1. Welcome to Baptist Board, a friendly forum to discuss the Baptist Faith in a friendly surrounding.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register to get access to all the features that our community has to offer.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon and God Bless!

Charles Finney Quote

Discussion in 'Other Christian Denominations' started by rlvaughn, Feb 14, 2019.

Tags:
  1. rlvaughn

    rlvaughn Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Mar 20, 2001
    Messages:
    10,544
    Likes Received:
    1,558
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Trying to find the right place to post. Since Finney was not a Baptist, I will post it here. Maybe someone can help.

    Charles Finney is much quoted on the subject of revival, by both his followers and detractors. I heard the following quote yesterday on the radio.
    I have no problem believing Finney actually said this. It is perfectly in line with his belief about revival. My problem is that, so far, no one I have found who quoted this has given their source. Further, I have not yet found it in the writings of Finney.

    Anyone know the source of this quote?? Thanks!
     
  2. SovereignGrace

    SovereignGrace Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 31, 2015
    Messages:
    5,536
    Likes Received:
    1,026
    Faith:
    Baptist
    I dunno. I did a google search and found where others quoted that and attributed it Finney, but found zilch about him directly saying it.
     
  3. Jerome

    Jerome Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Aug 21, 2006
    Messages:
    9,788
    Likes Received:
    698
    Faith:
    Baptist
    The "quote" is from somebody else's book published in 1923:

    Google Books
    You'll notice that only the first statement is attributed to Finney, the rest is not in quotation marks and is presumably the words of this biographer of missionary John Hyde.



    The first part, purporting to be a quote from Finney, is perhaps a mangled paraphrase? Closest thing I can find is Finney's statement:
    Charles Finney, Lectures (1835)
     
    • Informative Informative x 3
    • Like Like x 2
  4. HankD

    HankD Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 14, 2001
    Messages:
    26,977
    Likes Received:
    2,536
    Faith:
    Baptist
    As for the meaning - The Lord doesn't suddenly become aware that His church has become sluggish and send an emergency revival but applies a spiritual principle to a "natural" event.
     
  5. Yeshua1

    Yeshua1 Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2012
    Messages:
    52,624
    Likes Received:
    2,742
    Faith:
    Baptist
    I see Finney as the father of pretty much wrong evangelism outreach going on today!
     
  6. rlvaughn

    rlvaughn Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Mar 20, 2001
    Messages:
    10,544
    Likes Received:
    1,558
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Same here. When you start looking, lot of quotes aren't by the ones to whom they are attributed.
    Yes, I also found that earlier and it looks like someone incorporated some commentary about Finney's purported quote and "made" it all into the Finney "quote." Perhaps the shorter sentence attributed by many to Finney got started by someone who loosely said what they thought Finney said and attributed it to Finney.
     
  7. Deacon

    Deacon Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Aug 23, 2002
    Messages:
    9,469
    Likes Received:
    1,228
    Faith:
    Baptist
    "Some have talked very foolishly on this subject, as if nothing could injure a genuine revival. They say, “If your revival is a work of God, it cannot be stopped; can any created being stop God?” Now I ask if this is common sense? Formerly, it used to be the established belief that a revival could not be stopped, because it was the work of God. And so they supposed it would go on, whatever might be done to hinder it, in the church or out of it. But the farmer might just as well reason so, and think he could go and cut down his wheat and not hurt the crop, because it is God that makes grain grow. A revival is the work of God, and so is a crop of wheat; and God is as much dependent on the use of means in one case as the other. And therefore a revival is as liable to be injured as a wheat field."

    Charles G. Finney, Lectures on Revivals of Religion (New York: Leavitt, Lord & Co., 1835), 257.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  8. HankD

    HankD Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 14, 2001
    Messages:
    26,977
    Likes Received:
    2,536
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Hmm, I wonder about jurisdictions, wheat - natural law, revival/awakening spiritual - the Holy Spirit.
     
  9. Deacon

    Deacon Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Aug 23, 2002
    Messages:
    9,469
    Likes Received:
    1,228
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Finney uses farming in many of his examples of the Christian worker... following Christ's example.

    You see I have only begun to lay open this subject to-night. I want to lay it out before you, in the course of these lectures, so that if you will begin and go on to do as I say, the results will be just as certain as they are when the farmer breaks up a fallow field, and mellows it, and sows his grain. It will be so, if you will only begin in this way, and hold on till all your hardened and callous hearts break up.
    Charles G. Finney, Lectures on Revivals of Religion (New York: Leavitt, Lord & Co., 1835), 43.

