and fervor.
N.      Evangelism.
O.      New ministries spawned.
P.      New emphasis on the unity of the church.
Q.      Spiritual/moral atmosphere of society affected.