Top 10 Books on Revival
By Greg Gordon
It has been a joy of my heart to be a student of revival history and awakenings for over 20 years now. I have been privileged to travel to places where revivals began such as the Moriah Chapel in Wales where the Welsh Revival started. Or to Durban, South Africa, to spend 2 weeks at the Kswibuntu Mission where there is still a touch of an on-going revival known as the Zulu Revival.
During this same time period, SermonIndex has reflected my passion to spread revival and encourage prayer for a work of God in our generation.
After reading hundreds of books on revival, here is a short [Top 10] list I have compiled recently for this Think Eternity post.
Prayerfully consider reading one or all of them. Also, be encouraged that God has used the reading of books on revival to start revivals in the past. For instance a book not on this list but called: “Lectures on Revival” by Charles Finney was one of the instrumental books that Jonathan Goforth read before a work of revival exploded through his ministry.
Some books might seem controversial to you as they are from a broad range of expressions in the Church. Remember God wants revival and His Church to be healthy more than we do. And also remember that revival can come when we least expect it, and revival also breaks the status quo. If you are comfortable with revival it’s probably not revival. When God is at work it is not comfortable, but you know it is God jealously working on His behalf.
Below is a list of books with some descriptions about the volumes (in no certain order):
1) The Great Welsh Revival by Darrel King
The original version of this book was written by S.B.Shaw in 1905. Revised and updated by Darrel D. King, this work contains reports of people who witnessed the revival and saw people totally transformed by God in amazing ways.
“At times a wave of power, without any human instrumentality, or anything external to cause it, would sweep over the mass of the people, and spontaneously almost the whole company would pray aloud, no one heeding the other, and without the slightest confusion.”
2) Why Revival Tarries by Leonard Ravenhill
Leonard Ravenhill's call to revival is as timely now as it was when first published over 40 years ago. The message is fearless and often radical as he expounds on the disparity between the New Testament church and the church today. Why Revival Tarries contains the heart of his message. A.W. Tozer called Ravenhill "a man sent from God" who "appeared at [a] critical moment in history," just as the Old Testament prophets did. Included are questions for group and individual study.
“One of these days some simple soul will pick up the Book of God, read it, and believe it. Then the rest of us will be embarrassed. We have adopted the convenient theory that the Bible is a Book to be explained, whereas first and foremost it is a Book to be believed (and after that to be obeyed).”
3) Revival Fire by Wesley L. Duewel
Fire blazes from heaven, and a stone altar erupts in flame. So begins a spiritual awakening, the kindling of a revival fire still burning today. Beginning with Elijah and God's tremendous one-day revival of Israel, Wesley Duewel tells stories of revivals spanning the globe from America to China to Africa, all brought by obedience and heartfelt prayer. He illustrates how God has used revival fire through the centuries to revive the church and reveal the glorious presence of the Holy Spirit.
“All other passions build upon or flow from your passion for Jesus. A passion for souls grows out of a passion for Christ. A passion for missions builds upon a passion for Christ. The most crucial danger to a Christian, whatever his role, is to lack a passion of Christ. The most direct route to personal renewal and new effectiveness is a new all-consuming passion for Jesus. Lord, give us this passion, whatever the cost!”
4) Living Under Water by Heidi Baker
It is when you are alone in the Presence of the Holy One that you can recharge, renew your spirit, and find your calm. The more challenge and crisis you experience in your life, the more imperative it is that you spend time in the Word and in prayer, drawing strength from the Holy Spirit. In this writing from Heidi Baker, you can learn the importance and priority of taking the time to lean into the presence of God, filling you so you can pour out the anointing on your life.
“People often ask, ‘What is the secret to revival?’ The secret place is the secret to revival. He wants our time.”
5) Samuel Morris: The African Boy God Sent to Prepare an American University by Lindley Baldwin
The extraordinary story of the young African who came to be called "The Apostle of Simple Faith."While most missionary biographies detail the lives of Western missionaries, this is the story of the African missionary that God called to the United States when slavery and segregation were a way of life. Previously published under the title The March of Faith, this book details the moving life story of Samuel Morris.
After a miraculous escape from certain death during the ravages of intertribal warfare in Liberia, Africa, Kaboo was converted to Christ by Methodist missionaries and baptized under the name Samuel Morris. Traveling to America for pastoral training in the late 1880's, his trip was a missionary voyage in itself when several seamen were lead to Christ through his godly life. At Taylor University his example of faith made him a leader among the students and a challenge to the faulty.An unforgettable biography which shows Christ's love felling all racial barriers.
When the president asked him which room he wanted to stay in, Samuel replied, “If there is a room nobody wants, give that to me.” On Sunday, he found his way to a black church in town. As he spoke to the people, many were touched. The minister of the church said, “No such visitation of the Holy Spirit had ever been witnessed by that congregation.”
