Church Order: Preaching and Pastoral Ministry

Great Revival in the Confederate Armies

Transcript: AI Transcript

Professor: John Weaver

Subject: Church Government

Genre: Sermon

Dictation Name:

Date: 2023-08-02

Synopsis: John Weaver argues that the Confederate Army's ability to hold out for four years against overwhelming odds was due in large part to God sending great revivals among the troops. He traces the spiritual decline in America leading to the war, the theological split between North and South, and the role of godly chaplains and officers. The sermon emphasizes that genuine conversions produced fearless soldiers who trusted in God's sovereignty over life and death, and calls for a return to bold, doctrinal preaching and prayer for revival today.

[John Weaver] All right, let's open our Bibles, if you would please, to Psalm 44. Psalm 44. And we're going to read a few verses and go from there. This message is going to be on the great revival in the Confederate Army. And, Lord willing, the message this afternoon, since I had so many questions yesterday, I'm going to be bringing a message on the biblical doctrine of self-defense. with a lot of history involved in that as well. And then, Lord willing, tomorrow I'll be speaking on the world in times of Jesse James. So let's look in Psalm 44, verse 1.

[John Weaver] Scripture says, We've heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us what work thou didst in their days and times of old. How thou didst drive out the heathen with thine hand and plentish them. And how did thou didst deflict the people and cast them out. For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them, but thy right hand and thine arm in the light of thy countenance, because thou hast a favor unto them. Thou art my king, O God.

[John Weaver] Command and deliverance is for Jacob." When one considers the war of northern aggression, we must conclude that there's just about no parallel in history concerning this war. The amount of land mass that's been involved The number of troops that were involved, the devastation, the battles, the sieges, the marches, the contending armies, and even the soldiers themselves with the enthusiasms, the enthusiasm of those soldiers, the conquests, and the men themselves, I think, make this period of time extremely unique. And many have studied this war from every conceivable angle, except mainly the spiritual angle. Certainly, the economics were involved, states' rights were involved, so many other things as well. But America was in a great period of decline, spiritually speaking, from the 1830s through the 1850s.

[John Weaver] Churches were dissolving their bands, denominations were breaking up, and generally speaking, it did not look good for the nation. Many statesmen understood that if the churches could not hold together, the nation would not hold together. There's a book CC going. I think it's written the book, Broken Churches, Broken Nation. And you can find a lot of information in that book as well. But it may surprise people to learn that basically prior to the war, most denominations were national. In other words, there was no division basically between the north and the south. And the north and the south usually would cooperate just simply along the lines of Christianity, even though there may be denominational differences as well.

[John Weaver] But the reason they could do that was because at that time, each church at least believed that the Bible was the word of God, and they at least confessed faith in the Lord Jesus Christ alone. However, after abolitionism, presidentalism, modernism, liberalism slipped into the church's denominations, there was no longer any basis of cooperation between the North and the South, particularly In fact, the rift became so great that many did indeed say that it was a theological war. Here's a quote that everyone probably has heard, but it still points out the fact that there was a theological aspect.

[John Weaver] And this was from John Henry Thornwell. Thornwell said this, John Henry Thornwell, prominent Presbyterian, showing the difference between the north and the south, said this. The parties in this conflict are not merely abolitionists and slaveholders. They are atheists, socialists, communists, Red Republicans, and Jacobins on the one side, that's the North, and the Friends of Order and Regulated Freedom on the other. In one word, the world is the battleground, Christianity and atheism the combatants, and the progress of humanity is at stake. And so here we just simply drew the line saying you got the north and the south and the north is atheistic and the south is Christian.

[John Weaver] Now the truth of the matter is the war was sparked by a theological revolution in the north. I mentioned this yesterday because they turned to rationalism they turned to transcendentalism they turned to universalism and of course I think the spiritual aspect of the war is just as valid as the economic aspect and the state's rights aspect as well. But many still have not perceived, as I mentioned yesterday, that you always have a theological shift before you have a cultural shift. And since the theology in the North changed, their culture changed, their way of thinking changed, and consequently they wanted to impress that upon the South as well. And that is basically what happened during that war. And even after the war, Reconstruction was simply nothing less than a military enforcement of that culture upon the South. By the way, I don't know if you understand this or not, but back in, I think it was in the 60s in Georgia, one more Reconstruction law was finally done away with because the South could not even send goods north without a tax.

[John Weaver] That was finally eliminated in the 1960s. And even today, there is still reconstruction in the South because the South cannot redistrict their voting districts without approval from the Justice Department. Let that sink in. Northern states do not have to have approval, but the South does. So in order to grasp the state of the churches at the time of this war, you've got to consider the fact of all the churches that were splitting.

[John Weaver] The Presbyterian Church split first in 1837. And then there was a second split in 1857. While there were other issues involved, abolitionism certainly was an issue. The Methodist Episcopal Church split in 1844. Again, abolitionism was the issue. And then the Baptists split in 1845. Again, abolitionism was an issue there as well. It may surprise a lot of people to discover that there were no Southern Baptists until after 1845. So the churches then were basically splitting over abolitionism.

[John Weaver] Now, it was Charles Hodge, who was the eminent Presbyterian theologian, who observed, and listen to what he said, that abolitionism must operate to produce the disunion of the states and the division of all ecclesiastical societies. We shall become two nations in feeling which must soon render us two nations in fact. So here, Charles Hodge is saying it's not going to be long before the nation is going to split. I suppose one of the greatest warnings that was ever given to the nation was by William S. Plummer on the eve of the first split in the Presbyterian Church. He said this, listen carefully. He said, should the assembly legislate and decide that slaveholding is a sin, which it's not, but he said, should the assembly legislate, decide that slaveholding is a sin, the southern churches would feel themselves instructed by the Apostle Paul to withdraw from such first Timothy six, five.

[John Weaver] Thus, our church would be renaissance under then nothing left except to rend the star spangled banner and claim. Soon the Potomac will be dyed with blood. Can it be that the righteous judge of all the earth has so dreadful a controversy with the Presbyterian Church of the United States as to give her up to the folly and madness of being the first to hoist the gate and let the flood of destruction roll in?

[John Weaver] This was just 24 years before the war, and notice what he said. Thus our church would be run asunder, nothing left except to rim the star-spangled banner in twain. And soon, the Potomac will be dyed with blood. It was a correspondent of the Charleston Mercury, Charleston, South Carolina, who wrote in 1845 when the Baptist split and the Southern Baptist Convention was formed, they said this, from all appearance, the separation of the church is inevitable.

[John Weaver] We could hope for otherwise, but so it is, and we must submit. When we are forced out of the church by Northern fanatics, we shall next be forced out of the Union by the same nefarious acts. That was 1845. So they said, since we've been forced out of the church, now we're going to be forced out of the Union. I could multiply quotes, but I think you can see that America was not in a great spiritual revival during this period of time. In fact, it was a spiritual decline.

[John Weaver] Now, one amazing truth to me. is the fact that the South, during the war, held out for four years. Just stop and think about this. The war went on for four years. When you consider the fact that Abraham Lincoln called for 75,000 volunteers for only three months, because it was going to be a piece of cake to whip the Southern people and bring them back in line. And so when you had the Battle of First Manassas, there were people from Washington, D.C. came out in their carriages, in their wagons with picnic lunches to sit around and watch the North whip the South.

[John Weaver] But of course, it didn't turn out that way. And the Yankees then threw down their weaponry and ran back as fast as they could to Washington, D.C. And the picnic baskets were strewn all the way back as they were running away as well. I'm just simply pointing out the fact that people thought it was going to be a piece of cake.

[John Weaver] Now, when you stop and realize there are over 20 million people in the North and 5 million in the South, and some of those were slaves, you have to understand, oh, we were outnumbered 4 or 5 to 1. Then you have to remember that all of the manufacturing was in the North. You have to remember that most of the economic Economically, the North was far superior. The money was in the North, so to speak. The North had the Army. The North had the Navy. The South had absolutely nothing. And the South had to start from scratch. And so, to me, it's absolutely a miracle that the South held out for four years as long as you did.

[John Weaver] So we have to ask this question. Why in the world did the South hold out for four years like this? You may answer and say, well, we had better generals in the North. Well, that's certainly true. We did have better generals than the North did. And you could also say, well, we had better fighters. We had better men, better soldiers. That is certainly true as well. But I think there's other answers as well. It's not just that we had better generals. It's not just that we had better men fighting. It's not just that we were in a defensive position and we were fighting for our hearth and our homes. That is the truth.

[John Weaver] But I think another reason is the fact that during this time, God sent at least two great revivals during that horrible time of war in the Confederate armies. And during this time, there were multitudes literally swept into the kingdom of God. We have to understand something. It's God who gives us strength. It's God who gives us courage. It's God who enables us to stand. It's God who does things for us, who enable us to withstand all of the wickedness and everything else and make us determined to stand for truth and righteousness and holiness and godliness. And certainly, once you have those convictions in your heart and in your mind, then it solidifies you and enables you to stand.

[John Weaver] That's why a lot of the Southern men would take the attitude, bring it on. Not that they wanted the war. But they knew that they were not going to compromise. They were not going to give up. They were not going to give up. They were not going to quit. It's just that simple. You remember when Nehemiah was threatened with an attack and Nehemiah chapter four and verse 14.

[John Weaver] Here's what he said to his people. Be not you afraid of them. Remember the Lord who is great and terrible and fight for your brethren, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your houses. Remember the Lord, he said. In other words, remember, he is the one who gives us that courage and that strength. And you fight for your houses, you fight for your wives, you fight for your children.

[John Weaver] And then the passage in First Corinthians, chapter 16, verse 13, where God commands us, watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit ye like men and be strong. Do you understand that historically Christians have always made the better fighters? Why? Because they were fighting based upon principles. And they were willing to die for those principles. And moreover, they knew they were ready to die. The truth of the matter is this. Those men who were unafraid to die always make the better fighter and the better soldier. Oliver Cromwell gathered Christian men who marched into battle singing psalms and hymns.

[John Weaver] Their watchword was the Lord of Hosts. and whose determination was to conquer or die, Cromwell said, truly, I think he that prays and preaches best will fight the best. It was Hedley Vickers, who was also an excellent Christian soldier, he wrote, I have often heard it said, the worse the man, the better the soldier. However, he said, facts contradict this untruth. Were I ever, as a leader of a forlorn hope, allowed to select my men, it would most certainly be from among the soldiers of Christ. For who should fight so fearlessly and bravely as those to whom death presents no after terrors? And certainly the South, I believe, understood this because God sent this great awakening during this time.

[John Weaver] Even the North recognized the fierceness and the bravery and the fearlessness of Southern troops. Here's an excellent quote. It has been said that there is nothing more ferocious than a band of brigands led by vicious cutthroats, except it be a company of Scottish Presbyterians rising from their knees in prayer to do battle with a firm conviction that what they are about to do is the will of God. Isn't that amazing? Wow.

[John Weaver] Captain Dabney Carr Harrison, who was a pastor, a professor, a chaplain and a soldier. He was told by some of his men that he should be braver than they were. And he had already exhibited that bravery. And so he asked, why should I be more brave than anyone else? And they answered, because you have everything settled for eternity and you're not afraid to die. Captain Harrison said, you're right, gentlemen, everything is settled for eternity and I have nothing to fear.

[John Weaver] And he proved that at the Battle of Fort Donaldson, because three balls went through his hat without harming him. A fourth ball cut his temple And the fifth ball went into his right lung, which later proved to be fatal. However, before he died on February the 16th, 1862, on Sunday, he said this, I die content and happy, trusting in the merits of my Savior Jesus, committing my wife and children to their father and mine. After a while, he laid back and went to sleep.

[John Weaver] And all of a sudden, he sat erect in the bed and with a loud voice cried, Company K, you have no captain now. Never surrender. Never give up. And with that, they lured him back in bed. And a few minutes later, he passed away in the arms of the Lord. So my question is this, what in the world can an enemy do with someone who will not give up even when they're dying. Here's a man was concerned about his men, even though, basically speaking, he was dying.

[John Weaver] It was Colonel Lewis Coleman who was fatally wounded at Fredericksburg. He lingered 98 days before he died. He gave charges to all of those who were around him. He thanked his loving wife and his children and gave orders. And he said this, tell General Jackson and General Lee, they know how Christian soldiers can fight. I wish that they were here now. So that they could see how a Christian soldier can die. And with that, he died, trusting in the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ. You see, someone who does not know and understand the power and conviction of the converting grace of God does not think this truth is significant. But once you've been saved by the grace of God and the principles of God is sunk deeply into your heart and you understand the truth of 2 Corinthians chapter 5 in verse 8, when the Apostle Paul said that clearly, clearly that once we die, we are with the Lord. That is it. What fear is going to be in the mind of a real, genuine child of God, because he understands to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.

