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Some 77 people gathered at the Hayes Conference Centre at Swanwick in Derbyshire for the Reformation and Revival Conference over three days from November 19th to the 21st last year. The Centre offers very comfortable accommodation and pleasant surroundings for conference-goers. The catering and facilities are excellent and are enjoyed in the context of fellowship with choice saints who are like-minded in their concern for both reformation and revival. It was sheer joy to be with them. It is the common understanding of these people that we do not begin with our subjective feelings or hunches about the “Lord moving” but that we must submit ourselves to His Word. There was an eager anticipation of the opening of the Word over six sessions. Prayer times also began with exhortation from the Scriptures. Dr Iain B Campbell, the minister of the Free Church congregation at Back on the island of Lewis and I were the speakers at the conference. For his theme Dr Campbell took us to Revelation 21:9 inviting us to view the bride, the Lamb’s wife, which is the church. We were then treated to a feast as Dr Campbell gave us three views of the bride in the Old Testament, following the line of redemptive history and covenant manifestation. The first view was the bride as typified by Rebecca, Isaac’s wife. She was a sought-out bride, a taught bride, and a brought bride as she comes into union with Isaac the heir of the covenant. The church, the bride of Christ as she is brought into union with Him, becomes an heir of God and joint-heir with Christ. The second view of the bride was given as we thought of Ruth. Because of her Moabitish origins the law could not constitute her as one of God’s people – just as the law, because it is weak through the flesh cannot save us. However, in Ruth’s case the law allowed gleaning which opened to her the door of mercy. So the law becomes the sinner’s schoolmaster to lead him to Christ. Boaz, as the type of Christ, then redeemed her, and we were brought to contemplate the bearing of the curse of the law by the Lord Jesus Christ in order to take us into union with Himself. The third view of the bride was by means of the Shulamite in the Song of Solomon. Close attention was paid to her statements in 2:16, 6:3 and 7:10 and the movement seen in the statements she makes concerning her experience. Beginning with her own possession of her beloved, she moves eventually to rejoice only in his possession of her and the fact that his desire is towards her. It is impossible to convey the blessing and unction that attended these sublime portrayals of the bride, but I think that it would be true to say that the Bridegroom loomed larger than the bride although both were viewed together. This writer was moved to tears as love divine, all loves excelling, was brought home to the heart. Rarely does one experience such Christ-exalting ministry and enjoy such foretastes of glory. So, while the subject of these addresses was not revival as such, the effect intended was to revive the hearers’ hearts. My aim also was to exalt the Saviour, homing in on the promise of Acts2:17, “I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh”. Noting that it is Christ who was given the Spirit and still has Him to give, six reasons were shown over three sessions why it is in the interests of Christ Himself to pour out of His Spirit. Naturally we think of the benefit to ourselves of revival, but our Lord gains by giving the Spirit (It is hoped that the substance of the addresses will be given in a later article). By the second evening of the conference those gathered had warmed to prayer and further fuel was added as we heard the testimony of a brother converted from Islam. We delighted in the triumphs of God’s grace and sang Wesley’s “And can it be”, to the tune Sagina with renewed vitality. One concern was that the average age of the conference was rather high. God forbid that revival becomes the concern of mature Christians only. The Rev James Wood, who chaired the conference so graciously, encouraged early booking for next year. Why not consider it? Contact George McIntyre: 27 Weston Close, Dorridge, Solihull, B93 8BL. Tel 01564 774 966. E-mail GeoMcI@aol.com Dafydd Morris |
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