Andrew Murray

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His book, <I><U>The Spirit of Christ</U></I>, was instrumental in deepening the spiritual life of a 23-year-old sister, Jessie Penn-Lewis. Subsequently, she was greatly used of God. Watchman Nee testifies, "Mr. Andrew Murray was a very deep person in the Lord. I purposely studied the notes of his sermons" (137). Nee desired to see <I>The Spirit of Christ</I> translated into Chinese. "Andrew Murray was one of the top among the inner life people," says Witness Lee (<I>Perfecting Training</I>, 204), who also testifies that through Murray's book his eyes were opened (<I>Spirit and the Body</I>, 27). Moreover, Lee says, "No one can deny that while Andrew Murray was working in South Africa,...he was very prevailing. One of his most prevailing books is <I>The Spirit of Christ</I>. I would like to encourage you to read that book" (<I>Lord's Up-to-date Move</I>, 97).</div> <bR> <div> Andrew Murray's ministry emphasized the Spirit, yet his first response to the Spirit's work in South Africa may surprise you. When the Holy Spirit brought revival, Murray opposed and even tried to quench the Spirit's work. Perhaps we can learn from his experience.</div> <bR> <div> Andrew Murray (1828-1917) followed his father, Andrew Sr., in the Lord's service. The senior Murray prayed for 30 years that the Spirit would bring revival to South Africa. Yet, in his old age, the spiritual condition of God's people was stagnant. Evangelists were scarce. Congregations cried out for pastors. Few offered themselves for the Lord's service. Delegations were sent to Europe to recruit personnel. In the midst of this general malaise, the younger Murray stood as a beacon of hope. At age 32, Andrew Murray Jr. had earned a reputation as a young minister with exceptional abilities, intensity, and earnestness. His stirring messages often berated the deadness of the church. In 1860, the Lord brought Murray into a new stage when he moved to Worcester (S. Africa) to begin a new sphere of service. His first message coincided with a conference of ministers from congregations throughout South Africa. Before hundreds of delegates, Andrew Murray preached a powerful message on 2 Corinthians 3:8. His subject was, "How shall not the ministry of the Spirit be more glorious?"</div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Revival Begins With Young People</B></I><B> </B></div> <div> Soon after the conference, 60 young people gathered at the meeting hall. They sang several hymns and offered prayers. Then a 15-year-old black servant-girl stood up in the back row. She asked the predominantly white group if she could pray. The youth leader hesitated at this breach of social norms, then gave his assent. The young black sister read a hymn stanza and then began to pray a heartfelt prayer. The youth leader recalled, "While she was praying, we heard, as it were, a sound in the distance, which came nearer and nearer, until the hall was shaken; with one or two exceptions, the whole meeting began to pray, the majority in audible voice, but some in whispers. Nevertheless, the noise...was deafening" (Choy, 84). The Spirit's outpouring was manifested in fervent, spontaneous, and simultaneous prayer.</div> <bR> <div> While the young people knelt in earnest prayer, one of the church elders passed by. Hearing the noise, he ran to fetch the new pastor. When Andrew Murray entered wearing his clerical robes, he found the room alive with spontaneous prayer. The young minister was clearly agitated. He paced the room, calling loudly, "People, silence!" But the prayer did not stop. Murray shouted again, "People, I am your minister, sent from God! Silence!" It was as if no one heard him. Everyone continued praying and calling on God. Murray directed the leader to call a hymn. No one sang the song. The young people, traditionally obedient and respectful, could not be silenced. Prayer continued unabated. Andrew Murray then proclaimed, "God is a God of order, and here everything is confusion!" With that, he left the room.</div> <bR> <div> These events are ironic, for Murray's father had prayed for years for revival. The younger Murray had echoed that prayer. His sermons bemoaned the deadness of the church. He preached about the Spirit. Yet, when the Spirit brought revival, Andrew Murray did not recognize it. He even sought to quench the Spirit's move. Was it because the Spirit's manifestation did not match his theological concepts? Or, as one writer suggests, "Could it be that his ego was hurt because the moving of the Spirit had not happened as a result of his own preaching?" Was he offended "that he had not been present...to guide it" (Choy, 86)? </div> <bR> <div> Despite Andrew Murray's intervention, the revival continued. Spontaneous prayer gatherings occurred nightly. Simultaneous intercession replaced refined traditional prayer. Fervent prayer gatherings continued into the early hours of the morning. As the people dispersed, they sang joyfully in the streets. Larger facilities were needed to accommodate interested people.