[John Weaver] You remember that passage in the book of Philippians, chapter one, when the apostle Paul was in prison facing the axman going to have his head cut off? Well, he didn't at that particular time, but he wrote the Philippians and he said this for me to live is Christ and to die is gain. But if I live in the flesh, The Lord lets me live. This is the fruit of my labor.

[John Weaver] Yet what I shall choose, I know not. Now, listen to what he said. For I'm in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. And you can put in parentheses for me. And then he said, nevertheless, to abide in the flesh is more needful for you. So Paul said it's far better for me if I die, because I'll be with the Lord. But if the Lord does not allow me to die, he said, I'm going to live and I'm going to do that, which is right, and I will serve him still. So understandably, the Apostle Paul was not afraid to die. At first, Manassas.

[John Weaver] Jackson received a very painful wound in his hand, and he remained calm and deliberate, directing his troops. A few days later, after that battle, it was Captain John Embleton who came to him and asked Major Jackson, How is it that you remained so calm and so collected and so utterly insensitive to danger in such a storm of shell and bullets as rained about you when your hand was hit? Jackson looked at Imbleton and said, Captain, my religious belief teaches me to be as safe in battle as in bed.

[John Weaver] God has ordained the time of my death. I'm not to be concerned with that. I'm to be concerned that I should always be ready whenever it may happen. And then he looked and said, Captain, if all men believe this, then all men would be equally brave. God in his grace sent great revivals during that time of horrible devastation. There were many who were converted. I've had some people say, well, Pastor, let me tell you something. If I was facing death on a daily basis, why?

[John Weaver] I'd make a decision for Jesus Christ, too. Well, first of all, these were not decisions. These were genuine conversions. And secondly, you do face death on a daily basis. You don't know when you're going to die. Neither do I. I'm just simply saying, We do face death on a daily basis.

[John Weaver] Thirdly, I want to give you an illustration of the genuineness of these conversions. J. William Jones, who wrote the book Christ in the Camp, who was a pastor, who was a chaplain during the Confederacy, he baptized 410 men. After the war, he followed up on those men and visited with them. And listen to this. Out of all that survived that war, all that he baptized. He only found three who were not living for the Lord. There is no pastor and there is no church today has that kind of persevering converts, none whatsoever. These were real, genuine converts. I want to give you some quotes just to show you what was happening.

[John Weaver] A writer from the Second Palmetto Regiment in the Southern Christian Advocates says this, God's hand was in the great achievement. And I believe that the most irreligious man in our Patriot Army will frankly acknowledge the fact. So evident was it. It is believed an improvement has since taken place in the morals of our troops. At least I can say as much for this regiment. While during the campaign we have occupied the advance post, the post of honor and danger, and this for weeks, in the very face of the enemy, God has given us a grateful sense of security.

[John Weaver] Now listen, in our religious services have gone on. Even while interrupted by the booming cannon and bursting shell, lying in our trenches, expecting every moment that the storm would break in all of its fury upon us, we worship God. Can you imagine worshipping the Lord with bombs bursting all around you? I remember reading in one of the books, I don't remember if it was J. William Jones' book or W. W. Bennett's book, they were having a church service and the cannon was booming off in the distance, and the men were sitting on stumps and on logs, and the preacher was preaching.

[John Weaver] And he stopped in the middle of his sermon and said, Gentlemen, I think we need to move over here. And they just all got up and moved. And just as he started back preaching, a cannonball hit right where they were. I'm just simply saying these people worship God. in such a devastating environment. He goes on. In another instance, it is reported that during a skirmish, some of our men were ordered to the front as sharpshooters and directed to lie on the ground and load in fire as rapidly as possible. After a short time, the ammunition of one of these men was expended.

[John Weaver] And though his position was very dangerous, as it was, it would have been certain death for him to try to procure a fresh supply. In this condition, says an eyewitness, this soldier drew from his pocket his Bible, and while the balls were whizzing about him and cutting the grass at his side, he quietly read the precious pages for a few minutes and then closed his eyes in prayer. He just read the Bible and was praying while the bullets were whizzing all around him.

[John Weaver] Can you imagine someone like that? Such composure and such contentment cannot be explained except by the grace of God.

[John Weaver] Now, there were numerous helps during these revivals, that is for sure. There were coal porters who sold and gave away books. There was hospital work. There was missionaries. There were godly officers. Everyone knows about Lee and Jackson and Stewart and Ewell. Yes. But many of the godly chaplains labored under strenuous loads and some not only preached and prayed and counseled and healed, but they also fought. And they were absolutely despised by the Yankees. Why? Because the Yankees thought that the preachers were the instruments of the rebellion.

[John Weaver] In fact, one Yankee critic said it like this. Listen carefully. This might fit some of us. He said the most unmitigated set of villains that they have in the South are the Methodists, the Baptists, The Presbyterian and Episcopalian preachers all talking secession, drinking mean liquor, and advocating the calls of Jeff Davis and the devil. Can you imagine? These are the worst case of villains that you've got. Or the Methodists, the Baptists, the Presbyterians, and the Episcopalians. Wow. When Chaplain T.D.

[John Weaver] Witherspoon of the 42nd Mississippi Regiment was captured at Gettysburg, and the reason he was captured at Gettysburg was he refused to leave the dying and the wounded. He could have escaped. He could have gotten away. But he said, no, I'm here to minister to the dying and to the wounded. And so they captured him. And Yankee Colonel Fish then demanded that this preacher be thrown into a dungeon where there were drunks and deserters. When the lieutenant was given the order to throw the preacher into that dungeon, the lieutenant looked at the officer and he said this, but this man is a minister of the gospel.

[John Weaver] Surely you won't send him there. Colonel Fish shot back and he said this, Why not? The preachers are more to blame for this war than any other. The best thing that we could do would be to hang a few of them when we capture them. That was the idea. But regardless of all the dangers, these chaplains persevered. They preached and they prayed and they even fought. It was Chaplain I.T.

[John Weaver] Kitchener of the 17th Alabama Regiment who gave this report on the Battle of Shiloh. Listen to what he said. During this engagement, we were under a crossfire on the left wing from three directions. Under it, the boys wavered. I'd been wearied and was sitting down, but seeing them waver, I sprang to my feet, took off my hat, waited over my head, walked up and down the line and preached them a sermon.

[John Weaver] I reminded them it was Sunday, that at that hour, 1130, all their home folks were praying for them. And that Tom Watts, governor and former regimental commander, had told us he would listen with an eager ear to hear from the 17th. And shouting the Lord's name in his name over the roar of the battle, I called upon them to stand there and die, if need be, for their country. The effect was evident.

[John Weaver] Every man stood to his post, every eye flashed, every heart beat high with desperate resolve to conquer and die. Significantly, Chaplain Titchener added, the regiment had 13 killed, 117 wounded or missing, but the dead of the enemy in front was 352. The chaplain did not add what appeared in the newspaper account, that he himself fought with the coolness of a veteran, killing with his own rifle a colonel, a major, and four privates.

[John Weaver] So a lot of times these chaplains did indeed fight. It was Chaplain L.W. Allen said, my speech to my men in the presence of the enemy is this, they're the Yankees boys, our cause is just, trust in God and charge them. You see, the truth of the matter is these chaplains understood that civil tyranny was just as wicked as spiritual tyranny. It is true they want to deliver these men from sin and Satan, but it is also true they want to deliver them from civil tyranny as well. Tyranny is tyranny. And the pastors understood the absolute necessity of standing together on key issues. I've often said it's almost impossible to have today what these pastors and chaplains had during this particular time. They not only worked together, they were thankful and glad to see others prosper, even if they were not prospering themselves.

[John Weaver] Someone has asked me, would you like to be used by God to begin and start a great revival in this land? And I said, most definitely. But I've got news for you. I don't care if God uses me or Brother Or brother Lacey or brother. I don't care who uses it just so he does it. And I'm more than willing for someone else to prosper in that area. But, you know, most preachers today are just so absolutely jealous and so absolutely if I can't benefit, if I can't get something out of it, if my church doesn't prosper, then I don't want to get involved in it like little kids. If I can't have my way, I'll take my marbles and go home. It was not like that during the war. Dr. William J. Hogue wrote of his visit to Fredericksburg during the spring of 1863, during the revival in the Barksdale, Mississippi, Brigade.

[John Weaver] Listen to what he said. The Reverend Dr. Burrus of the First Baptist Church, Richmond, was to preach that night, but as he would remain some days, and I could only say a day, he courteously insisted on my preaching. And so, We had a Presbyterian sermon introduced by Baptist services under the direction of a Methodist chaplain in an Episcopal church. I don't think that ever happened today, but I just have to say the camaraderie that existed then could not possibly exist today because of the fractured nature of the church and the abysmal ignorance of most people concerning Bible doctrine.

[John Weaver] Now, These men work together and they helped each other, even in the placement of new converts. When Presbyterian pastor Beverly Tucker Lacy had some converts who insisted that immersion was the proper way to be baptized. You know what the Presbyterian pastor did? He contacted Baptist pastor and chaplain Webb and brought the converts to him to baptize, and he very quickly and thankfully baptized those converts who were converted under Presbyterian preaching. After he had baptized them, listen to this, Brother Webb finished baptizing the converts and he said to Dr. Lacey, Brother Lacey, notice that, Brother Lacey, you remind me of a hen setting on duck eggs. She carefully nurses the eggs until the little ducks appear and diligently watches over and cares for them. But someday she goes near the water and the whole brood of little ducks plunge in while she is standing on the bank plucking. I want you to listen to Pastor Lacy's response. Listen. Yes, said Brother Lacy, I cannot follow them in.

[John Weaver] But I go with them to the water's edge. And I receive them with open arms when they come out, and I'm ever ready to hail them as my spiritual children and do all in my power to help them serve our common master and reach the home of our common heavenly father above. I'm simply saying these men work together. Again, it was Pastor Lacy who wrote to the Central Presbyterian from the Army of Northern Virginia, and he said this, since my arrival at the present location, about a thousand have professed faith in Christ and more than two thousand are earnestly inquiring in the way of salvation.

[John Weaver] Another chaplain reported in the Second and Third Corps alone, men are being converted at the rate of 200 per week. And the work is widening and deepening so far as men can judge. The chaplain was corrected his judgment in order to illustrate his sentiments. Listen to A.E. Dickinson, Richmond, Virginia. He wrote this. I wish all the members of our churches could be here and hear how fervently the soldiers pray that the revival of religion in the army may reach the churches at home, that their brethren at home may be turned from their sins of extortion and speculation, and that all may be brought to be humble themselves before God. Wow. W. W. Bennett, in his book, The Great Revival of the Southern Armies, based upon chaplain's reports, and based upon first-hand knowledge, said that there was a minimum of 150,000 soldiers converted during this time.

[John Weaver] Stop and think about that. 150,000. Have you ever wondered what type of man could be qualified to preach to soldiers. I can assure you one thing, it would not be a lazy man. It would not be a wimpy man. It would not be an effeminate man. J. William Jones sent word to churches to get men for chaplains. Here's what he wrote. Send us names of good men, and here I repeat, we want none others. Our object being not merely to fill up the regiments with nominal chaplains, but to fill the vacancies with efficient working men. We want effective gospel preachers whose burden shall be Christ and him crucified. It is a common mistake that anyone will do to preach the soldiers. The great business of the chaplain is to preach Christ publicly and from tent to tent, and the temporal welfare of the soldier should be made subordinate to this. We want men physically able as well as willing to endure hardships and privations.

[John Weaver] If a chaplain would live up to the full measure of his usefulness, he must be with his regiment on the weary march. frequently resigning his horse to some foot sore soldier, lie with them around the bivouac fire after evening prayers or oprah, be drenched on the outpost, or face the pelting snowstorm, divide with some hungry soldier his last hard cracker, and in a word, share with his regiment whatsoever hardships they may be called on to endure.

[John Weaver] Now, if a brother is physically unable to endure these hardships, He'd best not enter the work, but there is no question that many a delicate brother would have his health permanently improved if he would thus learn to endure hardness as a good soldier. Why? He said, don't you just send us anybody? You're mistaken if you think just anybody can preach to a soldier. I've got news for you. Not just anybody can preach to people.

[John Weaver] You say, well, yes, they can. No, no, no, they cannot. Some men are just not physically able to do so. Some men are not mentally stable enough to do so. Some are not emotionally stable to do so. But it was straight gospel preaching that God used to awaken these men to their needs of Jesus Christ. It was the preaching of the law that awakened them to their sins and the preaching of the gospel that showed them the remedy for their sins. It was the preaching of justification by faith and the atonement of shed blood that answered the Christ.

[John Weaver] What must I do to be saved? Those old Puritans had it right when they said the sharp needle of the law must precede the scarlet thread of the gospel. If you cannot. If a man does not recognize he's a sinner, he's in no position to be saved. Jesus Christ said he came to seek and to save that which was lost. And if you're not lost, you don't qualify for salvation.

