Mario Murillo recently hosted his “Living Proof” revival campaign at a vacant lot on the 198 highway here in Kings County. Many people were curious about what was happening underneath the big tent. I did some research and decided to write an article about how to be discerning at revivals like this one.
Outdoor revivals are a unique part of American church history. They were a common practice during the Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th centuries when pastors, like Jonathan Edwards, would preach for many hours and see people impacted in powerful ways. In his work Thoughts on the Revival of Religion in New England Edwards made it clear that his guiding principle was “to take the Scriptures as our guide.” This means always testing what takes place during a revival with what is described in God’s word.
Some people don’t like to ask questions about revivals. They think questions will “quench the spirit” and put a damper on what is taking place. This mentality goes against the Bible’s emphasis on biblical discernment. 1 John 4:1 says this, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (English Standard Version)
People are often offended by the thought of their favorite Bible teacher being questioned. Instead of being ignored, these types of questions should be encouraged. All Christians should seek to be like the believers in the ancient city of Berea. Acts 17:11 describes them like this, “they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” They were examining the teaching of the apostle Paul! If it is appropriate to examine Paul’s teaching, then surely Christians should be ready to examine the teaching of modern day teachers, especially those who come from out of town and set up a tent where they promise to display the miraculous work of God.
Below you will find a list of questions and Bible passages that will help you be discerning:
1) Is the speaker willing to submit to the leadership of a local church? Hebrews 13:7 says, “Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith.” If the person is the autonomous leader of their own church or para-church organization, then it is difficult to know who they are accountable to.
2) Does the speaker take the word of God out of context? A classic example of this is when someone makes the claim that the spirit of God is present in a special way at the revival by quoting from Matthew 18, “where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” The diligent student of Scripture knows that Matthew 18 is referring to church discipline, not revival meetings. Church discipline is very difficult and involves removing someone from a local church. Jesus promised he would be present in a special way because church discipline is a uniquely holy and delicate matter.
3) Does the speaker use any manipulation to bring people to the front of the revival meeting? 2 Corinthians 4:2 says, “But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God.”
Open air revivals often recruit hundreds of volunteers from out of state to come to the meetings so it will look like there is a miraculous movement of God in a community. This encourages those genuinely seeking God to be impressed with the number of people present and they are more willing to come to the front of the tent because it is packed with people.
Revival speakers often ask for involvement from the crowd to stimulate interest. Beware of raising your hand because the speaker may then ask you to stand up. Once you are standing he may ask you to come to the front and before you know it you may be asked to recite a prayer of repentance. He will be bound to have photographers at the front who will take pictures and later claim that hundreds of people came to Christ, when in fact they originally raised their hand outside the tent because they “wanted to see God at work in a special way.”
4) Does the speaker encourage the crowd to give an interpretation of what they are saying when someone speaks in tongues? 1 Corinthians 14:27-28 says, “If any speak in a tongue, let there be only two or at most three, and each in turn, and let someone interpret. But if there is no one to interpret, let each of them keep silent in church and speak to himself and to God.” This passage is often ignored at revival meetings, but it needs to be given as a warning to everyone present. The Bible makes it clear that the worship of God needs to be done “decently and in order.” (1 Cor. 14:40) There is no disclaimer that says this can be ignored at open air meetings.
5) Does the speaker follow the apostle Paul’s example of “presenting the gospel free of charge?” In 1 Corinthians 9 Paul wrote that it is fine for teachers of God’s word to be supported by their work, but he was careful to not ask for money because he wanted to make sure no one could accuse him of impure motives. He wrote, “That in my preaching I may present the gospel free of charge, so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel.” (1 Cor. 9:18).
Many of the ministries that accept money from revival meetings do not disclose their finances to the public. This is a cause for concern because unlike churches, these groups do not give annual reports to their followers and thus people never know how much the speaker and his organization makes. This leads to many questions. If the speaker has pure motives then he should be open about the finances of the organization and be willing to disclose the information when asked.
This list of questions is not an exhaustive list. There are many questions that discerning Christians need to ask of any teaching they hear. This type of questioning should be a common practice for believers because we are called to constantly compare what is taught with what the Bible teaches. My prayer is that we would be discerning and honor God in our desire to “rightly handle the word of God.” (2 Timothy 2:15)
