(This oped originally appeared in The Christian Post on Feb. 27, 2023.)

As a church historian, it has been interesting to see how Christians have responded to the recently concluded revival at Asbury University. Some people thanked God for the outpouring of His spirit, while others cautiously encouraged the revival but warned that only time will tell if this bears fruit.

Dr. Mark Draper

Then there are the naysayers.

The charges leveled against this revival ranged from not teaching repentance of Asbury’s egalitarian position to delegitimizing its value because there is not an overt antiracist message. There were also the typical charges of emotionalism and lack of preaching. This is not surprising. Jonathan Edwards wrote several works defending the First Great Awakening against people who discredited that revival because it did not meet their criteria. He also articulated the differences between genuine revival and false spirituality.

A look at the history of revivals teaches us that if we are looking for a perfect revival or a perfect revivalist who meets our specific criteria, we will not find them. But God uses them. Continue reading…

(The perspectives of the author(s) do not necessarily represent the perspectives of Lancaster Bible College | Capital Seminary & Graduate School.)