Factors in Revival and Renewal Movements by Dr Paul Pierson

– They always begin on the periphery of the institutional church

– They are motivated by a transforming experience (grace) of God by an individual or group. The result is the desire for a more authentic Christian life that often leads to concern for the church and world.

– Face to face groups for prayer, Bible study, and mutual encouragement are important.

– New methods of selecting and training leaders become important. These are less institutional; more grass roots and lay oriented.

– There are theological breakthroughs, that is, rediscovery of aspects of the Biblical message that have been forgotten or overlooked by the Church; usually they involve a focus on the gifts of every believer.

– There is a leveling effect, distance decreases between clergy and laity, social classes, races, men and women, and denominations.

– The movement is countercultural in some ways, often because it reaches out to those who have not been valued by their society.

– Consequently there will be opposition by many in the dominant culture and church.

– There will often be manifestations of spiritual warfare. Such movements sense the reality of evil and the need to recognize the victory of Christ in the cross and resurrection.

– At times there will be unusual manifestations of the power of the Holy Spirit; healings, visions, glossalalia, miracles. etc.

– More flexible structures of church and mission will be needed and often emerge, different from traditional structures.

– The movement will be led to significant recontextualization of the Christian message, which will be communicated more widely by lay persons to those outside the church.

– New music is often a characteristic.

– Biblical concepts ignored by the traditional church but relevant to the hearers are often discovered.

– There will be a growing concern for the marginalized, often expressed in ministries of compassion.

¨- At a later stage this often leads to concern for broader social transformation.

– As the movement matures there will be concern for the renewal of the broader church.

– As the movement continues to mature many will see themselves not only as part of the particular movement but as citizens of the Kingdom of God, transcending their own movement.

– Finally, every movement is less than perfect and often messy at the edges and sometimes, at the center. This is inevitable as long as sinful humans are involved.

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