Holidays

We're off on our summer hols tomorrow, so I won't be blogging for a little while. We'll be spending some time in Devon, England then heading off to Carmarthenshire in Wales before ending up at the Evangelical Movement of Wales' Aberystwyth Conference. I'm looking forward to relaxing on the beach (weather permitting) and doing stuff with the family. I've got a Grisham novel and a John Donne biog to finish and I'll be reading up on Barth with his Evangelical Theology: An Introduction and Karl Barth and Evangelical Theology, Convergances and Divergances, edited by Sung Wook Chung. Our holiday soundtrack will be music by Snow Patrol, Feeder, The Fray etc. When I get back home, I'll post a report of the Aber Confrence. See ya!

Bloggers at the Aberystwyth Conference

We hope to attend the Evangelical Movement of Wales' Aber Conference in August. The event is always an excellent time of ministry and fellowship, attended by over 1000 people. See here for details of the conference. I know that a couple of blogging friends will be there. Perhaps we bloggers could meet up for a coffee and chat. If this seems like a good idea, leave a comment or drop me an e-mail.

The drama of creation

In a previous post, I considered the wonder of creation (here). Now I would like to reflect on the drama of creation.

Creation

Because the biblical doctrine is apparently threatened by evolution, we seem to spend much of our time defending the Bible's account of creation rather than appreciating its theological significance. The biblical doctrine is announced in the most startling way right at the start of God's Word, "In the beginning God created". No apologetics, no arguments - just an assertion that God created. This reminds us that we understand creation by faith, "By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible." (Hebrews 11:3). We should believe in intelligent design because God has revealed himself as an intelligent designer. Starting with design and then reasoning up to God is not the biblical method. Only when we begin with God does the universe make sense.

The Bible is God's dramatic self-revelation. God himself is the primary actor in this drama. His first act was to speak the universe into being. The universe then becomes, as Calvin put it, "the theatre in which God displays his glory" (Institutes 1:6:2, 2:6:1. Vanhoozer was not the first theodramatist!). If creation is abstracted from the Bible's story for the sake of apologetics, then it is dedramatised, cut off from the great drama of creation, redemption and re-creation.

Ruin

God's good creation was ruined and cursed as a result of the fall of man into sin (Genesis 3:17-19). The effect of the fall upon creation has to be borne in mind. Man no longer lives in harmony with his Maker. In fact, he is a rebel, dead in trespasses and sins. In his fallenness, he would rather worship anything other than the Creator. A sense of God has not been lost altogether, but that sense is suppressed, and ignored. God still addresses man through creation, but man in sin cannot and will not listen. The created environment has been deeply affected by the fall. Creation is subject to entropy and decay on a universal scale (Romans 8:20). As far as earth is concerned, this present evil age is characterised by natural disaster, disease and death. A vivid example of this can be seen in the floods that have devastated parts of England in recent days. Given all this, the arguments from design can only take us so far. Nature is now "red in tooth and claw". The world is not as it was originally made by God. If we argue from creation in its present state up to a Creator, then we have to say that he made the wasp to sting children at play and the cancer cells that rob people of their lives. There is still enough of God's goodness in creation to testify to his existence, power and care, but that is not the whole story. Even Psalm 104 recognises that creation, resplendent as it is with the glory of God, is marred by the presence of sin, "May sinners be consumed from the earth, and the wicked be no more." (vs. 34). An apologetic that wrests God's creative activity from the drama of the biblical story of creation, fall and redemption is deeply flawed. In terms of Paley's "watch", the timepiece was perfectly designed and constructed, but now it is broken. It still ticks away, but the face has been smashed and the casing is badly damaged. How it was broken and how it can be fixed is a matter not for arguments from design, but the biblical revelation of God's saving purposes in Christ.

Redemption

God's gracious response to the fall was to announce that a "seed of the woman" will bruise the "serpent's head" (Genesis 3:15). The Creator proclaimed the good news of redemption from sin and its devastating effects. This "seed promise" is central to the Old Testament plot-line. This is made especially clear in the covenant that God made with Abraham, that in his "seed" all nations of the earth will be blessed (Genesis 22:18 cf Galatians 3:16). The covenant is God's dramatic solution to the problem of a sin-cursed creation. The promise of a "seed" from Abraham's line is further narrowed down to a descendant of king David (2 Samuel 7:12&13).

