While short-lived the Welsh revival was of great power and widespread effect - over 100,000 saved in two years. The revival was hallmarked by spontaneous singing guided by the Holy Spirit, with no choir, no conductor and no organ.
Strategic timing.
Most Christians in the Anglo-Saxon world today will associate 'revival' with the Welsh revival of 1904. This is probably the most researched and most discussed of all revivals.
The Welsh revival came at a strategic time in the providence of God. The 'higher criticism' of the Bible, which seeks to study the Bible through 'scientific' means, was becoming more and more popular, drawing away from the supernatural and spiritual elements of the Bible to a purely abstract and logical, and thus powerless, approach of the Word of God.
At the same time, the Spirit of Pentecost was beginning to stir, for example in the ministry of Charles Parnham. On New-Years day, 1901, the Holy Spirit was poured out in his Bible College in Topeka, Kansas, with the accompanying evidence of speaking in tongues. God was about to restore the gifts of the Spirit to the Church. But first, He would demonstrate His power and His purpose in Wales: Saving Souls.
Stirrings.
The Lord did not suddenly appear in revival power in Wales. For several years, people had been deeply moved to seek Him for revival. One of these, Seth Joshua, led a congregation to pray “Lord, bend me.” “With that, I heard a noise as if something had fallen . . . I opened my eyes and the first thing I saw was Evan Roberts fallen down in a pew nearby, and Mrs. Monna Davies wiping his sweat which was pouring out” (M.P. Morgan, BBC/Qualiton Recordings, 1954). This was on Sept 29th, 1904.
On 30 Oct 1904, Evan Philips preached “Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify Thee” John 17:1. Evan Roberts was in the congregation. He said: “Well, what a meeting. The place is full of the influence of the Holy Spirit! I felt it coming over me like a breeze.”
That evening, he was to receive his commission: “You must go.” He was to leave the Grammar School he was attending in preparation for Bible College, to hold prayer meetings in his home in Loughor, some 8 miles from Swansea.
As he arrived, he told his mother, “There will be a great change in Loughor in less than a fortnight. We are going to have the greatest revival that Wales has ever seen.”
Conditions for revival.
The prayer meetings started on 31 Oct with 17 people. Roberts asked those present to confess Jesus Christ as our Saviour. He quietly explained why he had come and mentioned the promised revival. The next day, there were more people present and Roberts stressed the importance of being filled with the Holy Spirit.
“The baptism of the Holy Spirit is the essence of revival, for revival comes from knowledge of the Holy Spirit and the way of co-working with Him which enables Him to work in revival power. The primary condition of revival is therefore that believers should individually know the baptism of the Holy Spirit.”
On Nov 2nd, he preached on the '4 points', which were to be the basis of his message throughout the revival. “Do you desire an outpouring of the Holy Spirit? Very well, 4 conditions must be observed:
- Is there any sin in your past that you have not confessed to God? On your knees at once. Your past must be put away and yourself cleansed.
- Is there anything in your life that is doubtful? Have you forgiven everybody, everybody, EVERYBODY? If not, don't expect forgiveness for your own sins. You won't get it.
- Do what the Spirit prompts you to do. Obedience: prompt, implicit, unquestioning obedience to the Spirit.
- A public confession of Christ as your Saviour. There is a vast difference between profession and confession.”“Soon the big showers came, with people crying for forgiveness, making up old quarrels, paying their debts. It was a pleasure to hear the children singing hymns on their way to school” (Hannah Hughes in Robert Ellis', Living Echoes of the Welsh Revival). The revival had started.
Revival fire.
From Loughor, the revival spread like wildfire. People would be blessed in the meetings, go home to hold their own meetings, and revival would break out there. Thus the revival covered the whole of Wales, even in places where none of the main preachers had been.
The effects of the revival were widespread. An estimated 100,000 converts were added to the church during the 2 years the revival lasted, including previously hardened unbelievers. Drunkards, thieves, gamblers were transformed.