[John Weaver] I want to submit something to you. I want you to think about this. We're in a desperate state in this nation. And I believe that one of our greatest needs happens to be godly preachers. I would even say that the problems that we're in in this country are a result of a compromising pulpit. The preachers are not crying out against sin and wickedness. They're not crying out against corruption in Washington, in the state capitals. No, no, no, no.

[John Weaver] Everybody today wants to go along just simply to get along. Everybody today wants their share of the pie. And if you rock the boat, you can't get your share of the pie. It's an interesting thing that in 1860s as well as in 1700s, those revolutionary preachers, they knew the word of God and they knew how to preach it and they knew how to stand and they knew how to apply the word of God. We've lost all of that today.

[John Weaver] Folks are ashamed of Jesus Christ. They're ashamed of the gospel. I preached the message last week, which I entitled the afflictions of the gospel. The gospel is not afflicted, but you know, it's interesting, the Apostle Paul said in 2nd Timothy, chapter one, verse seven, but God has not given us a spirit of fear, but a power of love and of a sound mind. We quote that verse all the time. But the next verse, Paul told Timothy, Be not thou ashamed of the gospel, nor me, his prisoner. And the word fear in the Greek means timidity, cowardice. God has not given us a spirit of timidity. God has not given us a spirit of cowardice. And he said, if you're ashamed of me, if you're ashamed of the gospel, something's wrong, said the Apostle Paul. You need to be a partaker of the afflictions of the gospel. That's what he said in verse eight. What are the afflictions of the gospel?

[John Weaver] Being hated, being despised, being looked down upon, being frowned upon. You say, well, you know, I'm just ashamed of that. Well, I got news for you. What's going to happen in Matthew, not Matthew, but Mark chapter 8 in verse 38, when our Lord said, whosoever shall be ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation of him shall the Son of man be ashamed when he cometh with the glory of his Father and all of his angels. Yes, God, our Lord said, if you're ashamed of me, I'm going to be ashamed of you.

[John Weaver] What we need today is what they had in the 1860s. We need men who's going to preach and teach the word of God and seek God for a real, genuine revival.

[John Weaver] Now, I've got two other things I want to share with you. The first one is this. I do not suppose that there could be any greater compliment to Southern soldiers than that which came from a Yankee chaplain. The Yankee chaplain was trying to inform his people about their enemies. And here's what he said. You may call this fanaticism, enthusiasm, or what you will, but remember, you're fighting an enemy that comes from its closet to the battlefield, that comes from its knees in prayer to engage in deadly strife, that comes in the belief that the battles are the battles of Jehovah, that his smile is resting upon

[John Weaver] its banner and will ensure success. What power to make every man a hero and every man, if needed, be a martyr. He said, you don't understand the people you're facing. These people pray. They trust God. These people understand. What it means to fight. You know something? I've often said this, and I want you to look back in your Bible, Psalm 44. But I want you to understand this.

[John Weaver] We will never regain our history. We will never regain our culture. We'll never regain our heritage until we come back to the foundation on which this country was built and the foundation of our Confederate ancestors. I'm serious. You just heard About Jeb Stuart, Jeb's favorite hymn was Rock of Ages. General Eaves, what a firm foundation. These men understood truth. I want you to look at this. I just shared with you what God did during the Confederacy, during that horrible war. I want you to watch. Here's an application. The psalmist said in verse one of Psalm 44, we've heard with our ears, O God.

[John Weaver] Our fathers have told us what work thou didst in their days and times of old. So we've been informed, we know what God has done. Look in verse two, he explains how thou didst drive out the heathen with thine hand. That is, God gave the victory and planished them, that would be Israel. How thou didst afflict the people, the heathen, and cast them out. For they, Israel, got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arms save them, but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hast a favor unto them."

[John Weaver] Now note what he's saying. God, you are the one that gave the victory. Yes, they fought, but you were the one that made their fighting effectual. You were the one, Lord, that gave the grace and the mercy and the strength. You gave everything.

[John Weaver] Now look at verse four. Thou art my king, O God, command deliverance is in Jacob. Let me just summarize that for you. Here's what he said. Thou art my king, O God, do it again. Do it again. You've done it in time fast. Do it again. We need men. who will preach and pray. Do it again, O Lord. You've done it in time past. Whitfield, Jonathan Edwards.

[John Weaver] The great revival in the Confederacy. Do it again, O Lord. Command deliverances for thy people. Father, help us, we pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Give us your grace, give us your mercy, give us your kindness. And Lord, help us to love thee, to live for thee, to honor thee, to glorify thee, and to stand in having done all to stand. In the name of Jesus Christ, we ask and pray. Amen.

Great Revival in the Confederate Armies

John Weaver | SermonAudio

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	SermonAudio
Media ID	81232051423777
Subject	Church Government
Course	Church Order: Preaching and Pastoral Ministry
Genre	Sermon
Date	2023-08-02
Dictation Name
Book	Book 040: Church Order and Worship - Volume 2 — Chapter 26
Source Timed Segments	68

Formatted Transcript

Introduction and Scripture Reading

Weaver opens with Psalm 44:1-4, introducing the topic of the great revival in the Confederate Army and previewing upcoming messages on self-defense and the world of Jesse James.

All right, let's open our Bibles, if you would please, to Psalm 44. Psalm 44. And we're going to read a few verses and go from there. This message is going to be on the great revival in the Confederate Army. And, Lord willing, the message this afternoon, since I had so many questions yesterday, I'm going to be bringing a message on the biblical doctrine of self-defense, with a lot of history involved in that as well. And then, Lord willing, tomorrow I'll be speaking on the world in times of Jesse James. So let's look in Psalm 44, verse 1.

Scripture says, "We've heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us what work thou didst in their days and times of old. How thou didst drive out the heathen with thine hand and plantedst them; and how thou didst afflict the people and cast them out. For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them, but thy right hand and thine arm and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favor unto them. Thou art my king, O God."

The Uniqueness and Spiritual Decline of the War Era

The Civil War was unparalleled in scale, but America was in spiritual decline from the 1830s-1850s, with churches splitting over abolitionism and theological liberalism.

"Command deliverances for Jacob." When one considers the war of northern aggression, we must conclude that there's just about no parallel in history concerning this war. The amount of land mass that's been involved, the number of troops that were involved, the devastation, the battles, the sieges, the marches, the contending armies, and even the soldiers themselves with the enthusiasm of those soldiers, the conquests, and the men themselves, I think, make this period of time extremely unique. And many have studied this war from every conceivable angle, except mainly the spiritual angle. Certainly, the economics were involved, states' rights were involved, so many other things as well. But America was in a great period of decline, spiritually speaking, from the 1830s through the 1850s. Churches were dissolving their bands, denominations were breaking up, and generally speaking, it did not look good for the nation. Many statesmen understood that if the churches could not hold together, the nation would not hold together. There's a book, I think it's entitled the book, "Broken Churches, Broken Nation." And you can find a lot of information in that book as well. But it may surprise people to learn that basically prior to the war, most denominations were national. In other words, there was no division basically between the north and the south. And the north and the south usually would cooperate just simply along the lines of Christianity, even though there may be denominational differences as well.

But the reason they could do that was because at that time, each church at least believed that the Bible was the word of God, and they at least confessed faith in the Lord Jesus Christ alone. However, after abolitionism, transcendentalism, modernism, liberalism slipped into the churches' denominations, there was no longer any basis of cooperation between the North and the South, particularly. In fact, the rift became so great that many did indeed say that it was a theological war. Here's a quote that everyone probably has heard, but it still points out the fact that there was a theological aspect.

Theological Roots of the Conflict

The war was sparked by a theological revolution in the North, with rationalism and transcendentalism leading to cultural change. John Henry Thornwell framed it as Christianity vs. atheism.

And this was from John Henry Thornwell. Thornwell said this, John Henry Thornwell, prominent Presbyterian, showing the difference between the north and the south, said this: "The parties in this conflict are not merely abolitionists and slaveholders. They are atheists, socialists, communists, Red Republicans, and Jacobins on the one side—that's the North—and the Friends of Order and Regulated Freedom on the other. In one word, the world is the battleground, Christianity and atheism the combatants, and the progress of humanity is at stake." And so here we just simply drew the line saying you got the north and the south and the north is atheistic and the south is Christian.

Now the truth of the matter is the war was sparked by a theological revolution in the north. I mentioned this yesterday because they turned to rationalism, they turned to transcendentalism, they turned to universalism, and of course, I think the spiritual aspect of the war is just as valid as the economic aspect and the state's rights aspect as well. But many still have not perceived, as I mentioned yesterday, that you always have a theological shift before you have a cultural shift. And since the theology in the North changed, their culture changed, their way of thinking changed, and consequently they wanted to impress that upon the South as well. And that is basically what happened during that war. And even after the war, Reconstruction was simply nothing less than a military enforcement of that culture upon the South. By the way, I don't know if you understand this or not, but back in, I think it was in the 60s in Georgia, one more Reconstruction law was finally done away with because the South could not even send goods north without a tax.

That was finally eliminated in the 1960s. And even today, there is still reconstruction in the South because the South cannot redistrict their voting districts without approval from the Justice Department. Let that sink in. Northern states do not have to have approval, but the South does. So in order to grasp the state of the churches at the time of this war, you've got to consider the fact of all the churches that were splitting.

Church Splits and Warnings of National Division

Presbyterians, Methodists, and Baptists split over abolitionism. Leaders like Charles Hodge and William S. Plumer warned that church division would lead to national disunion and bloodshed.

The Presbyterian Church split first in 1837. And then there was a second split in 1857. While there were other issues involved, abolitionism certainly was an issue. The Methodist Episcopal Church split in 1844. Again, abolitionism was the issue. And then the Baptists split in 1845. Again, abolitionism was an issue there as well. It may surprise a lot of people to discover that there were no Southern Baptists until after 1845. So the churches then were basically splitting over abolitionism.

Now, it was Charles Hodge, who was the eminent Presbyterian theologian, who observed, and listen to what he said, that abolitionism must operate to produce the disunion of the states and the division of all ecclesiastical societies. We shall become two nations in feeling which must soon render us two nations in fact. So here, Charles Hodge is saying it's not going to be long before the nation is going to split. I suppose one of the greatest warnings that was ever given to the nation was by William S. Plumer on the eve of the first split in the Presbyterian Church. He said this, listen carefully. He said, should the assembly legislate and decide that slaveholding is a sin, which it's not, but he said, should the assembly legislate, decide that slaveholding is a sin, the southern churches would feel themselves instructed by the Apostle Paul to withdraw from such, 1 Timothy 6:5.

Thus, our church would be rent asunder, then nothing left except to rend the star-spangled banner in twain. Soon the Potomac will be dyed with blood. Can it be that the righteous judge of all the earth has so dreadful a controversy with the Presbyterian Church of the United States as to give her up to the folly and madness of being the first to hoist the gate and let the flood of destruction roll in? This was just 24 years before the war, and notice what he said. Thus our church would be rent asunder, nothing left except to rend the star-spangled banner in twain. And soon, the Potomac will be dyed with blood. It was a correspondent of the Charleston Mercury, Charleston, South Carolina, who wrote in 1845 when the Baptist split and the Southern Baptist Convention was formed, they said this, "From all appearance, the separation of the church is inevitable."

We could hope for otherwise, but so it is, and we must submit. When we are forced out of the church by Northern fanatics, we shall next be forced out of the Union by the same nefarious acts. That was 1845. So they said, since we've been forced out of the church, now we're going to be forced out of the Union. I could multiply quotes, but I think you can see that America was not in a great spiritual revival during this period of time. In fact, it was a spiritual decline.

The Miracle of Southern Endurance

Despite being outnumbered and out-resourced, the South held out for four years. Weaver attributes this to better generals, better soldiers, defensive position, and especially God-sent revivals.

Now, one amazing truth to me is the fact that the South, during the war, held out for four years. Just stop and think about this. The war went on for four years. When you consider the fact that Abraham Lincoln called for 75,000 volunteers for only three months, because it was going to be a piece of cake to whip the Southern people and bring them back in line. And so when you had the Battle of First Manassas, there were people from Washington, D.C. came out in their carriages, in their wagons with picnic lunches to sit around and watch the North whip the South.

But of course, it didn't turn out that way. And the Yankees then threw down their weaponry and ran back as fast as they could to Washington, D.C. And the picnic baskets were strewn all the way back as they were running away as well. I'm just simply pointing out the fact that people thought it was going to be a piece of cake.

Now, when you stop and realize there are over 20 million people in the North and 5 million in the South, and some of those were slaves, you have to understand, oh, we were outnumbered 4 or 5 to 1. Then you have to remember that all of the manufacturing was in the North. You have to remember that most of the economic—economically, the North was far superior. The money was in the North, so to speak. The North had the Army. The North had the Navy. The South had absolutely nothing. And the South had to start from scratch. And so, to me, it's absolutely a miracle that the South held out for four years as long as it did.