These covenant promises were dramatically fulfilled in Jesus Christ. He was the "seed" of the woman, the "seed" of Abraham and the "seed" of David (Galatians 4:4, 3:16, Romans 1:3 & 4). He is also the One through whom all things were made. In him, the Creator took a created human nature that he might redeem his creation. He bore the curse of a broken law on the cross so that the blessing promised to Abraham might be experienced by all who believe in him (Galatians 3:13 & 14). The themes of creation, ruin, redemption and re-creation are tightly linked together in Paul's Epistle to the Colossians. Notice that the creation, not just individual human beings are the subject of Christ's redemptive activity,

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross". (Colossians 1:15-20).

Jesus' resurrection from the dead was the pledge of a new creation. He will transform the bodies of believers that they may be conformed to his glorious body, "according to the working by which he is able to subdue all things to himself." (Philippians 3:21).

Re-creation

The God who created the universe at the beginning has acted to restore his creation through Christ. Note that Paul deliberately echoes Genesis 1,

"For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness,' has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." (2 Corinthians 4:6)

Those who are united to Christ by faith are part of God's new creation,

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come." (2 Corinthians 5:17)

This gives the Christian life an eschatological aspect. Believers have already began to experience God's re-creative work. This anticipates the final renewal of creation (Romans 8:18-23). The universe will be liberated from entropy and decay. All vestiges of the fall will be purged and the creation will be restored to its pristine glory. But creation will not simply be rewound to its pre-fall state. In Christ, the glories of the new creation will excel the glories of Eden. The resurrection bodies of believers will not conform to the body of Adam before the fall. We shall be made like the Last Adam, Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:47-49). In the new creation, the distinction between heaven as God's dwelling place and the earth as man's abode will be rendered void,

"Then I saw new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away." (Revelation 21:1-4)

Conclusion

This is the drama of creation. The creation is not primarily to be viewed as an apologetic device, or as the basis for arguments from design, but as the theatre of God's redemptive speech and action. A truly evangelical doctrine of creation will not simply be concerned to refute Darwinism. A theodramatic account of creation will listen carefully to what the whole of Scripture has to say on God's creative activity. Yes, Genesis 1 will form an important part of that account, but we will also sing with the psalmists, and look forward with the prophets and apostles to the resurrection of the body and the new heavens and new earth in which righteousness is at home.

The wonder of creation

I sometimes get the impression from fellow evangelicals, that God gave us the doctrine of creation to equip us to oppose Darwinian evolution. Also, I often reflect on whether our creation apologetics is too narrowly focused. Creationist literature seems to be aimed at convincing sceptical atheists or hard nosed scientists that God created the universe in six days. Much time is spent discussing the fossil record, the speed of light etc. in a highly intellectualised way. Of course this kind of thing needs to be done, but there is a danger of reducing the biblical doctrine of creation to an argument over dead lizards. We seem to have forgotten that human beings are not simply data processing machines. We have emotions and imaginations. Our presentation of the doctrine of creation should appeal to the human sense of wonder at the beauty and complexity of the universe. We need to address the heart that is inexplicably moved by a sunset as well as the mind with its capacity for reason and empirical investigation. If we simply appear to be clever clogs who can score points against old Darwin, then we have lost the battle before we have begun.

Richard Dawkins is aware of this. He thinks that religion gives us an impoverished view of the universe,

"The universe is genuinely mysterious, grand, beautiful, awe-inspiring. The kinds of view of the universe which religious people have traditionally embraced have been puny, pathetic, and measly in comparison to the way the universe actually is. The universe presented by organised religions is a poky little medieval universe, and extremely limited."