</div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Help Arrives</B></I><B> </B></div> <div> Soon after, Andrew Murray led a Saturday evening meeting. He read from Scripture, spoke a few words, and offered a prayer. He then opened the meeting for others to pray. An observer records, "During the prayer which followed his, we heard again the same sound in the distance. It drew nearer and nearer and in a sudden the whole gathering was praying....Mr. Murray descended from the platform and again moved up and down among the people, trying to quiet them" (Choy, 87). The pastor again sought to restore order. Andrew Murray was not yet ready to accept this phenomenon as the Spirit's work. However, at this juncture, the Lord intervened to assist Murray through this crisis. That evening a stranger had been standing at the door, observing the meeting. As Andrew Murray sought to use his authority to silence the prayer, the stranger tiptoed forward, touched the clergyman gently, and said, "I think you are the minister of this congregation. Be careful what you do, for it is the Spirit of God that is at work here. I have just come from America, and this is precisely what I witnessed there" (Choy, 87). That was the word Murray needed. At last he recognized that the Spirit was in control. There was no need of human restraint. From that time, Andrew Murray joined the revival whole-heartedly and was greatly used. People were saved. The lives of many were permanently transformed. Christians committed their lives to the Lord. From Murray's own congregation in Worcester, "Fifty young men offered themselves for the ministry of the Word, when previously it was almost impossible to find men for the work" (Choy, 81). That event was a watershed in Andrew Murray's ministry. He learned that the Spirit as "the wind blows where it wills" (John 3:8). We cannot dictate the Spirit's move. Rather, in cooperation we must yield to the Spirit. We cannot engineer revival, nor can we manipulate the Spirit. The manifestation of the Spirit cannot be dictated by us. The lessons Andrew Murray learned from this experience permeate all of his subsequent teachings and writings in books such as <I>The Spirit of Christ</I> and <I>The Full Blessing of Pentecost</I>.</div> <bR> <div> Murray's experience warns us not to be dogmatic concerning what is of the Spirit and what is not of the Spirit. We too have our concepts about how the Spirit is manifested. As believers, we also have our "norms" of Christian practice and worship. New forms of expression can make us uncomfortable. We may quickly condemn an unfamiliar practice as the flesh and not the Spirit. In our rush to judgment, we risk repeating Andrew Murray's experience in his encounter with the Spirit. Let us heed the warning, "Do not quench the Spirit" (1 Thess. 5:19). </div> <bR> <div> -Nigel Tomes </div> <bR> <div> <I>Bibliography </I></div> <bR> <div> Choy, Leona.<I> Andrew Murray: Apostle of Abiding Love</I>. Fort Washington, PA: Christian Literature Crusade, 1978.</div> <bR> <div> Douglas, W.M. <I>Andrew Murray and His Message</I>: One of God's Choice Saints. Belfast: Ambassador Publications, 1998 (first published 1926). </div> <bR> <div> Lee, Witness. <I>Fellowship Regarding the Lord's Up-to-Date Move</I>. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1986.</div> <div> ______. <I>Perfecting Training. </I>Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1983. ______. <I>The Spirit and the Body</I>. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1976.</div> <bR> <div> Murray, Andrew.<I> The Full Blessing of Pentecost.</I> Fort Washington, PA: Christian Literature Crusade, 1994 reprint.</div> <div> ______.<I> The Spirit of Christ.</I> Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1979.</div> <bR> <div> Nee, Watchman. <I>The Collected Works of Watchman Nee</I>, set 1, vol. 8. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1993. </div> <bR> <div> Copyright © 2003 The Church in Cleveland<FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="arial" > </FONT></div> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>