So we have to ask this question. Why in the world did the South hold out for four years like this? You may answer and say, well, we had better generals than the North. Well, that's certainly true. We did have better generals than the North did. And you could also say, well, we had better fighters. We had better men, better soldiers. That is certainly true as well. But I think there's other answers as well. It's not just that we had better generals. It's not just that we had better men fighting. It's not just that we were in a defensive position and we were fighting for our hearth and our homes. That is the truth.

But I think another reason is the fact that during this time, God sent at least two great revivals during that horrible time of war in the Confederate armies. And during this time, there were multitudes literally swept into the kingdom of God. We have to understand something. It's God who gives us strength. It's God who gives us courage. It's God who enables us to stand. It's God who does things for us, who enable us to withstand all of the wickedness and everything else and make us determined to stand for truth and righteousness and holiness and godliness. And certainly, once you have those convictions in your heart and in your mind, then it solidifies you and enables you to stand.

Christian Courage and Readiness to Die

Christians make better fighters because they are unafraid to die, knowing death means being with Christ. Examples include Dabney Carr Harrison, Lewis Coleman, and Stonewall Jackson.

That's why a lot of the Southern men would take the attitude, bring it on. Not that they wanted the war. But they knew that they were not going to compromise. They were not going to give up. They were not going to quit. It's just that simple. You remember when Nehemiah was threatened with an attack in Nehemiah chapter 4 and verse 14.

Here's what he said to his people: "Be not ye afraid of them. Remember the Lord who is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your houses." Remember the Lord, he said. In other words, remember, he is the one who gives us that courage and that strength. And you fight for your houses, you fight for your wives, you fight for your children. And then the passage in 1 Corinthians, chapter 16, verse 13, where God commands us,

Scripture Reading — 1 Corinthians 16:13

"Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit ye like men, be strong."

Do you understand that historically Christians have always made the better fighters? Why? Because they were fighting based upon principles. And they were willing to die for those principles. And moreover, they knew they were ready to die. The truth of the matter is this. Those men who were unafraid to die always make the better fighter and the better soldier. Oliver Cromwell gathered Christian men who marched into battle singing psalms and hymns.

Their watchword was the Lord of Hosts, and whose determination was to conquer or die. Cromwell said, truly, I think he that prays and preaches best will fight the best. It was Hedley Vicars, who was also an excellent Christian soldier, he wrote, "I have often heard it said, the worse the man, the better the soldier." However, he said, "facts contradict this untruth. Were I ever, as a leader of a forlorn hope, allowed to select my men, it would most certainly be from among the soldiers of Christ. For who should fight so fearlessly and bravely as those to whom death presents no after terrors?" And certainly the South, I believe, understood this because God sent this great awakening during this time. Even the North recognized the fierceness and the bravery and the fearlessness of Southern troops. Here's an excellent quote. It has been said that there is nothing more ferocious than a band of brigands led by vicious cutthroats, except it be a company of Scottish Presbyterians rising from their knees in prayer to do battle with a firm conviction that what they are about to do is the will of God. Isn't that amazing? Wow.

Captain Dabney Carr Harrison, who was a pastor, a professor, a chaplain and a soldier, was told by some of his men that he should be braver than they were. And he had already exhibited that bravery. And so he asked, "Why should I be more brave than anyone else?" And they answered, "Because you have everything settled for eternity and you're not afraid to die." Captain Harrison said, "You're right, gentlemen, everything is settled for eternity and I have nothing to fear." And he proved that at the Battle of Fort Donelson, because three balls went through his hat without harming him. A fourth ball cut his temple, and the fifth ball went into his right lung, which later proved to be fatal. However, before he died on February the 16th, 1862, on Sunday, he said this, "I die content and happy, trusting in the merits of my Savior Jesus, committing my wife and children to their father and mine." After a while, he laid back and went to sleep.

And all of a sudden, he sat erect in the bed and with a loud voice cried, "Company K, you have no captain now. Never surrender. Never give up." And with that, they lowered him back in bed. And a few minutes later, he passed away in the arms of the Lord. So my question is this, what in the world can an enemy do with someone who will not give up even when they're dying? Here's a man was concerned about his men, even though, basically speaking, he was dying. It was Colonel Lewis Coleman who was fatally wounded at Fredericksburg. He lingered 98 days before he died. He gave charges to all of those who were around him. He thanked his loving wife and his children and gave orders. And he said this, "Tell General Jackson and General Lee, they know how Christian soldiers can fight. I wish that they were here now, so that they could see how a Christian soldier can die." And with that, he died, trusting in the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ. You see, someone who does not know and understand the power and conviction of the converting grace of God does not think this truth is significant. But once you've been saved by the grace of God and the principles of God are sunk deeply into your heart and you understand the truth of 2 Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 8, when the Apostle Paul said that clearly, clearly that once we die, we are with the Lord. That is it. What fear is going to be in the mind of a real, genuine child of God, because he understands to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.

You remember that passage in the book of Philippians, chapter one, when the apostle Paul was in prison facing the axman going to have his head cut off? Well, he didn't at that particular time, but he wrote the Philippians and he said this: "For me to live is Christ and to die is gain. But if I live in the flesh, the Lord lets me live, this is the fruit of my labor." "Yet what I shall choose, I know not." Now, listen to what he said. "For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better"—and you can put in parentheses "for me." And then he said, "Nevertheless, to abide in the flesh is more needful for you." So Paul said it's far better for me if I die, because I'll be with the Lord. But if the Lord does not allow me to die, he said, I'm going to live and I'm going to do that which is right, and I will serve him still. So understandably, the Apostle Paul was not afraid to die. At First Manassas.

Jackson received a very painful wound in his hand, and he remained calm and deliberate, directing his troops. A few days later, after that battle, it was Captain John Imboden who came to him and asked Major Jackson, "How is it that you remained so calm and so collected and so utterly insensitive to danger in such a storm of shell and bullets as rained about you when your hand was hit?" Jackson looked at Imboden and said, "Captain, my religious belief teaches me to be as safe in battle as in bed." "God has ordained the time of my death. I'm not to be concerned with that. I'm to be concerned that I should always be ready whenever it may happen." And then he looked and said, "Captain, if all men believed this, then all men would be equally brave." God in his grace sent great revivals during that time of horrible devastation. There were many who were converted. I've had some people say, "Well, Pastor, let me tell you something. If I was facing death on a daily basis, why—"

Evidence of Genuine Revival Conversions

J. William Jones baptized 410 men and found only three not living for the Lord after the war. Soldiers worshipped under fire, read Bibles in battle, and exhibited supernatural composure.

"I'd make a decision for Jesus Christ, too." Well, first of all, these were not decisions. These were genuine conversions. And secondly, you do face death on a daily basis. You don't know when you're going to die. Neither do I. I'm just simply saying, we do face death on a daily basis. Thirdly, I want to give you an illustration of the genuineness of these conversions. J. William Jones, who wrote the book "Christ in the Camp," who was a pastor, who was a chaplain during the Confederacy, he baptized 410 men. After the war, he followed up on those men and visited with them. And listen to this. Out of all that survived that war, all that he baptized, he only found three who were not living for the Lord. There is no pastor and there is no church today that has that kind of persevering converts, none whatsoever. These were real, genuine converts. I want to give you some quotes just to show you what was happening.

A writer from the Second Palmetto Regiment in the Southern Christian Advocate says this, "God's hand was in the great achievement. And I believe that the most irreligious man in our Patriot Army will frankly acknowledge the fact. So evident was it. It is believed an improvement has since taken place in the morals of our troops. At least I can say as much for this regiment. While during the campaign we have occupied the advance post, the post of honor and danger, and this for weeks, in the very face of the enemy, God has given us a grateful sense of security."

Now listen, "our religious services have gone on. Even while interrupted by the booming cannon and bursting shell, lying in our trenches, expecting every moment that the storm would break in all of its fury upon us, we worship God." Can you imagine worshipping the Lord with bombs bursting all around you? I remember reading in one of the books, I don't remember if it was J. William Jones' book or W. W. Bennett's book, they were having a church service and the cannon was booming off in the distance, and the men were sitting on stumps and on logs, and the preacher was preaching. And he stopped in the middle of his sermon and said, "Gentlemen, I think we need to move over here." And they just all got up and moved. And just as he started back preaching, a cannonball hit right where they were. I'm just simply saying these people worship God in such a devastating environment. He goes on. "In another instance, it is reported that during a skirmish, some of our men were ordered to the front as sharpshooters and directed to lie on the ground and load and fire as rapidly as possible. After a short time, the ammunition of one of these men was expended."

"And though his position was very dangerous, as it was, it would have been certain death for him to try to procure a fresh supply. In this condition," says an eyewitness, "this soldier drew from his pocket his Bible, and while the balls were whizzing about him and cutting the grass at his side, he quietly read the precious pages for a few minutes and then closed his eyes in prayer." He just read the Bible and was praying while the bullets were whizzing all around him. Can you imagine someone like that? Such composure and such contentment cannot be explained except by the grace of God.

The Role of Chaplains and Interdenominational Cooperation

Chaplains preached, prayed, and fought. They worked across denominational lines, exemplified by Presbyterian pastor Lacy bringing converts to a Baptist for immersion. Yankees despised them as instigators of rebellion.

Now, there were numerous helps during these revivals, that is for sure. There were colporteurs who sold and gave away books. There was hospital work. There were missionaries. There were godly officers. Everyone knows about Lee and Jackson and Stuart and Ewell. Yes. But many of the godly chaplains labored under strenuous loads and some not only preached and prayed and counseled and healed, but they also fought. And they were absolutely despised by the Yankees. Why? Because the Yankees thought that the preachers were the instruments of the rebellion.

In fact, one Yankee critic said it like this. Listen carefully. This might fit some of us. He said, "The most unmitigated set of villains that they have in the South are the Methodists, the Baptists, the Presbyterian and Episcopalian preachers all talking secession, drinking mean liquor, and advocating the cause of Jeff Davis and the devil." Can you imagine? These are the worst case of villains that you've got. Or the Methodists, the Baptists, the Presbyterians, and the Episcopalians. Wow. When Chaplain T. D.

Witherspoon of the 42nd Mississippi Regiment was captured at Gettysburg, and the reason he was captured at Gettysburg was he refused to leave the dying and the wounded. He could have escaped. He could have gotten away. But he said, "No, I'm here to minister to the dying and to the wounded." And so they captured him. And Yankee Colonel Fish then demanded that this preacher be thrown into a dungeon where there were drunks and deserters. When the lieutenant was given the order to throw the preacher into that dungeon, the lieutenant looked at the officer and he said this, "But this man is a minister of the gospel." "Surely you won't send him there." Colonel Fish shot back and he said this, "Why not? The preachers are more to blame for this war than any other. The best thing that we could do would be to hang a few of them when we capture them." That was the idea. But regardless of all the dangers, these chaplains persevered. They preached and they prayed and they even fought. It was Chaplain I. T.

Tichenor of the 17th Alabama Regiment who gave this report on the Battle of Shiloh. Listen to what he said. "During this engagement, we were under a crossfire on the left wing from three directions. Under it, the boys wavered. I'd been wearied and was sitting down, but seeing them waver, I sprang to my feet, took off my hat, waved it over my head, walked up and down the line and preached them a sermon." "I reminded them it was Sunday, that at that hour, 11:30, all their home folks were praying for them. And that Tom Watts, governor and former regimental commander, had told us he would listen with an eager ear to hear from the 17th. And shouting the Lord's name, in his name, over the roar of the battle, I called upon them to stand there and die, if need be, for their country. The effect was evident."

"Every man stood to his post, every eye flashed, every heart beat high with desperate resolve to conquer and die." Significantly, Chaplain Tichenor added, "The regiment had 13 killed, 117 wounded or missing, but the dead of the enemy in front was 352." The chaplain did not add what appeared in the newspaper account, that he himself fought with the coolness of a veteran, killing with his own rifle a colonel, a major, and four privates. So a lot of times these chaplains did indeed fight. It was Chaplain L. W. Allen said, "My speech to my men in the presence of the enemy is this, 'They're the Yankees, boys, our cause is just, trust in God and charge them.'" You see, the truth of the matter is these chaplains understood that civil tyranny was just as wicked as spiritual tyranny. It is true they wanted to deliver these men from sin and Satan, but it is also true they wanted to deliver them from civil tyranny as well. Tyranny is tyranny. And the pastors understood the absolute necessity of standing together on key issues. I've often said it's almost impossible to have today what these pastors and chaplains had during this particular time. They not only worked together, they were thankful and glad to see others prosper, even if they were not prospering themselves.