This needs to be challenged. Christians appreciate the wonder universe on an intellectual level in terms of grand scientific description. We can do this because God has given us the capacity for rational thought and empirical investigation. The universe is capable of being understood on that level because it is the product of a wise and good God. But beyond that, we stand before the vastness of space and are forced to contemplate the meaning of our own existence in relation to our Creator,

When I look at your heavens,
the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,
and the son of man that you care for him?
Yet you have made him a
little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.
(Psalm 8:3-5)

Much of the Bible's doctrine of creation is written in song rather than in narrative prose. The psalmists consider the universe in all its vast complexity of stars and planets. They joyfully describe the earth with its mountains and valleys, rivers and seas, teeming with all kinds of life. Theirs is not a "poky little universe". Has Dawkins never read Psalms 19, 104 or 148? In these songs, the universe in all its wondrous diversity and splendour declares the glory of God. All created things exist to praise the name of the Lord whose glory is above earth and heaven. Christians have a capacity for awe but we will not limit ourselves to wondering at the mysteries of time and space. Ultimately we stand astounded before our infinitely wonderful God. Creationist literature, in limiting itself to the scientific arguments often fails to convey the sheer, uninhibited joy of the creation Psalms. These biblical songs should inform our apologetic. We need to allow not just Genesis 1, but the whole rich variety of biblical witnesses to testify of God's creative work. We don't simply want to win arguments, but invite people to experience the wonder of having a God entranced vision of creation. The alternative is not a universe of which we may stand in reverential awe, but a terrifyingly pitiless prospect. Here is Dawkins on life in a godless universe,

"Such a universe would be neither good or bad in intention. It would manifest no intentions of any kind. In a universe of blind physical forces and genetic replication, some people are going to get hurt, other people are going to get lucky, and you won't find any rhyme or reason in it, or any justice. The universe that we observe has precisely the properties that we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil and no good, but blind, pitiless indifference." (Cited in "Does God believe in Atheists" by John Blanchard, from an article by Dawkins in the UK Daily Telegraph 10 May 1995)

The Christian vision is far different,

Heaven above is softer blue,
earth below is sweeter green,
something lives in every hue,
Christless eyes have never seen.

(From the hymn Loved with everlasting love by George Wade Robinson (1838-77)

Let's discuss the fossil record and exegete Genesis 1 accurately. But let us also invite people to consider the Bible's alluringly beautiful, rich and deeply moving account of creation. May all that breathe join in the great chorus of praise that echoes through the universe singing, "the heavens declare the glory of God".

Sticking with this theme, in the next day or so, I plan to post on the drama of creation, where I hope to reflect on creation, redemption and new the creation.

What I'm reading at the moment

I usually have a variety books that I'm reading at the same time (not simultaneously of course), but I think you get my drift. I have not included commentaries used for sermon prep.

Confessions by Augustine of Hippo, translated by Rex Warner, Signet Classics, repr 2001. I have a nice, small sized edition of this classic, which I leave in the car. I tend to read it when waiting to pick the kids up from an after school activity. Also, if I have an appointment with the Doctor or Dentist, I read it in the waiting room rather than old copies of Hello Magazine. With Augustine, waiting time is never wasted time.

Institutes of the Christian Religion by John Calvin, translated by Henry Beveridge, Eerdmans, repr 1983. I'm a couple of chapters into Book III. It is interesting to read his doctrine of the church. The first chapter (of III) was quite a challenge to my separatist beliefs, as Calvin seems to be dead against separating from any church where the Word is preached and the sacraments rightly administered. But his treatment is balanced by chapter two where the reformer compares the false church with the true. It is OK to leave a false church.

John Calvin's Ideas by Paul Helm, Oxford, 2006 paperback edition. I always like to have a substantial work of theology on the go. This work looks at Calvin's ideas from a philosophical point of view. It took me a chapter or two to get up to speed with the philosophical analysis. But I'm about half way through and I'm enjoying it so far.

Princeton Seminary Volume 1: Faith & Learning 1812-1868 by David Callhoon, Banner of Truth Trust, 1994. I bought this (with Vol 2) at a knock-down price at the UK Banner Conference in April. It really is an excellent read. Great history with lots of illuminating biographical sketches thrown in. Not too demanding if you a feeling a little "all studied out".

Donne, The Reformed Soul by John Stubbs, Viking/Penguin, 2006. This was a Christmas present. Although I love Donne's poetry and Stubbs writes exceptionally well, I have read this book in fits and starts. So far, I'm just under half way through (p. 241 of 565). I will have try to finish it off while on holiday.

