The history of Christianity is a history of revivals by which the work of redemption has been advanced among men; there is all reason to suppose that it will be so to the end. Men dream of the Gospel advancing with even, [p. 95] steady pace to its triumph, without the vicissitudes of decline and revival but the thought finds ground neither in the Bible nor in church history. The great revivals in the past have been epochs in which the Christian world has risen to clearer apprehensions of Divine truth and a higher elevation of Christian life. They have constituted the Divine process by which the Gospel has burst through the errors and sins of men and has found a more complete development in the consciousness and life of the churches of Christ.  
No careful student of church history will undervalue revivals of religion. By it no means follows that a pastor is to seek success only, or chiefly, in these special manifestations of spiritual power. For a revival ordinarily supposes a previous declension, which it was the design of the ministry to prevent; for they are given “for the perfecting of the saints, for the edifying of the body of Christ” (Eph. iv. 12). Fidelity and wisdom in the pastor may keep the spiritual forces in a church so inspired and organized that its life will not decline, but develop and strengthen, and its condition consequently be one of continual growth and progress. Such is the fact in Mr. Spurgeon’s church. As one mingles in its assemblies and observes its manifold and thoroughly organized activities, the preaching and devotion, the spirit and life, resemble what is seen in a powerful revival of religion. The Holy Spirit is continually present, and there is no cessation in the work of conversion. Toward this ideal a true pastor will be always working; and where it is attained a revival will mean, not a recovery from declension, but an acceleration in spiritual advancement and a mightier display of the Spirit’s power in the conversion of men.
 
But in the ordinary manifestations of Christian life religious [p. 96] declension is often a marked and painful fact, and the pastor should seek the best methods for promoting a revival.
 
Here it is of primary moment to remember that a genuine revival is the result of the presence of the Holy Spirit: without Him there may be excitement, but there can be no spiritual movement. It is “not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the Lord” (Zech. iv. 6). A deep sense of this is essential, and all thought and feeling should be turned to the invocation of His presence; but the Spirit works through human agencies and according to the laws of the human mind. The use of appropriate means, therefore, is also essential.
 
Here I suggest: 1. Christian life in the people will seldom rise above the spiritual level of the pastor; it is, therefore, of primary moment that the minister’s own soul be “in the Spirit”—humble, fervent, and believing. Noise and zeal and declamation and management can be no substitute for the Holy Spirit in the soul. 2. As a revival of life in the church is ordinarily the condition of an awakening among the unconverted, the preaching at first should be specially adapted to search the experience and life of Christians, and lead to increase in personal holiness and personal activity. The church is “the light of the world” (Matt. v. 14), and the power of the Gospel on the world depends on the clearness with which this light shines. 3. Seek to promote faithful personal conversation on the part of Christians with their unconverted kindred and friends. It is sometimes useful to organize committees to visit religiously from house to house in the congregation. It is obvious, however, that great care should be taken both as to the personnel of such committees and as to the method of their work. 4. Meetings should be multiplied as the interest manifested will justify. Continuous [p. 97] meetings concentrate attention on the subject of religion, fix impressions which otherwise might be evanescent, and lead to religious decision. The block may seem unaffected by a single blow, but a succession of blows on the same point cleaves it. 5. The mode of conducting special meetings must be determined by the existing indications of the Spirit and providence of God. If gifts abound in the church, it is often better not to have additional preachi............