December 18, 2015 (Friday)
Last Sunday our Bible Study leader asked the class if they felt a spiritual awakening was near. I think he was talking about massive repentance on the part of millions of people, a deepening of faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God and the Savior of the world. Believe it or not, history tells us of such times when people hungered to hear the gospel and made drastic changes in their lifestyles, deepening their faith and commitment to God. Once upon a time we would have called such a time a great revival.
In today’s world, however, talk of a spiritual awakening almost always is about what’s going on in one person as that individual comes to realize sharper self-awareness. When you “google” for “spiritual awakening,” most of the responses offered have to do with a spiritual life that may or may not be religious in nature. In recent years, such thinking has been characterized as “new age.”
Conservative Christians think of “spiritual awakening” in terms of submission to God’s will. A genuine spiritual awakening results in people coming together to share their faith with each other. It is a movement of God’s Spirit so powerful that atheists and agnostics lay aside their doubts and commit themselves to Christ, believing in Him as the Son of God and the Savior of the world. It spreads from city to countryside, from the middle of the nation toward all its borders, encompassing people of every kind.
The concept of spiritual awareness, however, has been captured by other movements. Consequently, there are many people today who consider themselves “spiritually-minded” who have rejected religion of every kind and have retreated into themselves into what can only be described as spiritual narcissism. They have become, in the words of their harshest critics, “belly button gazers.”
Every great social movement begins in individual hearts–of that there is no doubt. But the final test of a genuine spiritual awakening would be a new society in which people live morally responsible lives and seek to help each other. If we want to live in a better world, we must be willing to break out of our shells of self-interest and begin to love others. We once had a great hymn we sang often: “Lord send a revival, and let it begin in me.” May it be so.