Someone has asked me, "Would you like to be used by God to begin and start a great revival in this land?" And I said, "Most definitely." But I've got news for you. I don't care if God uses me or Brother—or Brother Lacey or Brother—I don't care who he uses, just so he does it. And I'm more than willing for someone else to prosper in that area. But, you know, most preachers today are just so absolutely jealous and so absolutely—if I can't benefit, if I can't get something out of it, if my church doesn't prosper, then I don't want to get involved in it—like little kids. If I can't have my way, I'll take my marbles and go home. It was not like that during the war. Dr. William J. Hoge wrote of his visit to Fredericksburg during the spring of 1863, during the revival in the Barksdale Mississippi Brigade.

Listen to what he said. "The Reverend Dr. Burrows of the First Baptist Church, Richmond, was to preach that night, but as he would remain some days, and I could only stay a day, he courteously insisted on my preaching. And so, we had a Presbyterian sermon introduced by Baptist services under the direction of a Methodist chaplain in an Episcopal church." I don't think that ever happened today, but I just have to say the camaraderie that existed then could not possibly exist today because of the fractured nature of the church and the abysmal ignorance of most people concerning Bible doctrine.

Now, these men worked together and they helped each other, even in the placement of new converts. When Presbyterian pastor Beverly Tucker Lacy had some converts who insisted that immersion was the proper way to be baptized, you know what the Presbyterian pastor did? He contacted Baptist pastor and chaplain Webb and brought the converts to him to baptize, and he very quickly and thankfully baptized those converts who were converted under Presbyterian preaching. After he had baptized them, listen to this, Brother Webb finished baptizing the converts and he said to Dr. Lacy, "Brother Lacy," notice that, "Brother Lacy, you remind me of a hen setting on duck eggs. She carefully nurses the eggs until the little ducks appear and diligently watches over and cares for them. But someday she goes near the water and the whole brood of little ducks plunge in while she is standing on the bank clucking." I want you to listen to Pastor Lacy's response. Listen. "Yes," said Brother Lacy, "I cannot follow them in."

"But I go with them to the water's edge. And I receive them with open arms when they come out, and I'm ever ready to hail them as my spiritual children and do all in my power to help them serve our common Master and reach the home of our common heavenly Father above." I'm simply saying these men worked together. Again, it was Pastor Lacy who wrote to the Central Presbyterian from the Army of Northern Virginia, and he said this, "Since my arrival at the present location, about a thousand have professed faith in Christ and more than two thousand are earnestly inquiring the way of salvation."

The Need for Godly Preachers and Revival Today

Weaver laments the compromising pulpit and calls for men who will preach the law and gospel, endure hardship, and seek God for revival. He applies Psalm 44:4 as a prayer: 'Do it again, O Lord.'

Another chaplain reported in the Second and Third Corps alone, men are being converted at the rate of 200 per week. And the work is widening and deepening so far as men can judge. The chaplain was corrected in his judgment in order to illustrate his sentiments. Listen to A. E. Dickinson, Richmond, Virginia. He wrote this. "I wish all the members of our churches could be here and hear how fervently the soldiers pray that the revival of religion in the army may reach the churches at home, that their brethren at home may be turned from their sins of extortion and speculation, and that all may be brought to humble themselves before God." Wow. W. W. Bennett, in his book, "The Great Revival of the Southern Armies," based upon chaplains' reports, and based upon first-hand knowledge, said that there was a minimum of 150,000 soldiers converted during this time.

Stop and think about that. 150,000. Have you ever wondered what type of man could be qualified to preach to soldiers? I can assure you one thing, it would not be a lazy man. It would not be a wimpy man. It would not be an effeminate man. J. William Jones sent word to churches to get men for chaplains. Here's what he wrote. "Send us names of good men, and here I repeat, we want none others. Our object being not merely to fill up the regiments with nominal chaplains, but to fill the vacancies with efficient working men. We want effective gospel preachers whose burden shall be Christ and him crucified. It is a common mistake that anyone will do to preach to soldiers. The great business of the chaplain is to preach Christ publicly and from tent to tent, and the temporal welfare of the soldier should be made subordinate to this. We want men physically able as well as willing to endure hardships and privations."

"If a chaplain would live up to the full measure of his usefulness, he must be with his regiment on the weary march, frequently resigning his horse to some footsore soldier, lie with them around the bivouac fire after evening prayers or prayer, be drenched on the outpost, or face the pelting snowstorm, divide with some hungry soldier his last hard cracker, and in a word, share with his regiment whatsoever hardships they may be called on to endure." "Now, if a brother is physically unable to endure these hardships, he'd best not enter the work, but there is no question that many a delicate brother would have his health permanently improved if he would thus learn to endure hardness as a good soldier." Why? He said, don't you just send us anybody? You're mistaken if you think just anybody can preach to a soldier. I've got news for you. Not just anybody can preach to people.

You say, well, yes, they can. No, no, no, they cannot. Some men are just not physically able to do so. Some men are not mentally stable enough to do so. Some are not emotionally stable to do so. But it was straight gospel preaching that God used to awaken these men to their need of Jesus Christ. It was the preaching of the law that awakened them to their sins and the preaching of the gospel that showed them the remedy for their sins. It was the preaching of justification by faith and the atonement of shed blood that answered the question,

"What must I do to be saved?" Those old Puritans had it right when they said the sharp needle of the law must precede the scarlet thread of the gospel. If a man does not recognize he's a sinner, he's in no position to be saved. Jesus Christ said he came to seek and to save that which was lost. And if you're not lost, you don't qualify for salvation. I want to submit something to you. I want you to think about this. We're in a desperate state in this nation. And I believe that one of our greatest needs happens to be godly preachers. I would even say that the problems that we're in in this country are a result of a compromising pulpit. The preachers are not crying out against sin and wickedness. They're not crying out against corruption in Washington, in the state capitals. No, no, no, no.

Everybody today wants to go along just simply to get along. Everybody today wants their share of the pie. And if you rock the boat, you can't get your share of the pie. It's an interesting thing that in the 1860s as well as in the 1700s, those revolutionary preachers, they knew the word of God and they knew how to preach it and they knew how to stand and they knew how to apply the word of God. We've lost all of that today. Folks are ashamed of Jesus Christ. They're ashamed of the gospel. I preached a message last week, which I entitled "The Afflictions of the Gospel." The gospel is not afflicted, but you know, it's interesting, the Apostle Paul said in 2 Timothy, chapter one, verse seven, "But God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." We quote that verse all the time. But the next verse, Paul told Timothy, "Be not thou ashamed of the gospel, nor of me his prisoner." And the word "fear" in the Greek means timidity, cowardice. God has not given us a spirit of timidity. God has not given us a spirit of cowardice. And he said, if you're ashamed of me, if you're ashamed of the gospel, something's wrong, said the Apostle Paul. You need to be a partaker of the afflictions of the gospel. That's what he said in verse eight. What are the afflictions of the gospel?

Being hated, being despised, being looked down upon, being frowned upon. You say, well, you know, I'm just ashamed of that. Well, I got news for you. What's going to happen in Mark chapter 8 and verse 38, when our Lord said, "Whosoever shall be ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed when he cometh with the glory of his Father and all of his angels." Yes, our Lord said, if you're ashamed of me, I'm going to be ashamed of you. What we need today is what they had in the 1860s. We need men who are going to preach and teach the word of God and seek God for a real, genuine revival.

Now, I've got two other things I want to share with you. The first one is this. I do not suppose that there could be any greater compliment to Southern soldiers than that which came from a Yankee chaplain. The Yankee chaplain was trying to inform his people about their enemies. And here's what he said. "You may call this fanaticism, enthusiasm, or what you will, but remember, you're fighting an enemy that comes from its closet to the battlefield, that comes from its knees in prayer to engage in deadly strife, that comes in the belief that the battles are the battles of Jehovah, that his smile is resting upon its banner and will ensure success. What power to make every man a hero and every man, if needed, be a martyr." He said, you don't understand the people you're facing. These people pray. They trust God. These people understand what it means to fight. You know something? I've often said this, and I want you to look back in your Bible, Psalm 44. But I want you to understand this.

We will never regain our history. We will never regain our culture. We'll never regain our heritage until we come back to the foundation on which this country was built and the foundation of our Confederate ancestors. I'm serious. You just heard about Jeb Stuart, Jeb's favorite hymn was "Rock of Ages." General Ewell, "What a Firm Foundation." These men understood truth. I want you to look at this. I just shared with you what God did during the Confederacy, during that horrible war. I want you to watch. Here's an application. The psalmist said in verse one of Psalm 44, "We've heard with our ears, O God.

Our fathers have told us what work thou didst in their days and times of old." So we've been informed, we know what God has done. Look in verse two, he explains, "How thou didst drive out the heathen with thine hand"—that is, God gave the victory—"and plantedst them," that would be Israel. "How thou didst afflict the people," the heathen, "and cast them out. For they," Israel, "got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them, but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favor unto them."

Now note what he's saying. God, you are the one that gave the victory. Yes, they fought, but you were the one that made their fighting effectual. You were the one, Lord, that gave the grace and the mercy and the strength. You gave everything.

Now look at verse four. "Thou art my king, O God, command deliverances for Jacob." Let me just summarize that for you. Here's what he said. "Thou art my king, O God, do it again. Do it again. You've done it in times past. Do it again." We need men who will preach and pray. Do it again, O Lord. You've done it in times past. Whitefield, Jonathan Edwards.

The great revival in the Confederacy. Do it again, O Lord. Command deliverances for thy people. Father, help us, we pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Give us your grace, give us your mercy, give us your kindness. And Lord, help us to love thee, to live for thee, to honor thee, to glorify thee, and to stand, and having done all, to stand. In the name of Jesus Christ, we ask and pray. Amen.

Study Guide

Major Themes

God's Sovereignty in History and Battle

Summary: God ordained the time of death and gave victory; the South's endurance was a miracle of divine grace, not merely human effort.

Evidence: Jackson said, 'God has ordained the time of my death.' Psalm 44:3: 'They got not the land in possession by their own sword... but thy right hand.'

Theological Roots of the Civil War

Summary: The war was fundamentally a theological conflict between Northern atheism/liberalism and Southern Christianity, with abolitionism as a symptom.

Evidence: Thornwell quote: 'The parties... are atheists, socialists, communists... on the one side... and the Friends of Order... on the other.'

Christian Courage in the Face of Death

Summary: Genuine conversion removes fear of death, making Christians fearless soldiers who fight on principle and are ready to die.

Evidence: Captain Harrison: 'You're right, gentlemen, everything is settled for eternity and I have nothing to fear.'

The Necessity of Genuine Revival

Summary: The Confederate revivals produced lasting conversions and spiritual strength; America today needs a similar work of God through bold preaching.

Evidence: J. William Jones found only three out of 410 baptized not living for the Lord after the war.

Interdenominational Cooperation for the Gospel

Summary: Chaplains worked together across denominational lines, prioritizing the gospel over sectarian differences.

Evidence: Presbyterian Lacy brought converts to Baptist Webb for immersion; Webb joked about a hen setting on duck eggs.

The Call for Bold, Suffering Preachers

Summary: Effective ministry requires men who are physically and spiritually tough, willing to endure hardship and preach Christ crucified without compromise.

Evidence: J. William Jones: 'We want effective gospel preachers whose burden shall be Christ and him crucified... physically able as well as willing to endure hardships.'

Key Arguments

The South's four-year survival was miraculous and attributable to divine revival.

Summary: Given the North's overwhelming advantages, the South's endurance can only be explained by God's intervention through revivals that produced fearless, principled soldiers.

Evidence: Weaver asks, 'Why in the world did the South hold out for four years?' and answers with the revivals and God's enabling.

Theological apostasy in the North caused the war.

Summary: A shift to rationalism and transcendentalism in Northern churches led to cultural change and the desire to impose that culture on the South, making the war theological at root.

Evidence: Weaver states, 'the war was sparked by a theological revolution in the north... you always have a theological shift before you have a cultural shift.'

Genuine Christian conversion produces fearlessness in battle.

Summary: Those who are truly saved have no fear of death because they know they will be with Christ, making them better soldiers.

Evidence: Hedley Vicars quote: 'For who should fight so fearlessly and bravely as those to whom death presents no after terrors?'

The Confederate revivals were marked by authentic, lasting conversions.

Summary: The high perseverance rate of converts baptized by J. William Jones demonstrates the genuineness of the work of God during the war.

Evidence: Jones 'only found three who were not living for the Lord' out of all surviving baptized converts.

Chaplains were essential and often fought alongside soldiers.

Summary: Chaplains not only ministered spiritually but also physically fought, understanding that civil tyranny is as wicked as spiritual tyranny.

Evidence: Chaplain Tichenor killed a colonel, a major, and four privates while preaching and fighting at Shiloh.

Modern America needs a return to bold, doctrinal preaching and prayer for revival.

Summary: The compromising pulpit is a major cause of national problems; only a return to the gospel of Christ and the example of the Confederate chaplains can bring revival.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'We will never regain our history... until we come back to the foundation... of our Confederate ancestors.'