6) The Pleasures Of Loving God by Mike Bickle
This book invites you on a most unique treasure hunt, a journey of discovery into intimacy with Jesus as our Bridegroom God. Our lives are dynamically changed when we understand that Jesus loves us, even likes us, and wants our friendship. Mike Bickle covers topics related to the forerunner ministry and the house of prayer. Laboring in ministry solely out of a sense of duty can lead to burnout. God never designed the human spirit to work first and love second. We were not designed to put love on the back burner. This book is an adventure in enjoying our relationship with Jesus.
“I really like the heart of Mary of Bethany. She was not an apostle. She was never famous, never wrote a book, never did a conference and never said much. Her passionate love was in secret—she just loved the Lord ferociously in secret.”
7) The Revival We Need by Oswald J. Smith
When Oswald J. Smith wrote this book almost 100 years ago he felt the most pressing need of the worldwide church was true revival—the kind birthed in desperate prayer and accompanied by deep conviction for sin, godly sorrow, and deep repentance, resulting in a living, victorious faith. If he were alive today he would surely conclude that the need has only become more acute with the passing years. The author relates how there came a time in his own ministry when he became painfully aware that his efforts were not producing spiritual results. His intense study of the New Testament and past revivals only deepened this conviction. The Word of God, which had proved to be a hammer, a fire and a sword in the hands of apostles and revivalists of bygone days, was powerless in his hands. But as he prayed and sought God in dead earnest for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, things began to change. Souls came under conviction, repented of their sins, and were lastingly changed.
The earlier chapters of the book contain Smith’s heart-stirring messages on the need for authentic revival: how to prepare the way for the Spirit’s moving, the tell-tale signs that the work is genuine, and the obstacles that can block up the channels of blessing. These chapters are laced with powerful quotations from revivalists and soul-winners of former times, such as David Brainerd, William Bramwell, John Wesley, Charles Finney, Evan Roberts and many others. The latter chapters detail Smith’s own quest for the enduement of power, his soul-travail, and the spiritual fruit that followed. In his foreword to this book, Jonathan Goforth writes, “Mr. Smith’s book, The Revival We Need, for its size is the most powerful plea for revival I have ever read. He has truly been led by the Spirit of God in preparing it. To his emphasis for the need of a Holy Spirit revival I can give the heartiest amen. What I saw of revival in Korea and in China is in fullest accord with the revival called for in this book.”
“Oh, to realize that souls, precious, never dying souls, are perishing all around us, going out into the blackness of darkness and despair, eternally lost, and yet to feel no anguish, shed no tears, know no travail! How little we know of the compassion of Jesus!"
8) The Calvary Road by Roy Hession
Do you long for revival and power in your life? This beloved classic has helped open millions of hearts to a personal revival in life with Jesus Christ. With soul-wrenching testimony and marked simplicity, Roy Hession teaches that through brokenness, humility and confession, we can prepare our hearts to receive the fullness God wants for us. First published in 1950, this updated version of The Calvary Road includes a new foreword by George Verwer.
“To be broken means to have no rights before God and man. It does not mean merely surrendering my rights to Him but rather recognizing that I haven't any, except to deserve hell. It means just being nothing and having nothing that I call my own, neither time, money, possessions nor position.”
9) True Discipleship by William Macdonald
Am I ignitable? A disciple can be forgiven if he does not have great mental ability or physical prowess. But he cannot be excused if he does not have zeal. If his heart is not aflame with a red-hot passion for the Saviour, he stands condemned. After all, Christians are followers of the One who said, "Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up" (John. 2:17). Their Saviour was consumed with a passion for God and for his interests. Those who are constrained by the love of Christ will count no sacrifice too great to make for Him.
“A disciple can be forgiven if he does not have great mental ability or physical prowess. But he cannot be excused if he does not have zeal. If his heart is not aflame with a red-hot passion for the Saviour, he stands condemned.”
10) Jonathan Edwards: On Revival by Jonathan Edwards
This volume contains one of Edwards' most analytical treatises on revival, Distinguishing Marks of a Work of the Spirit of God, and his famous Narrative of Surprising Conversions, a detailed account of the famous revival of religion at Northampton, Massachusetts.
Select works of Jonathan Edwards. Included are A Narrative of Surprising Conversions, dealing with religious revival in Northampton in 1735, The Distinguishing Marks of a Work of the Spirit of God, Edward's analytical treatise on revival, and An Account of the Revival of Religion in Northampton 1740-1742. This work hopes to further familiarize readers with Edwards and his timeless writings. The works are prefaced with some introductory material.
“God is the highest good of the reasonable creature. The enjoyment of him is our proper; and is the only happiness with which our souls can be satisfied. To go to heaven, fully to enjoy God, is infinitely better than the most pleasant accommodations here. Better than fathers and mothers, husbands, wives, or children, or the company of any, or all earthly friends. These are but shadows; but the enjoyment of God is the substance. These are but scattered beams; but God is the sun. These are but streams; but God is the fountain. These are but drops, but God is the ocean.”
Greg Gordon is the founder of SermonIndex.net, which was established in 2002. Millions of audio sermons have been distributed through this world-wide ministry. Gordon has also been involved in organizing over 12 international historic revival conference events where thousands of lives were impacted.