Miners prayed together before commencing their shifts in the coal-mines. Pit-ponies, unused to the new kindness and clean language - without the usual kicks and curses - almost stopped work until they got adjusted. Courts had few cases to try. Whole football and rugby teams got converted and fixtures were abandoned. Dance halls were deserted, the pubs were empty and not a few went out of business, but the prayer meetings were crowded (from Great Revivals, Colin Whitaker).
The fire spread outside Wales. “The revival of 1904 was the most wide-spread of all Awakenings, effecting India, Korea and China, renewing revivals in Japan and South Africa, and sending a wave of awakening over Africa, Latin America and the South Sea's” (Edwin Orr).
Also the Pentecostal Revival of 1906 in Azusa Street was touched, for its leader corresponded with Evan Roberts.
Hall-mark of the revival was the leading of the Holy Spirit. “Such marvellous singing, quite extempore, could only be created by a supernatural power - the Holy Spirit. No choir, no conductor, no organ, just spontaneous, unctionised soul-singing. Once the first hymn was given out, the meeting conducted itself. There was no leader, but people felt an unseen control. Singing, sobbing, praying intermingled and proceeded without intermission” (David Matthews, I saw the Welsh revival).
Often, when a congregation was gathered to hear Evan Roberts, they would start before he arrived. He would often leave meetings as the Holy Spirit guided him. Sometimes, there would be several meetings in different churches, with the preachers going from one to another. The Lord ruled in all.
Criticism and persecution.
Sadly, the revival received a lot of criticism as well. Religious souls hate the freedom that revival brings. In the biography of Rees Howells, Intercessor, we can read how the 'children of the revival' were often forced to leave the denominational churches. They started holding meetings in Gospel Halls. Rees Howells' hall continued from strength to strength as he and the other leaders continued walking in revival long after the fires had ceased elsewhere.
In 1906, when the revival was dying out, he had had a personal encounter with the Holy Spirit as leaders of the revival had gathered to seek a solution to the many backslidings that had occurred amongst converts.
Some of the concerns of the clergy were legitimate. The lack and sometimes even distrust of the exercise of authority led to abuses, where people got in the flesh.
Having the Holy Spirit lead a meeting does not do away with the need for anointed leadership moving in the wisdom of God. Even at the heights of revival, the flesh will still need to be restrained. One example involves a young man accusing the godly Hugh Evans of putting out the Spirit's fire by wanting to hold Sunday-schools. His response was “Go on, my boy, flame away; but my fire has been red for years.”
The wise leader knew that God always uses two agents working together: the Spirit and the Word. Some revivalists tended to neglect the teaching of the Word in favour of 'allowing the Spirit to move'.
A sad note.
The story of Evan Roberts ends on a very sad note. During the revival, he suffered two nervous break-downs, probably caused by the intense strain the revival placed on his emotions. The first one was not very serious and was cured by being locked away with the Lord for some time.
The second, which occurred in the spring of 1906, was compounded by the action of Mrs. Penn-Lewis, a married woman preacher with whom Roberts had developed an intimate relationship. This woman decided that Roberts should be taken away from Wales, and had him transported to her house in England. There, Evan Roberts spent several years in almost complete isolation. Even his family was not allowed to visit him.
After this, he never took up a preaching ministry again, even though the anointing for revival never left him. This was noticed many years later when he spoke at the funeral of his father. Those present felt “something like electricity fall upon them,” and thought a new revival was breaking out then and there. But it was not to be. Evan Roberts retreated back into seclusion.
From this, we can learn several important lessons:
First of all, never develop an exclusive relationship with someone of the other sex outside marriage.
Secondly, take sufficient rest so that your body and soul will not wear out doing the work of the Spirit.
Last of all, never allow other people to make decisions for you.
Although Evan Roberts was the main leader in one of the most powerful revivals this world has ever seen, Roberts Liardon (in God's Generals) considers his life the saddest example he knows of a man who failed his calling. May it be different with us!
©1999 The Way Christian Ministries