Scripture References

Psalm 44:1-4

Context: Opening Scripture reading and later application: God gave victory in the past; the psalmist prays 'do it again.'

1 Timothy 6:5

Context: William S. Plumer warned that if the assembly declared slaveholding a sin, Southern churches would withdraw per this verse.

Nehemiah 4:14

Context: Nehemiah's command to remember the Lord and fight for families illustrates the Southern soldier's resolve.

1 Corinthians 16:13

Context: Command to 'quit ye like men, be strong' applied to Christian soldiers fighting on principle.

2 Corinthians 5:8

Context: Paul's confidence that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord removes fear of death.

Philippians 1:21-24

Context: Paul's desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better, exemplifies Christian readiness to die.

2 Timothy 1:7-8

Context: God has not given a spirit of fear; believers are not to be ashamed of the gospel but partake in its afflictions.

Mark 8:38

Context: Warning that if we are ashamed of Christ, He will be ashamed of us at His coming.

Historical References

John Henry Thornwell

Context: Prominent Presbyterian who framed the war as Christianity vs. atheism.

Charles Hodge

Context: Eminent Presbyterian theologian who predicted abolitionism would lead to disunion.

William S. Plumer

Context: Warned in 1837 that church split would lead to national bloodshed.

Dabney Carr Harrison

Context: Pastor and captain who died at Fort Donelson, crying 'Never surrender.'

Lewis Coleman

Context: Colonel fatally wounded at Fredericksburg who said, 'see how a Christian soldier can die.'

Stonewall Jackson

Context: Said his religious belief taught him to be as safe in battle as in bed.

J. William Jones

Context: Chaplain and author of 'Christ in the Camp'; baptized 410 men with remarkable perseverance.

Chaplain I. T. Tichenor

Context: Preached a sermon during the Battle of Shiloh and fought, killing several enemies.

Beverly Tucker Lacy

Context: Presbyterian pastor who cooperated with Baptist chaplain Webb to baptize converts by immersion.

W. W. Bennett

Context: Author of 'The Great Revival of the Southern Armies,' estimated 150,000 soldiers converted.

Important Quotes

The parties in this conflict are not merely abolitionists and slaveholders. They are atheists, socialists, communists, Red Republicans, and Jacobins on the one side—that's the North—and the Friends of Order and Regulated Freedom on the other. In one word, the world is the battleground, Christianity and atheism the combatants, and the progress of humanity is at stake.

Significance: John Henry Thornwell's quote frames the war as a cosmic spiritual conflict, central to Weaver's thesis.

I die content and happy, trusting in the merits of my Savior Jesus, committing my wife and children to their father and mine.

Significance: Captain Dabney Carr Harrison's dying words show the peace of a Christian soldier.

Tell General Jackson and General Lee, they know how Christian soldiers can fight. I wish that they were here now, so that they could see how a Christian soldier can die.

Significance: Colonel Lewis Coleman's charge highlights the testimony of a faithful death.

We want effective gospel preachers whose burden shall be Christ and him crucified. It is a common mistake that anyone will do to preach to soldiers.

Significance: J. William Jones' call for qualified chaplains underscores the need for bold, capable ministers.

You may call this fanaticism, enthusiasm, or what you will, but remember, you're fighting an enemy that comes from its closet to the battlefield, that comes from its knees in prayer to engage in deadly strife, that comes in the belief that the battles are the battles of Jehovah.

Significance: A Yankee chaplain's tribute to the spiritual power of the Confederate soldier.

Thou art my king, O God, command deliverances for Jacob.

Significance: Psalm 44:4 applied as a prayer for God to repeat past revivals.

Discussion Questions

How does the theological interpretation of the Civil War presented here challenge or confirm your understanding of the conflict?

Context: Weaver argues the war was sparked by a theological revolution in the North.

In what ways does a genuine Christian conversion remove the fear of death, and how should that affect our daily lives?

Context: Examples of Harrison, Coleman, and Jackson show fearlessness rooted in faith.

What can we learn from the interdenominational cooperation among Confederate chaplains, and how might it apply to churches today?

Context: Presbyterian Lacy and Baptist Webb worked together for the gospel.

Why does Weaver emphasize that 'not just anybody can preach to soldiers,' and what qualities does he say are necessary for effective ministry?

Context: J. William Jones' letter calls for physically and spiritually tough preachers.

How does the perseverance of converts during the Confederate revival compare to modern conversion statistics, and what does that imply about the nature of revival?

Context: J. William Jones found only three out of 410 not living for the Lord after the war.

What does it mean to 'partake of the afflictions of the gospel' (2 Timothy 1:8), and why is being ashamed of the gospel a sign of spiritual timidity?

Context: Weaver applies 2 Timothy 1:7-8 to modern preachers.

How can we pray and work toward the kind of revival described in this sermon, and what role does bold preaching of law and gospel play?

Context: Weaver concludes with a call to pray 'Do it again, O Lord' based on Psalm 44.

Applications

Trust in God's Sovereignty Over Life and Death

Summary: Believers should live without fear of death, knowing God has ordained their time and that to die is gain.

Evidence: Jackson's statement: 'God has ordained the time of my death... I should always be ready.'

Boldness in Gospel Preaching

Summary: Preachers must not be ashamed of the gospel but willing to endure affliction and preach Christ crucified without compromise.

Evidence: Weaver's application of 2 Timothy 1:7-8 and call for men who will 'preach and teach the word of God.'

Prayer for Revival

Summary: Believers should pray that God would repeat the mighty works of past revivals, using Psalm 44:4 as a model.

Evidence: Weaver's closing prayer: 'Do it again, O Lord. Command deliverances for thy people.'

Cooperation Across Denominational Lines

Summary: Churches and ministers should prioritize the gospel and work together, rejoicing in others' success for the kingdom.

Evidence: Example of Lacy and Webb; Weaver's statement: 'I don't care who he uses, just so he does it.'

Endurance in Hardship for Ministry

Summary: Those called to ministry must be willing to share in the hardships of those they serve, physically and spiritually.

Evidence: J. William Jones' description of a chaplain's duties: 'share with his regiment whatsoever hardships.'

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-04T18:28:30Z

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | weaver_study | 2026-06-05T20:40:49Z

Clean Transcript

Great Revival in the Confederate Armies

Clean readable transcript. This view follows the Commentary.net cleaned segment text while preserving timestamps for audio follow-along.