The King of Torts by John Grisham, Arrow Books, 2003. I read Grisham's Testament while on holiday last summer and enjoyed it. This one was lent to me by a church member and I've read it intermittently over the last six months or so. Looks like I'll have to finish this one during our holiday too.

Reforming Reformed Theology

Andrew McGowan

One of the books that I have just purchased is Always Reforming: Explorations in Systematic Theology, edited by A.T.B. McGowan, IVP Apollos, 2006. This multi-author work seeks to chart the way ahead for Reformed systematics. Scholars such as Gerald Bray, Richard Gaffin and Kevin Vanhoozer discuss key biblical doctrines in the light of contemporary developments and give attention to matters of theological methodolody. I hope to post a review when I've finished reading it, but these introductory words by the editor reveal something of the book's agenda,

"Although the Reformation took place in the sixteenth century, it is important to understand that this was the beginning of something and not the end. The Reformed churches affirmed the need to be semper reformanda (always reforming). Unfortunately, this commitment to continuing reformation has not been faithfully and consistently maintained over the centuries. At the one end of the theological spectrum, some have invoked semper reformanda in order to justify abandoning the core of Reformation theology and departing from received orthodoxy. At the other end of the spectrum, some have forgotten about semper reformanda in their progress toward a rigid confessionalism, giving the impression that the final codification of truth has already taken place and that there is no need for further reformation. Between these two extremes, there is a vital task to be performed by the church in every generation namely to subject its beliefs and practices to renewed scrutiny of Holy Scripture. In doing so, the church must restate the truth of Scripture in ways that faithfully communicate the gospel, advance the mission of the church and address the issues that men, women and children are facing day by day as they seek to follow Christ and witness to him." (p. 13)

That got me interested!

Martyn Lloyd-Jones on reading and the preacher

Here is some advice on reading for preachers,

"Time must be found for reading, and we turn now to the more intellectual type of reading. The first is theology. There is no greater mistake than to think that you finish with theology when you leave a seminary. The preacher should continue to read theology as long as he is alive. The more he reads the better and there are many authors and systems to be studied. I have known men in the ministry, and men in various other walks of life who stop reading when they finish their training. They think they have acquired all they need; they have their lecture notes, and nothing further is necessary. The result is that they vegetate and become quite useless. Keep on reading; and read the big works."

From Preaching and Preachers by D.Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Hodder and Stoughton, 1985, p. 177.

Ten things on reading

As my LibraryThing panel testifies, thanks to a generous gift from a church, I've recently bought some new books. Here are some thoughts on reading (with pastors especially, but not exclusively in mind):

1. Read the Scriptures. With the M'Cheyne scheme, you can read the whole Bible in a year, Psalms and the New Testament twice.

2. Read widely, with a variety of biblical studies, theology, Church history, biography, apologetics, fiction poetry and other interests.

3. Read critically, test what you have learned by the Scriptures.

4. Read the theological classics such as Calvin's Institutes and Augustine's Confessions.

5. Read cutting edge works like Kevin Vanhoozer's The Drama of Doctrine.

6. Read passionately to be built up and challenged not professionally for information.

7. Read meditatively, give yourself time to think about and reflect on your reading.

8. Read books that will stretch you beyond your 'comfort zone'.

9. Read with discrimination, go for quality over quantity.

10. Read a list of things about reading on this blog.

John Calvin on the resurrection of the body (3)

Christ as the model and dynamic of the resurrection

As I mentioned in the previous post in this series, Calvin gives two main "proofs" for belief in the resurrection of the body - the example of Christ and the power of God. It is in this context (Institutes Book III:XXV) that we have Calvin's most sustained reflection on the resurrection of Christ in relation to the resurrection of the believer. But I also want to draw upon what Calvin says about the resurrection of Christ elsewhere in the Institutes (II:XVI:13 & 14).

