One of the most powerful American preachers was Charles Finney, who had an influential ministry in the first half of the nineteenth century.
Finney was born in 1792 to a churchgoing family in the state of Connecticut. Although he never attended college, he became a lawyer’s apprentice. At the age of twenty-nine he realised his spiritual need, sought God and underwent a life-changing conversion. He left the law and, after training as a pastor, began a preaching ministry. Finney, a tall man with piercing eyes, was gifted with energy, intelligence and a powerful voice (something essential before microphones were invented). More importantly, he was also a man of prayer and had the spiritual gifting for evangelism. Finney soon attracted hearers and for eight years led ‘revival meetings’ in and around New York. His ministry impacted not just individuals but whole communities. When Finney arrived in town it was not uncommon for theatres and taverns to close, often permanently.
In 1832 Finney became the pastor of a church in New York from where he exercised an influential preaching ministry, with the result that he soon needed a new, larger building. A few years later a newly formed college in Oberlin, Ohio invited him to set up a theology department. Finney accepted with conditions: he could continue to preach in New York, and the school would admit African-Americans. Despite his responsibilities as both pastor and professor, Finney continued with evangelistic campaigns throughout the 1840s and 1850s, including one in Great Britain. He summoned people to faith in Christ and encouraged those concerned about their spiritual state to come to the ‘anxious bench’ at the front where they could be counselled. It has been estimated that half a million people made decisions for Christ through Finney’s ministry.
Eventually – and perhaps inevitably – the physical demands of evangelistic preaching to large crowds took their toll and Finney took fewer public engagements. In 1851 he became president of Oberlin College, a position he held for fifteen years and in which he encouraged the admission not only of African-American students but also women. While president, he continued teaching and writing popular and influential books. Finney died in 1875 at the age of eighty-three.
Charles Finney and his ministry have aroused much dispute and some background is essential to explain why. From around 1730 to 1740 the eastern United States experienced a remarkable period of conversions – a spiritual revival – in what has become called the ‘First Great Awakening’. The dominant figure here was Jonathan Edwards. The First Great Awakening was associated with a Puritan theology where the emphasis was on an individual prayerfully waiting on God in his sovereign power to bring them to saving faith through the working of the Holy Spirit. It gave God the glory for revival, but it also raised concerns. What were you to do if you wanted to be converted but the Holy Spirit wasn’t helping you come to faith? Were you predestined not to be saved? Finney, who came to dominate the ‘Second Great Awakening’, took a different viewpoint. He shifted the initiative from God to man in revival and preached for his hearers to make decisions for Christ.
Here is not the place to discuss whether Edwards or Finney was right. The fact is that biblical support can be produced for either position and both men saw many and lasting conversions. Actually, I wonder whether, from eternity’s viewpoint, there is no conflict between God’s sovereignty and human choice.
That said, however, there is much about Finney that makes him a hero.
First, I admire Finney’s effective evangelism. Finney knew his audience and used the sort of colloquial language and imagery that could be understood by those, such as immigrants, who would not have been reached by more formal preaching. His success, however, was due to more than technique or language. Ultimately, Finney had that indispensable talent: the God-given gift for evangelism.
Second, I admire Finney’s enthusiastic expectation. Along with many preachers and theologians of his time, Finney believed the church on earth would see better days before Christ’s return. The result was an optimism about the future and an encouragement to expect great things from God.
Finally, I admire Finney’s ethical emphasis. Although history sees Finney as an evangelist, the fact is that he maintained a close link between gospel belief and action. So in 1832 when he became minister of a church, he courageously (and outrageously) banned slave owners and slave traders from communion. As his decision to admit both African-Americans and women to Oberlin College suggests, this was not a one-off act. For Finney, to be converted was not simply a matter of making a decision for Christ; it was to seek to live a life for Christ.
Charles Finney wrote:
‘Revival is a renewed conviction of sin and repentance, followed by an intense desire to live in obedience to God. It is giving up one’s will to God in deep humility.’
Charles Finney experienced this kind of revival – may God allow us to experience it as well today.