All right, let's open our Bibles, if you would please, to Psalm 44. Psalm 44. And we're going to read a few verses and go from there. This message is going to be on the great revival in the Confederate Army. And, Lord willing, the message this afternoon, since I had so many questions yesterday, I'm going to be bringing a message on the biblical doctrine of self-defense, with a lot of history involved in that as well. And then, Lord willing, tomorrow I'll be speaking on the world in times of Jesse James. So let's look in Psalm 44, verse 1.
#1 | 0:00 to 0:41 | cleaned
Scripture says, "We've heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us what work thou didst in their days and times of old. How thou didst drive out the heathen with thine hand and plantedst them; and how thou didst afflict the people and cast them out. For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them, but thy right hand and thine arm and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favor unto them. Thou art my king, O God."
#2 | 0:41 to 1:11 | cleaned
"Command deliverances for Jacob." When one considers the war of northern aggression, we must conclude that there's just about no parallel in history concerning this war. The amount of land mass that's been involved, the number of troops that were involved, the devastation, the battles, the sieges, the marches, the contending armies, and even the soldiers themselves with the enthusiasm of those soldiers, the conquests, and the men themselves, I think, make this period of time extremely unique. And many have studied this war from every conceivable angle, except mainly the spiritual angle. Certainly, the economics were involved, states' rights were involved, so many other things as well. But America was in a great period of decline, spiritually speaking, from the 1830s through the 1850s.
#3 | 1:11 to 2:04 | cleaned
Churches were dissolving their bands, denominations were breaking up, and generally speaking, it did not look good for the nation. Many statesmen understood that if the churches could not hold together, the nation would not hold together. There's a book, I think it's entitled the book, "Broken Churches, Broken Nation." And you can find a lot of information in that book as well. But it may surprise people to learn that basically prior to the war, most denominations were national. In other words, there was no division basically between the north and the south. And the north and the south usually would cooperate just simply along the lines of Christianity, even though there may be denominational differences as well.
#4 | 2:05 to 2:53 | cleaned
But the reason they could do that was because at that time, each church at least believed that the Bible was the word of God, and they at least confessed faith in the Lord Jesus Christ alone. However, after abolitionism, transcendentalism, modernism, liberalism slipped into the churches' denominations, there was no longer any basis of cooperation between the North and the South, particularly. In fact, the rift became so great that many did indeed say that it was a theological war. Here's a quote that everyone probably has heard, but it still points out the fact that there was a theological aspect.
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And this was from John Henry Thornwell. Thornwell said this, John Henry Thornwell, prominent Presbyterian, showing the difference between the north and the south, said this: "The parties in this conflict are not merely abolitionists and slaveholders. They are atheists, socialists, communists, Red Republicans, and Jacobins on the one side—that's the North—and the Friends of Order and Regulated Freedom on the other. In one word, the world is the battleground, Christianity and atheism the combatants, and the progress of humanity is at stake." And so here we just simply drew the line saying you got the north and the south and the north is atheistic and the south is Christian.
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Now the truth of the matter is the war was sparked by a theological revolution in the north. I mentioned this yesterday because they turned to rationalism, they turned to transcendentalism, they turned to universalism, and of course, I think the spiritual aspect of the war is just as valid as the economic aspect and the state's rights aspect as well. But many still have not perceived, as I mentioned yesterday, that you always have a theological shift before you have a cultural shift. And since the theology in the North changed, their culture changed, their way of thinking changed, and consequently they wanted to impress that upon the South as well. And that is basically what happened during that war. And even after the war, Reconstruction was simply nothing less than a military enforcement of that culture upon the South. By the way, I don't know if you understand this or not, but back in, I think it was in the 60s in Georgia, one more Reconstruction law was finally done away with because the South could not even send goods north without a tax.
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That was finally eliminated in the 1960s. And even today, there is still reconstruction in the South because the South cannot redistrict their voting districts without approval from the Justice Department. Let that sink in. Northern states do not have to have approval, but the South does. So in order to grasp the state of the churches at the time of this war, you've got to consider the fact of all the churches that were splitting.
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The Presbyterian Church split first in 1837. And then there was a second split in 1857. While there were other issues involved, abolitionism certainly was an issue. The Methodist Episcopal Church split in 1844. Again, abolitionism was the issue. And then the Baptists split in 1845. Again, abolitionism was an issue there as well. It may surprise a lot of people to discover that there were no Southern Baptists until after 1845. So the churches then were basically splitting over abolitionism.
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Now, it was Charles Hodge, who was the eminent Presbyterian theologian, who observed, and listen to what he said, that abolitionism must operate to produce the disunion of the states and the division of all ecclesiastical societies. We shall become two nations in feeling which must soon render us two nations in fact. So here, Charles Hodge is saying it's not going to be long before the nation is going to split. I suppose one of the greatest warnings that was ever given to the nation was by William S. Plumer on the eve of the first split in the Presbyterian Church. He said this, listen carefully. He said, should the assembly legislate and decide that slaveholding is a sin, which it's not, but he said, should the assembly legislate, decide that slaveholding is a sin, the southern churches would feel themselves instructed by the Apostle Paul to withdraw from such, 1 Timothy 6:5.
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Thus, our church would be rent asunder, then nothing left except to rend the star-spangled banner in twain. Soon the Potomac will be dyed with blood. Can it be that the righteous judge of all the earth has so dreadful a controversy with the Presbyterian Church of the United States as to give her up to the folly and madness of being the first to hoist the gate and let the flood of destruction roll in?
#11 | 7:45 to 8:12 | cleaned
This was just 24 years before the war, and notice what he said. Thus our church would be rent asunder, nothing left except to rend the star-spangled banner in twain. And soon, the Potomac will be dyed with blood. It was a correspondent of the Charleston Mercury, Charleston, South Carolina, who wrote in 1845 when the Baptist split and the Southern Baptist Convention was formed, they said this, "From all appearance, the separation of the church is inevitable."
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We could hope for otherwise, but so it is, and we must submit. When we are forced out of the church by Northern fanatics, we shall next be forced out of the Union by the same nefarious acts. That was 1845. So they said, since we've been forced out of the church, now we're going to be forced out of the Union. I could multiply quotes, but I think you can see that America was not in a great spiritual revival during this period of time. In fact, it was a spiritual decline.
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Now, one amazing truth to me is the fact that the South, during the war, held out for four years. Just stop and think about this. The war went on for four years. When you consider the fact that Abraham Lincoln called for 75,000 volunteers for only three months, because it was going to be a piece of cake to whip the Southern people and bring them back in line. And so when you had the Battle of First Manassas, there were people from Washington, D.C. came out in their carriages, in their wagons with picnic lunches to sit around and watch the North whip the South.
#14 | 9:16 to 9:59 | cleaned
But of course, it didn't turn out that way. And the Yankees then threw down their weaponry and ran back as fast as they could to Washington, D.C. And the picnic baskets were strewn all the way back as they were running away as well. I'm just simply pointing out the fact that people thought it was going to be a piece of cake.
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Now, when you stop and realize there are over 20 million people in the North and 5 million in the South, and some of those were slaves, you have to understand, oh, we were outnumbered 4 or 5 to 1. Then you have to remember that all of the manufacturing was in the North. You have to remember that most of the economic—economically, the North was far superior. The money was in the North, so to speak. The North had the Army. The North had the Navy. The South had absolutely nothing. And the South had to start from scratch. And so, to me, it's absolutely a miracle that the South held out for four years as long as it did.
#16 | 10:18 to 10:59 | cleaned
So we have to ask this question. Why in the world did the South hold out for four years like this? You may answer and say, well, we had better generals than the North. Well, that's certainly true. We did have better generals than the North did. And you could also say, well, we had better fighters. We had better men, better soldiers. That is certainly true as well. But I think there's other answers as well. It's not just that we had better generals. It's not just that we had better men fighting. It's not just that we were in a defensive position and we were fighting for our hearth and our homes. That is the truth.
#17 | 10:59 to 11:34 | cleaned
But I think another reason is the fact that during this time, God sent at least two great revivals during that horrible time of war in the Confederate armies. And during this time, there were multitudes literally swept into the kingdom of God. We have to understand something. It's God who gives us strength. It's God who gives us courage. It's God who enables us to stand. It's God who does things for us, who enable us to withstand all of the wickedness and everything else and make us determined to stand for truth and righteousness and holiness and godliness. And certainly, once you have those convictions in your heart and in your mind, then it solidifies you and enables you to stand.
#18 | 11:34 to 12:21 | cleaned
That's why a lot of the Southern men would take the attitude, bring it on. Not that they wanted the war. But they knew that they were not going to compromise. They were not going to give up. They were not going to quit. It's just that simple. You remember when Nehemiah was threatened with an attack in Nehemiah chapter 4 and verse 14.
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Here's what he said to his people: "Be not ye afraid of them. Remember the Lord who is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your houses." Remember the Lord, he said. In other words, remember, he is the one who gives us that courage and that strength. And you fight for your houses, you fight for your wives, you fight for your children.
#20 | 12:44 to 13:06 | cleaned
And then the passage in 1 Corinthians, chapter 16, verse 13, where God commands us, "Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit ye like men, be strong." Do you understand that historically Christians have always made the better fighters? Why? Because they were fighting based upon principles. And they were willing to die for those principles. And moreover, they knew they were ready to die. The truth of the matter is this. Those men who were unafraid to die always make the better fighter and the better soldier. Oliver Cromwell gathered Christian men who marched into battle singing psalms and hymns.
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Their watchword was the Lord of Hosts, and whose determination was to conquer or die. Cromwell said, truly, I think he that prays and preaches best will fight the best. It was Hedley Vicars, who was also an excellent Christian soldier, he wrote, "I have often heard it said, the worse the man, the better the soldier." However, he said, "facts contradict this untruth. Were I ever, as a leader of a forlorn hope, allowed to select my men, it would most certainly be from among the soldiers of Christ. For who should fight so fearlessly and bravely as those to whom death presents no after terrors?" And certainly the South, I believe, understood this because God sent this great awakening during this time.
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Even the North recognized the fierceness and the bravery and the fearlessness of Southern troops. Here's an excellent quote. It has been said that there is nothing more ferocious than a band of brigands led by vicious cutthroats, except it be a company of Scottish Presbyterians rising from their knees in prayer to do battle with a firm conviction that what they are about to do is the will of God. Isn't that amazing? Wow.
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Captain Dabney Carr Harrison, who was a pastor, a professor, a chaplain and a soldier, was told by some of his men that he should be braver than they were. And he had already exhibited that bravery. And so he asked, "Why should I be more brave than anyone else?" And they answered, "Because you have everything settled for eternity and you're not afraid to die." Captain Harrison said, "You're right, gentlemen, everything is settled for eternity and I have nothing to fear."
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And he proved that at the Battle of Fort Donelson, because three balls went through his hat without harming him. A fourth ball cut his temple, and the fifth ball went into his right lung, which later proved to be fatal. However, before he died on February the 16th, 1862, on Sunday, he said this, "I die content and happy, trusting in the merits of my Savior Jesus, committing my wife and children to their father and mine." After a while, he laid back and went to sleep.
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And all of a sudden, he sat erect in the bed and with a loud voice cried, "Company K, you have no captain now. Never surrender. Never give up." And with that, they lowered him back in bed. And a few minutes later, he passed away in the arms of the Lord. So my question is this, what in the world can an enemy do with someone who will not give up even when they're dying? Here's a man was concerned about his men, even though, basically speaking, he was dying.
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It was Colonel Lewis Coleman who was fatally wounded at Fredericksburg. He lingered 98 days before he died. He gave charges to all of those who were around him. He thanked his loving wife and his children and gave orders. And he said this, "Tell General Jackson and General Lee, they know how Christian soldiers can fight. I wish that they were here now, so that they could see how a Christian soldier can die." And with that, he died, trusting in the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ. You see, someone who does not know and understand the power and conviction of the converting grace of God does not think this truth is significant. But once you've been saved by the grace of God and the principles of God are sunk deeply into your heart and you understand the truth of 2 Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 8, when the Apostle Paul said that clearly, clearly that once we die, we are with the Lord. That is it. What fear is going to be in the mind of a real, genuine child of God, because he understands to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.
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You remember that passage in the book of Philippians, chapter one, when the apostle Paul was in prison facing the axman going to have his head cut off? Well, he didn't at that particular time, but he wrote the Philippians and he said this: "For me to live is Christ and to die is gain. But if I live in the flesh, the Lord lets me live, this is the fruit of my labor."
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"Yet what I shall choose, I know not." Now, listen to what he said. "For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better"—and you can put in parentheses "for me." And then he said, "Nevertheless, to abide in the flesh is more needful for you." So Paul said it's far better for me if I die, because I'll be with the Lord. But if the Lord does not allow me to die, he said, I'm going to live and I'm going to do that which is right, and I will serve him still. So understandably, the Apostle Paul was not afraid to die. At First Manassas.
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Jackson received a very painful wound in his hand, and he remained calm and deliberate, directing his troops. A few days later, after that battle, it was Captain John Imboden who came to him and asked Major Jackson, "How is it that you remained so calm and so collected and so utterly insensitive to danger in such a storm of shell and bullets as rained about you when your hand was hit?" Jackson looked at Imboden and said, "Captain, my religious belief teaches me to be as safe in battle as in bed."
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"God has ordained the time of my death. I'm not to be concerned with that. I'm to be concerned that I should always be ready whenever it may happen." And then he looked and said, "Captain, if all men believed this, then all men would be equally brave." God in his grace sent great revivals during that time of horrible devastation. There were many who were converted. I've had some people say, "Well, Pastor, let me tell you something. If I was facing death on a daily basis, why—"
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"I'd make a decision for Jesus Christ, too." Well, first of all, these were not decisions. These were genuine conversions. And secondly, you do face death on a daily basis. You don't know when you're going to die. Neither do I. I'm just simply saying, we do face death on a daily basis.
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Thirdly, I want to give you an illustration of the genuineness of these conversions. J. William Jones, who wrote the book "Christ in the Camp," who was a pastor, who was a chaplain during the Confederacy, he baptized 410 men. After the war, he followed up on those men and visited with them. And listen to this. Out of all that survived that war, all that he baptized, he only found three who were not living for the Lord. There is no pastor and there is no church today that has that kind of persevering converts, none whatsoever. These were real, genuine converts. I want to give you some quotes just to show you what was happening.
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A writer from the Second Palmetto Regiment in the Southern Christian Advocate says this, "God's hand was in the great achievement. And I believe that the most irreligious man in our Patriot Army will frankly acknowledge the fact. So evident was it. It is believed an improvement has since taken place in the morals of our troops. At least I can say as much for this regiment. While during the campaign we have occupied the advance post, the post of honor and danger, and this for weeks, in the very face of the enemy, God has given us a grateful sense of security."
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Now listen, "our religious services have gone on. Even while interrupted by the booming cannon and bursting shell, lying in our trenches, expecting every moment that the storm would break in all of its fury upon us, we worship God." Can you imagine worshipping the Lord with bombs bursting all around you? I remember reading in one of the books, I don't remember if it was J. William Jones' book or W. W. Bennett's book, they were having a church service and the cannon was booming off in the distance, and the men were sitting on stumps and on logs, and the preacher was preaching.
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And he stopped in the middle of his sermon and said, "Gentlemen, I think we need to move over here." And they just all got up and moved. And just as he started back preaching, a cannonball hit right where they were. I'm just simply saying these people worship God in such a devastating environment. He goes on. "In another instance, it is reported that during a skirmish, some of our men were ordered to the front as sharpshooters and directed to lie on the ground and load and fire as rapidly as possible. After a short time, the ammunition of one of these men was expended."
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"And though his position was very dangerous, as it was, it would have been certain death for him to try to procure a fresh supply. In this condition," says an eyewitness, "this soldier drew from his pocket his Bible, and while the balls were whizzing about him and cutting the grass at his side, he quietly read the precious pages for a few minutes and then closed his eyes in prayer." He just read the Bible and was praying while the bullets were whizzing all around him.
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Can you imagine someone like that? Such composure and such contentment cannot be explained except by the grace of God.
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Now, there were numerous helps during these revivals, that is for sure. There were colporteurs who sold and gave away books. There was hospital work. There were missionaries. There were godly officers. Everyone knows about Lee and Jackson and Stuart and Ewell. Yes. But many of the godly chaplains labored under strenuous loads and some not only preached and prayed and counseled and healed, but they also fought. And they were absolutely despised by the Yankees. Why? Because the Yankees thought that the preachers were the instruments of the rebellion.
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In fact, one Yankee critic said it like this. Listen carefully. This might fit some of us. He said, "The most unmitigated set of villains that they have in the South are the Methodists, the Baptists, the Presbyterian and Episcopalian preachers all talking secession, drinking mean liquor, and advocating the cause of Jeff Davis and the devil." Can you imagine? These are the worst case of villains that you've got. Or the Methodists, the Baptists, the Presbyterians, and the Episcopalians. Wow. When Chaplain T. D.
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Witherspoon of the 42nd Mississippi Regiment was captured at Gettysburg, and the reason he was captured at Gettysburg was he refused to leave the dying and the wounded. He could have escaped. He could have gotten away. But he said, "No, I'm here to minister to the dying and to the wounded." And so they captured him. And Yankee Colonel Fish then demanded that this preacher be thrown into a dungeon where there were drunks and deserters. When the lieutenant was given the order to throw the preacher into that dungeon, the lieutenant looked at the officer and he said this, "But this man is a minister of the gospel."
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"Surely you won't send him there." Colonel Fish shot back and he said this, "Why not? The preachers are more to blame for this war than any other. The best thing that we could do would be to hang a few of them when we capture them." That was the idea. But regardless of all the dangers, these chaplains persevered. They preached and they prayed and they even fought. It was Chaplain I. T.
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Tichenor of the 17th Alabama Regiment who gave this report on the Battle of Shiloh. Listen to what he said. "During this engagement, we were under a crossfire on the left wing from three directions. Under it, the boys wavered. I'd been wearied and was sitting down, but seeing them waver, I sprang to my feet, took off my hat, waved it over my head, walked up and down the line and preached them a sermon."
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"I reminded them it was Sunday, that at that hour, 11:30, all their home folks were praying for them. And that Tom Watts, governor and former regimental commander, had told us he would listen with an eager ear to hear from the 17th. And shouting the Lord's name, in his name, over the roar of the battle, I called upon them to stand there and die, if need be, for their country. The effect was evident."
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"Every man stood to his post, every eye flashed, every heart beat high with desperate resolve to conquer and die." Significantly, Chaplain Tichenor added, "The regiment had 13 killed, 117 wounded or missing, but the dead of the enemy in front was 352." The chaplain did not add what appeared in the newspaper account, that he himself fought with the coolness of a veteran, killing with his own rifle a colonel, a major, and four privates.
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So a lot of times these chaplains did indeed fight. It was Chaplain L. W. Allen said, "My speech to my men in the presence of the enemy is this, 'They're the Yankees, boys, our cause is just, trust in God and charge them.'" You see, the truth of the matter is these chaplains understood that civil tyranny was just as wicked as spiritual tyranny. It is true they wanted to deliver these men from sin and Satan, but it is also true they wanted to deliver them from civil tyranny as well. Tyranny is tyranny. And the pastors understood the absolute necessity of standing together on key issues. I've often said it's almost impossible to have today what these pastors and chaplains had during this particular time. They not only worked together, they were thankful and glad to see others prosper, even if they were not prospering themselves.
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Someone has asked me, "Would you like to be used by God to begin and start a great revival in this land?" And I said, "Most definitely." But I've got news for you. I don't care if God uses me or Brother—or Brother Lacey or Brother—I don't care who he uses, just so he does it. And I'm more than willing for someone else to prosper in that area. But, you know, most preachers today are just so absolutely jealous and so absolutely—if I can't benefit, if I can't get something out of it, if my church doesn't prosper, then I don't want to get involved in it—like little kids. If I can't have my way, I'll take my marbles and go home. It was not like that during the war. Dr. William J. Hoge wrote of his visit to Fredericksburg during the spring of 1863, during the revival in the Barksdale Mississippi Brigade.
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Listen to what he said. "The Reverend Dr. Burrows of the First Baptist Church, Richmond, was to preach that night, but as he would remain some days, and I could only stay a day, he courteously insisted on my preaching. And so, we had a Presbyterian sermon introduced by Baptist services under the direction of a Methodist chaplain in an Episcopal church." I don't think that ever happened today, but I just have to say the camaraderie that existed then could not possibly exist today because of the fractured nature of the church and the abysmal ignorance of most people concerning Bible doctrine.
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Now, these men worked together and they helped each other, even in the placement of new converts. When Presbyterian pastor Beverly Tucker Lacy had some converts who insisted that immersion was the proper way to be baptized, you know what the Presbyterian pastor did? He contacted Baptist pastor and chaplain Webb and brought the converts to him to baptize, and he very quickly and thankfully baptized those converts who were converted under Presbyterian preaching. After he had baptized them, listen to this, Brother Webb finished baptizing the converts and he said to Dr. Lacy, "Brother Lacy," notice that, "Brother Lacy, you remind me of a hen setting on duck eggs. She carefully nurses the eggs until the little ducks appear and diligently watches over and cares for them. But someday she goes near the water and the whole brood of little ducks plunge in while she is standing on the bank clucking." I want you to listen to Pastor Lacy's response. Listen. "Yes," said Brother Lacy, "I cannot follow them in."
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"But I go with them to the water's edge. And I receive them with open arms when they come out, and I'm ever ready to hail them as my spiritual children and do all in my power to help them serve our common Master and reach the home of our common heavenly Father above." I'm simply saying these men worked together. Again, it was Pastor Lacy who wrote to the Central Presbyterian from the Army of Northern Virginia, and he said this, "Since my arrival at the present location, about a thousand have professed faith in Christ and more than two thousand are earnestly inquiring the way of salvation."
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Another chaplain reported in the Second and Third Corps alone, men are being converted at the rate of 200 per week. And the work is widening and deepening so far as men can judge. The chaplain was corrected in his judgment in order to illustrate his sentiments. Listen to A. E. Dickinson, Richmond, Virginia. He wrote this. "I wish all the members of our churches could be here and hear how fervently the soldiers pray that the revival of religion in the army may reach the churches at home, that their brethren at home may be turned from their sins of extortion and speculation, and that all may be brought to humble themselves before God." Wow. W. W. Bennett, in his book, "The Great Revival of the Southern Armies," based upon chaplains' reports, and based upon first-hand knowledge, said that there was a minimum of 150,000 soldiers converted during this time.
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Stop and think about that. 150,000. Have you ever wondered what type of man could be qualified to preach to soldiers? I can assure you one thing, it would not be a lazy man. It would not be a wimpy man. It would not be an effeminate man. J. William Jones sent word to churches to get men for chaplains. Here's what he wrote. "Send us names of good men, and here I repeat, we want none others. Our object being not merely to fill up the regiments with nominal chaplains, but to fill the vacancies with efficient working men. We want effective gospel preachers whose burden shall be Christ and him crucified. It is a common mistake that anyone will do to preach to soldiers. The great business of the chaplain is to preach Christ publicly and from tent to tent, and the temporal welfare of the soldier should be made subordinate to this. We want men physically able as well as willing to endure hardships and privations."
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"If a chaplain would live up to the full measure of his usefulness, he must be with his regiment on the weary march, frequently resigning his horse to some footsore soldier, lie with them around the bivouac fire after evening prayers or prayer, be drenched on the outpost, or face the pelting snowstorm, divide with some hungry soldier his last hard cracker, and in a word, share with his regiment whatsoever hardships they may be called on to endure."
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"Now, if a brother is physically unable to endure these hardships, he'd best not enter the work, but there is no question that many a delicate brother would have his health permanently improved if he would thus learn to endure hardness as a good soldier." Why? He said, don't you just send us anybody? You're mistaken if you think just anybody can preach to a soldier. I've got news for you. Not just anybody can preach to people.
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You say, well, yes, they can. No, no, no, they cannot. Some men are just not physically able to do so. Some men are not mentally stable enough to do so. Some are not emotionally stable to do so. But it was straight gospel preaching that God used to awaken these men to their need of Jesus Christ. It was the preaching of the law that awakened them to their sins and the preaching of the gospel that showed them the remedy for their sins. It was the preaching of justification by faith and the atonement of shed blood that answered the question,
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"What must I do to be saved?" Those old Puritans had it right when they said the sharp needle of the law must precede the scarlet thread of the gospel. If a man does not recognize he's a sinner, he's in no position to be saved. Jesus Christ said he came to seek and to save that which was lost. And if you're not lost, you don't qualify for salvation.
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I want to submit something to you. I want you to think about this. We're in a desperate state in this nation. And I believe that one of our greatest needs happens to be godly preachers. I would even say that the problems that we're in in this country are a result of a compromising pulpit. The preachers are not crying out against sin and wickedness. They're not crying out against corruption in Washington, in the state capitals. No, no, no, no.
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Everybody today wants to go along just simply to get along. Everybody today wants their share of the pie. And if you rock the boat, you can't get your share of the pie. It's an interesting thing that in the 1860s as well as in the 1700s, those revolutionary preachers, they knew the word of God and they knew how to preach it and they knew how to stand and they knew how to apply the word of God. We've lost all of that today.
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Folks are ashamed of Jesus Christ. They're ashamed of the gospel. I preached a message last week, which I entitled "The Afflictions of the Gospel." The gospel is not afflicted, but you know, it's interesting, the Apostle Paul said in 2 Timothy, chapter one, verse seven, "But God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." We quote that verse all the time. But the next verse, Paul told Timothy, "Be not thou ashamed of the gospel, nor of me his prisoner." And the word "fear" in the Greek means timidity, cowardice. God has not given us a spirit of timidity. God has not given us a spirit of cowardice. And he said, if you're ashamed of me, if you're ashamed of the gospel, something's wrong, said the Apostle Paul. You need to be a partaker of the afflictions of the gospel. That's what he said in verse eight. What are the afflictions of the gospel?
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Being hated, being despised, being looked down upon, being frowned upon. You say, well, you know, I'm just ashamed of that. Well, I got news for you. What's going to happen in Mark chapter 8 and verse 38, when our Lord said, "Whosoever shall be ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed when he cometh with the glory of his Father and all of his angels." Yes, our Lord said, if you're ashamed of me, I'm going to be ashamed of you.
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What we need today is what they had in the 1860s. We need men who are going to preach and teach the word of God and seek God for a real, genuine revival.
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Now, I've got two other things I want to share with you. The first one is this. I do not suppose that there could be any greater compliment to Southern soldiers than that which came from a Yankee chaplain. The Yankee chaplain was trying to inform his people about their enemies. And here's what he said. "You may call this fanaticism, enthusiasm, or what you will, but remember, you're fighting an enemy that comes from its closet to the battlefield, that comes from its knees in prayer to engage in deadly strife, that comes in the belief that the battles are the battles of Jehovah, that his smile is resting upon
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its banner and will ensure success. What power to make every man a hero and every man, if needed, be a martyr." He said, you don't understand the people you're facing. These people pray. They trust God. These people understand what it means to fight. You know something? I've often said this, and I want you to look back in your Bible, Psalm 44. But I want you to understand this.
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We will never regain our history. We will never regain our culture. We'll never regain our heritage until we come back to the foundation on which this country was built and the foundation of our Confederate ancestors. I'm serious. You just heard about Jeb Stuart, Jeb's favorite hymn was "Rock of Ages." General Ewell, "What a Firm Foundation." These men understood truth. I want you to look at this. I just shared with you what God did during the Confederacy, during that horrible war. I want you to watch. Here's an application. The psalmist said in verse one of Psalm 44, "We've heard with our ears, O God.
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Our fathers have told us what work thou didst in their days and times of old." So we've been informed, we know what God has done. Look in verse two, he explains, "How thou didst drive out the heathen with thine hand"—that is, God gave the victory—"and plantedst them," that would be Israel. "How thou didst afflict the people," the heathen, "and cast them out. For they," Israel, "got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them, but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favor unto them."
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Now note what he's saying. God, you are the one that gave the victory. Yes, they fought, but you were the one that made their fighting effectual. You were the one, Lord, that gave the grace and the mercy and the strength. You gave everything.
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Now look at verse four. "Thou art my king, O God, command deliverances for Jacob." Let me just summarize that for you. Here's what he said. "Thou art my king, O God, do it again. Do it again. You've done it in times past. Do it again." We need men who will preach and pray. Do it again, O Lord. You've done it in times past. Whitefield, Jonathan Edwards.
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The great revival in the Confederacy. Do it again, O Lord. Command deliverances for thy people. Father, help us, we pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Give us your grace, give us your mercy, give us your kindness. And Lord, help us to love thee, to live for thee, to honor thee, to glorify thee, and to stand, and having done all, to stand. In the name of Jesus Christ, we ask and pray. Amen.
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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-04T18:28:30Z