1. The theological significance of Jesus' resurrection

According to Calvin, "Paul justly contends, that if Christ rise not the whole gospel is delusive and vain (1 Corinthians 15:13-17)" (III:XXV:3). He spells out just why this is in his earlier discussion of the resurrection of Christ. This is set in a chapter on the redeeming work of Christ. After focusing on on the atonement Calvin says, "Next follows the resurrection of the dead, without which all that has hitherto been said would be defective." (II:XVI:13). He makes it clear that we are not saved by the death of Christ alone. His resurrection from the dead is essential for our salvation,

"Hence, although in his death we have an effectual completion of salvation, because by it we are reconciled to God, satisfaction is given to his justice, the curse removed and the penalty paid; still it is not by his death, but by his resurrection that we are said to be begotten again to a living hope (1 Peter 1:3); because, as he, by rising again became victorious over death, so the victory of our faith consists only in his resurrection." (II:XVI:13).

It is also by Christ's resurrection from the dead that we are justified. Calvin quotes from Romans 4:25, "Who [Christ] was delivered for our offences and raised again for our justification" and comments,

"By his death sin was taken away, by his resurrection righteousness was renewed and restored. For how could he by dying have freed us from death, if he had yielded to its power? How could he have obtained the victory for us, if he had fallen in the contest? Our salvation may thus be divided between the death and resurrection of Christ: by the former, sin was abolished and death annihilated; by the latter, righteousness was restored and life revived, the power and efficacy of the former [the cross] being still bestowed upon us by the latter [the resurrection]." (II:XVI:13).

This inseparable link between the death and resurrection of Christ enables Calvin to say,

"Let us remember, therefore, that when death only is mentioned [in Scripture], everything peculiar to the resurrection is at the same time included, and that there is a like synechdote in the term resurrection, as often as it is used apart from death, everything peculiar to death also being included." (II:XVI:3).

In this same section, Calvin quotes from Romans 6:4 and Colossians 3:1 to show that believers are able to mortify the flesh and set their minds on heavenly things only because they have been united to the risen Christ.

In addition, the Reformer notes that the resurrection of Christ disclosed his divine identity,

"Paul accordingly affirms, that he was declared to be the Son of God by his resurrection (Romans 1:4), because he then fully displayed that heavenly power which is both a bright mirror and of his divinity , and a sure support of our faith; as he also elsewhere teaches, that 'though he was crucified through weakness, yet he lives by the power of God' (2 Corinthians 13:4)." (II:XVI:13).

Reformed scholars such as Richard Gaffin have given fresh attention to salvific value of Christ's resurrection. Gaffin writes,

"We have found that the resurrection is Christ is the pivotal factor in the whole of the apostle's soteriological teaching. Not only is the resurrection (as it is constitutive of the ascension and heavenly session) the climax of the redemptive history of Christ; it is also that from which the individual believer's experience of redemption derives in its specific and distinguishing character and in all aspects of its inexhaustible fullness". (Resurrection and Redemption, P&R, 1987 second edition, p. 135.)

This emphasis has perhaps been downplayed in traditional Reformed systematic theologies (see here). In such works the tendency is to progress from the cross of Christ to the application of salvation without taking the resurrection into account. It may be true that when we speak of the cross we also include the resurrection. But the New Testament insists that we should explicitly recognise the distinctive contribution of Christ's resurrection to the process of salvation. Calvin's insights on this matter help to redress the biblical balance. The resurrection of Jesus, was of great theological importance for Calvin. We cannot be saved apart from the the resurrection of Christ. His resurrection power is a bright mirror that reflects his divinity as the Son of God. It is the risen Christ who ascended to claim his throne as the world's true Lord,

"For although Christ, by rising again, began fully to display his glory and virtue. having laid aside the abject and ignoble condition of a mortal life, and the ignominy of the cross, yet it was only by his ascension to heaven that his reign truly commenced." (II:XVI:14).

2. Union with Christ and the future resurrection of the believer

Believers are already raised with Christ to the new life of holiness. This union with him also guarantees the future bodily resurrection of the faithful. Calvin writes with deep insight into Paul's teaching on resurrection and union with Christ,

"Therefore, whenever the subject of the resurrection is considered, let us think of the case of our Saviour, who, having completed his mortal course in our nature which he had assumed obtained immortality, and is now the pledge of our future resurrection...It is not lawful, it is not even possible, to separate him from us, without dividing him. Hence Paul's argument, 'If there be no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen' (1 Corinthians 15:13); for he assumes it as an acknowledged principle, that when Christ was subjected to death and by rising gained a victory over death, it was not on his own account, but in the Head was begun what must necessarily be fulfilled in the members, according to the degree and order of each." (II:XXV:3).