    The means which God has enjoined for the production of a revival, doubtless have a natural tendency to produce a revival. Otherwise God would not have enjoined them. But means will not produce a revival, we all know, without the blessing of God. No more will grain, when it is sowed, produce a crop without the blessing of God. It is impossible for us to say that there is not as direct an influence or agency from God, to produce a crop of grain, as there is to produce a revival. What are the laws of nature, according to which, it is supposed, that grain yields a crop? They are nothing but the constituted manner of the operations of God. In the Bible, the word of God is compared to grain, and preaching is compared to sowing seed, and the results to the springing up and growth of the crop. And the result is just as philosophical in the one case, as in the other, and is as naturally connected with the cause.
    Charles G. Finney, Lectures on Revivals of Religion (New York: Leavitt, Lord & Co., 1835), 12–13.

    As I explained last week, the connection between the right use of means for a revival, and a revival, is as philosophically sure as between the right use of means to raise grain, and a crop of wheat. I believe, in fact, it is more certain, and that there are fewer instances of failure. The effect is more certain to follow. Probably the law connecting cause and effect is more undeviating in spiritual than in natural things, and so there are fewer exceptions, as I have before said. The paramount importance of spiritual things makes it reasonable that it should be so. Take the Bible, the nature of the case, and the history of the church, all together, and you will find fewer failures in the use of means for a revival, than in farming, or any other worldly business. In worldly business there are sometimes cases where counteracting causes annihilate all a man can do. In raising grain, for instance there are cases which are beyond the control of man, such as drought, hard winter, worms, and so on. So in laboring to promote a revival, there may things occur to counteract it, something or other turning up to divert the public attention from religion, which may baffle every effort. But
    Charles G. Finney, Lectures on Revivals of Religion (New York: Leavitt, Lord & Co., 1835), 29.

    We see the hypocrisy of those who profess to be praying for a revival while they are doing nothing to promote it. There are many who appear to be very zealous in praying for a revival, while they are not doing any thing at all for one. What do they mean. Are they agreed as touching the things they ask for? Certainly not. They cannot be agreed in offering acceptable prayer for a revival until they are prepared TO DO what God requires them to do to promote it. What would you think of the farmer who should pray for a crop and not plough nor sow? Would you think such prayers pious, or an insult to God?
    Charles G. Finney, Lectures on Revivals of Religion (New York: Leavitt, Lord & Co., 1835), 298.

    How many times will people tell an awakened sinner that God has begun a good work in him, and he will carry it on. I have known parents talk so with their children, and as soon as they saw their children awakened, give up all former anxiety about them, and settle down at their ease, thinking that now God had begun a good work in their children, he would carry it on. It would be just as rational for a farmer to say so about his grain, and as soon as it comes up out of the ground, say, “Well, God has begun a good work in my field, and he will carry it on.” What would be thought of a farmer who should neglect to put up his fence, because God had begun the work of giving him a crop of grain?
    Charles G. Finney, Lectures on Revivals of Religion (New York: Leavitt, Lord & Co., 1835), 325.
     
    #9 Deacon, Feb 15, 2019
    Last edited: Feb 15, 2019
  10. HankD

    HankD Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 14, 2001
    Messages:
    26,977
    Likes Received:
    2,536
    Faith:
    Baptist
    All is in His hand.

    i still contend, there is natural law and there is God's spiritual law which CANNOT be overcome.

    e.g. (One of many).

    John 10
    27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
    28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
    29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.
     
  11. Yeshua1

    Yeshua1 Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2012
    Messages:
    52,624
    Likes Received:
    2,742
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Jonah did his best to hinder the pland of God for Nineveh, how far did that get him?
    Revival is fully of the Lord....
     
  12. HankD

    HankD Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 14, 2001
    Messages:
    26,977
    Likes Received:
    2,536
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Well, Jonah finally did his part... after God slapped him around a little.
     
  13. Yeshua1

    Yeshua1 Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2012
    Messages:
    52,624
    Likes Received:
    2,742
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Yes, but the real heavy lifting was done by the Holy Spirit Himself!
     
    • Like Like x 1
  14. HankD

    HankD Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 14, 2001
    Messages:
    26,977
    Likes Received:
    2,536
    Faith:
    Baptist
    ya, He put the fear of God in everybody.
     
Loading...