Sermons & Devotionals by Classic Christian Writings

A revival breaks the power of the world and of sin over Christians. It brings them to such vantage ground that they get a fresh impulse toward heaven. They have a new foretaste of heaven and new desires after union with God; and the charm of the world is broken, and the power of sin overcome. When t... Read More

Arranged from a message delivered at the “Heart-Cry for Revival” conference held in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, May 26-29, 1998. In 1962 I became Pastor of a Baptist church of 175 members in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. In Canada this would be an average size church as the country is only around se... Read More

What happened at Pentecost? There was something that began a new era for the world, a new power of righteousness, a new mission of redemption, and a new basis of fellowship. What was it that made Pentecost the birthday of the Church of Christ? It is not enough to say the Holy Spirit was given. In wh... Read More

The one grand purpose of the Book of Acts is to teach us that the one Head of every true church is the invisible Head; that the Church is a body of believers indwelt by the Holy Spirit and administered by Him; that of all important things this is the vital matter--that every officer from pastor to s... Read More

We live in a day and age when everyone is looking for answers to life’s tough questions, but no one knows where to find the answers. Those in industrialized countries find themselves on overload from too much information, but still no satisfying answers. The result is a scurrying about; looking for ... Read More

Edited from a message delivered at the "Heart-Cry for Revival" Conference near Asheville, North Carolina, April 9-12, 2002 We live in a unique time, a confusing time. We live in a time when it is almost impossible to tell the true Church from the professing church. There has never been a time in the... Read More

"Wilt Thou not revive us again, that Thy people may rejoice in Thee" (Psalm 85:6). This Psalm seems to have been written soon after the return of the people of Israel from the Babylonian captivity, as you will easily see from the language at the beginning of the Psalm. The Psalmist felt that God had... Read More

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service” (Rom. 12:1). “Have you noticed that this verse does not tell us to whom we should give our bodies? It is not the Lord Jesus who asks... Read More

Because no one really knows if they do. There is reason to doubt the destiny of worldly people. No one knows for sure if worldly people are Christians. Disobedient people do not have assurance of their salvation from sin in their hearts because Christians who resist or grieve the Holy Spirit cannot ... Read More

In Joel 2:1 we read, “Blow the trumpet in Zion.” It is we Christians who need to be aroused, and to be exhorted daily (Heb. 3:7-19; 4:1). It is we Christians who need to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God (1 Peter 5:6). Can it be that revival tarries because we Christians are not humble e... Read More

One thing is clear from Scripture: God loves to answer prayer. He works overtime to get us to believe that. Too often we believe Him to a point, and then quit. There is nothing which we start and quit more than prayer. Why do we do that: quit short of God's answer? What is even harder to believe is ... Read More

Perhaps no spiritual discipline today is as much misunderstood as fasting. Why to fast, how to fast, when to fast, how long to fast, what type of fast, SHOULD I fast…etc. In simplest terms, fasting means to abstain from food for a period of time for a spiritual purpose or goal. As a Christian, obvio... Read More

My creed leads me to think that prayer is efficacious, and surely a day's asking God to overrule all events for good is not lost. Still there is a great feeling that when a man is praying he is doing nothing, and this feeling makes us give undue importance to work, sometimes even to the hurrying ove... Read More

The following message was given at the Heart-Cry for Revival Conference, April 2004, at The Cove, Asheville, North Carolina U.S.A. There has been a deep burden created by God on my heart and mind for some time, as to God’s perspective about the day in which we live. What does He say? How does He loo... Read More

We should be holy because God wants us to be holy. He commands it. He says, "As He which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy" (1 Peter 1:15-16). God is in earnest about this. It is God’s will and it cannot be evaded. ... Read More

The following is from a message given at the Heart-Cry for Revival Conference in April 2004 at The Cove, Asheville, North Carolina U.S.A. Most Americans know there were three Great Awakenings in America, but they do not know the history of them and what God did. I am going to start with a very brief... Read More

Revival always comes from God, but it also always comes through a person of God. God has chosen to make His kingdom and His glory to a certain extent dependent on you. If you do not experience continuous personal revival in your own heart, you will fail to fully glorify God, His kingdom will suffer,... Read More

It is no small matter to be responsible before God for bringing a little life into this world. Parents stand in the place of God before their children to a remarkable degree. God holds parents responsible for the training, discipline and control of their children. We need to come back to the Bible, ... Read More

In a recent newsletter, Dr. Stephen Olford writes helpfully about the need for persistence in prayer. Dr. Olford is a man of God who has ministered effectively through many years in many countries of the world, as pastor, author and teacher. He senses, especially since the September 11, 2001 happeni... Read More

It is most strongly laid upon my heart that the months ahead will be critical months. I want in these months just ahead to lay hold of God in a very definite and persistent manner, in strong faith, that it is His time to work mightily. We must be submissive for God is sovereign, but we must also be ... Read More