Himself. His own visible presence was to be withdrawn. The Comforter was to be sent to take His place, and thus, in a manner, make good the loss. Jesus had been their comforter and their joy. They would no longer have Him visibly among them, to walk with Him, to talk with Him, to hear the life-giving words that fell from His lips. The announcement made them feel as if they were to be left "comfortless" and forsaken. But he says, John xiv. 16: "I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever, even the Spirit of truth;" verse 18, "I will not leave you comfortless:" revised version, "I will not leave you desolate;" more literally still, as in the margin, "I will not leave you orphans." John xvi. 5, 6, 7: "But now I go my way to Him that sent me.... But because I have said these things unto you, sorrow hath filled your hearts. Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is expedient for you that I go away, for if I go not away the Comforter will not come unto you, but if I depart I will send Him unto you."
Now, from these words, and others in the same chapters, two things are plain: First, that the Comforter came as Christ's substitute; Secondly, that He came to abide. While Jesus was to be absent, as far as His visible presence was concerned, the divine Comforter,
the Holy Spirit, was to take His place. His presence was to substitute Christ's. But if He had come to be present only briefly, and occasionally, after long intervals of absence, it would be a poor filling of the painful void. Evidently the impression designed to be made by the words of Jesus was, that the Holy Spirit would come to abide. And this is made still more clear by the plain words of Jesus quoted above "I will not leave you orphans;" "He shall abide with you forever." He came, then, as a substitute; He came also to abide forever.
The revival system is, however, built up on the idea that He comes and goes. He visits the Church, and leaves it again. At so-called revival seasons the Church has a Comforter. During all the rest of the time she is left in a desolate or orphaned state. Thus is the revival system built up on an entire misconception and misapprehension as to the coming and abiding of the Holy Spirit.
It likewise misconceives entirely the operations of the Spirit. The idea seems to be that this Blessed One operates without means, directly, arbitrarily and at haphazard. The Word and Sacraments are not duly recognized as the divinely ordained means and channels, through which He reaches the hearts of the children of men. That this is an unscriptural idea we
have shown elsewhere. That the Spirit uses the means of Grace as channels and instruments, through which He comes and operates on the hearts of men and imparts to them renewing and sanctifying Grace, is taught all through the New Testament. We need not enlarge on these points again, but refer our readers to what has been written above on this subject.
Our second objection to the modern revival system arises out of the first. Because of the errors concerning the coming and the operations of the Holy Spirit, the system undervalues the divinely-ordained means of Grace. Little if any renewing Grace is expected from the sacrament of Christian Baptism. Few if any conversions are expected from the regular and ordinary preaching of the Word. Little if any spiritual nourishment is expected from the sacrament of the Lord's Supper. Who that has attended such meetings has not heard the idea of Grace bestowed through Baptism ridiculed? Who has not heard so-called revival preachers scout the idea of "getting religion"—which must mean receiving divine Grace if it means anything—through catechising the young in the doctrines of the divine Word? Are not these divine means often entirely set aside by the most enthusiastic revivalists? Who does not know that often at these revival services the reading and preaching of the
Word are entirely omitted? Thus God's means, the means used by Christ and His apostles, are undervalued. While they are used at the ordinary services, when there is no revival going on, not much is expected of them.
Our third objection again arises from the second. Because the regular Church ordinances are undervalued, they are largely fruitless. Because people have not much faith in their efficacy, they do not receive much benefit from them. Few conversions are expected or reported during the ten or eleven months of regular or ordinary church services, while many, if not all, are expected and reported from the few weeks of special effort. Even the work of sanctification is largely crowded into the few weeks. It is during these few weeks that saints expect to be quickened, refreshed, strengthened and purified, more than during all the rest of the year.
It is doubtless both as a cause and a result of this undervaluing and general fruitlessness of the ordinary Church ordinances, that we find so much levity and irreverence in many so-called revival Churches. Because the Holy Spirit is not supposed to be effectively present, is not in the Word and Sacraments, does not bring His saving and sanctifying Grace through them; therefore there is nothing solemn, awe-inspiring, or