7 Things - Characteristics of Revival Preaching During the Great Awakening

George Whitfield (1714 - 1770)

Historian J.C. Ryle listed seven characteristics of the messages that were preached during the Great Awakening of the eighteenth century:

1 They taught the supremacy of Holy Scripture.




2 They preached the total corruption of human nature.




3 They taught that Chris's death upon the cross was the only satisfaction for man's sin.




4 They preached the doctrine of justification by faith.




5 They taught the universal necessity of heart conversion and new creation by the Holy Spirit.




6 They spoke of God's eternal hatred against sin and of God's love for sinners.




7 They preached that there was an inseparable connection between true faith and personal holiness. They never allowed for a moment that any church membership or religious profession was the least proof of a man being a Christian if he lived an ungodly life.




These awakeners continually cried, "No fruit, no grace." Jonathan Edwards believed that "every experience of God could be counterfeited except those with an insight into His holiness."




An insight into the holiness of God will always produce a life-style of repentance. When one enters upon this highway called holiness, it does not mean that he is perfect. It does mean that he is walking down a road of change. Repentance means a change of heart or a change of mind. Throughout the Christian life we should be continually changed, or conformed, into the image of Jesus Christ.

Great Awakening: 1730s to 1740’s – some say it lasted to about 1760

Lead by: Jonathan Edwards, Gilbert Tennent, George Whitfield

Major Themes: The saving grace of Jesus; Total Dependence on God

This awakening began at the same time as the Enlightenment which emphasized logic and reason and stressed the power of the individual to understand the universe based on scientific laws.

Significant facts to remember about the Great Awakening:

- It pushed individual religious experience over established church doctrine, thereby decreasing the importance and weight of the clergy and the church in many instances.

- New denominations arose or grew in numbers as a result of the emphasis on individual faith and salvation.

-It unified the American colonies as it spread through numerous preachers and revivals. This unification was greater than had ever been achieved previously in the colonies.