Christ is presented as the model and guarantee of the believer's resurrection in order to encourage the faithful in the midst of the trials and difficulties of this life. We need to consider that,

"God did not raise up his Son from death to give an isolated specimen of his mighty power, but that the Spirit exerts the same efficacy in regard to them that believe; and accordingly Paul says, that the Spirit when he dwells in us is life, because the end for which he was given is to quicken our mortal body (Romans 8:10, 11, Colossians 3:4)." (III:XXV:3).

Calvin was aware that he had simply glanced at subjects that could have been treated at greater length. But his concern was to say just enough to build up the faith of his readers. He wants to assure us that,

"Christ rose again, that he might have us as partakers with him of the future life. He was raised up by the Father, inasmuch as he was Head of the Church, from which he cannot possibly be dissevered. He was raised up by the power of the Spirit, who also in us performs the office of quickening. In fine, he was raised up to be the resurrection and the life. But as we have said, that in this mirror we behold a living image of the resurrection, so it furnishes a sure evidence to support our minds, provided we faint not, nor grow weary at the long delay, because it is not ours to measure the periods of time at our pleasure; but to rest patiently till God in his own time renew the kingdom." (II:XXV:3).

3 Conclusion

So, for Calvin the resurrection of Christ was a key event in redemption history, without which there could be no salvation from sin and death. The Reformer was deeply aware of the trinitarian structure of the resurrection hope. The Father raised up his Son by the work of the Spirit. The same Father will raise up believers by his Spirit, that we may share in the resurrection glory of the Son. Calvin clearly grasped the importance of union with Christ in relation to the resurrection of believers. By virtue of their union with Christ, Christians have been raised with him to newness of life. Also, believers have been justified by Jesus' resurrection. The atoning work of Christ is made effective by his risen power. As far as the future is concerned, our bodily resurrection is an absolute certainty. We, as members of Christ's body will inevitably share in the risen glory of our Lord.

In the next post, I hope to discuss Calvin's teaching on the historicity of Christ's resurrection. Also we will look at Calvin's second "proof" for believing in bodily resurrection - the power of God.

Ten books on revival

According to Don Carson, Western Europe is the only place on earth where the gospel is not advancing. No doubt there are many reasons for this and revival cannot be seen as a panacea. But a mighty outpouring of the Spirit would breathe new life and power into the churches. Here are ten titles that will simulate us to pray for revival. Some look at the subject historically, others biblically and theologically. Publication dates are based on the editions in my library.

1. Revival: Can we make it happen? D.M. Lloyd-Jones, Pickering and Inglis, 1986.
2. Revival and Revivalism: The Making and Marring of American Evangelicalism 1750-1858, Iain H. Murray, Banner of Truth Trust, 1994.
3. Pentecost Today? The Biblical Basis for Understanding Revival, Iain H. Murray, Banner of Truth Trust, 1988.
4. Thoughts on the Revival of Religion in New England, Jonathan Edwards, Works Volume 1, repr Banner of Truth Trust, 1984.
5. Revival: A People saturated with God, Brian H. Edwards, Evangelical Press, 1990.
6. Revival Comes to Wales: The Story of the 1859 Revival in Wales, Eifion Evans, Evangelical Press of Wales, 1986.
7. The Welsh Revival of 1904, Eifion Evans, Evangelical Press of Wales, 1984.
8. Fire on the Altar: A history and evaluation of the 1904-05 Welsh Revival, Noel Gibbard, Bryntirion Press, 2005.
9. Fire in the Thatch, Eifion Evans, Evangelical Press of Wales, 1996.
10. Historical Collections of Accounts of Revivals, John Gillies, repr Banner of Truth Trust, 1981.

O Lord, revive your work
in the midst of the years!
In the midst of the years
make it known;
In wrath remember mercy.
(Habakkuk 3:2)