Pastor and Christian philosopher, Francis A. Schaeffer, warned us and created the war plan that we as Christians need today to deal with a society that is increasingly moving away from God, the Bible, and moral principles. He wrote “A Christian Manifesto” 33 years ago and its words are just as relevant today as they were back then.
Our Christian Manifesto Today Passage from the Word of God today is James 1:27, which reads: “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”
Our Christian Manifesto Today quote today is from Majid Michel. He said: “We hear people talk about Renewal and Revival. if you want a Renewal and a Revival, it’s based on how you treat the afflicted, the oppressed and the poor.”
In this podcast, we are using as our text: “A Christian Manifesto” by Francis A. Schaeffer.
Dr. Francis A. Schaeffer writes on “Revival, Revolution, and Reform” (Part 2):
The Wesley and Whitefield revivals were tremendous in calling for individual salvation, and thousands upon thousands were saved. Yet even secular historians acknowledge that it was the social results coming out of the Wesley revival that saved England from its own form of the French Revolution. If it had not been for the Wesley revival and its social results, England would almost certainly have had its own “French Revolution.” We should sound the names of some of our Christian predecessors with a cry of pride and thankfulness to God: Lord Shaftesbury (1801-1855), who dared to stand for justice for the poor in the midst of the Industrial Revolution; William Wilberforce (1759-1833), who was the greatest single personal force in changing England from a slave-owning country to a country that turned away legally and totally from slavery long before the United States did. These men did not do these things incidentally, but because they saw it as a part of the Christian good news. God used those involved in the revivals to bring forth the results not only of individual salvation, but also social action.
Jeremy Rifkin, whom some of you will know as a leading counter-culture figure of the sixties, in 1980 wrote Entropy. In this book he shows that he understands, far better than the evangelical leadership often has, that the old revivals resulted in social action. He quotes Pollution and the Death of Man—The Christian View of Ecology at length in the chapter he calls “The Second Reformation,” pointing out that there is a different possibility for a Christian answer in regard to ecology. He really understands something, though not as a Christian (for he continues in his pantheistic framework). But he really comprehends that in the days of the revivals and today there are Christian answers for social action and answers in areas such as ecology. Christianity does have answers.
Now when we come nearer to home, Wheaton College stands out as a great Bible-believing college. But it is no longer; it is liberal. Happily Wheaton is not. But what most people do not realize is that Jonathan Blanchard (1811-1892), who was the founder and president of Wheaton College, and Charles Finney (1792-1875), who was the president of Oberlin College, were tremendously interested in the question of social action concerning slavery. They were two great voices in America calling out for social action, and both of them said something very firmly: If a law is wrong, you must disobey it. Both of them call, when it is necessary, for civil disobedience.
Lord willing, we will continue looking at the topic of Revival, Revolution, and Reform in our next episode.
Let’s Pray.
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Dear friend, if you are listening today, and you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour, allow me to show you how:
First, accept the fact that you are a sinner, and that you have broken God’s law. The Bible says in Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
Second, accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…”
Third, accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 10:28: “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Also, the Bible states in Revelation 21:8: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
Now this is bad news, but here’s the good news. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you so that you can live eternally with Him. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will.
Romans 10:9-13 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
Until next time, my friend, continue to stand for the Lord and his Word. God bless you!
A Christian Manifesto Today 