Great Revival in the Confederate Armies

John Weaver | Freedom Ministries

John Weaver argues that the Confederate Army's ability to hold out for four years against overwhelming odds was due in large part to God sending great revivals among the troops. He traces the spiritual decline in America leading to the war, the theological split between North and South, and the role of godly chaplains and officers. The sermon emphasizes that genuine conversions produced fearless soldiers who trusted in God's sovereignty over life and death, and calls for a return to bold, doctrinal preaching and prayer for revival today.

Introduction and Scripture Reading

Weaver opens with Psalm 44:1-4, introducing the topic of the great revival in the Confederate Army and previewing upcoming messages on self-defense and the world of Jesse James.

The Uniqueness and Spiritual Decline of the War Era

The Civil War was unparalleled in scale, but America was in spiritual decline from the 1830s-1850s, with churches splitting over abolitionism and theological liberalism.

Theological Roots of the Conflict

The war was sparked by a theological revolution in the North, with rationalism and transcendentalism leading to cultural change. John Henry Thornwell framed it as Christianity vs. atheism.

Church Splits and Warnings of National Division

Presbyterians, Methodists, and Baptists split over abolitionism. Leaders like Charles Hodge and William S. Plumer warned that church division would lead to national disunion and bloodshed.

The Miracle of Southern Endurance

Despite being outnumbered and out-resourced, the South held out for four years. Weaver attributes this to better generals, better soldiers, defensive position, and especially God-sent revivals.

Christian Courage and Readiness to Die

Christians make better fighters because they are unafraid to die, knowing death means being with Christ. Examples include Dabney Carr Harrison, Lewis Coleman, and Stonewall Jackson.

Scripture Reading — 1 Corinthians 16:13

"Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit ye like men, be strong."

Evidence of Genuine Revival Conversions

J. William Jones baptized 410 men and found only three not living for the Lord after the war. Soldiers worshipped under fire, read Bibles in battle, and exhibited supernatural composure.

The Role of Chaplains and Interdenominational Cooperation

The Need for Godly Preachers and Revival Today

Weaver laments the compromising pulpit and calls for men who will preach the law and gospel, endure hardship, and seek God for revival. He applies Psalm 44:4 as a prayer: 'Do it again, O Lord.'

Great Revival in the Confederate Armies

John Weaver | SermonAudio

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	SermonAudio
Media ID	81232051423777
Subject	Church Government
Course	Church Order: Preaching and Pastoral Ministry
Genre	Sermon
Date	2023-08-02
Dictation Name
Book	Book 040: Church Order and Worship - Volume 2 — Chapter 26
Source Timed Segments	68

Lecture Guide

Outline

Introduction and Scripture Reading: Weaver opens with Psalm 44:1-4, introducing the topic of the great revival in the Confederate Army and previewing upcoming messages on self-defense and the world of Jesse James.
The Uniqueness and Spiritual Decline of the War Era: The Civil War was unparalleled in scale, but America was in spiritual decline from the 1830s-1850s, with churches splitting over abolitionism and theological liberalism.
Theological Roots of the Conflict: The war was sparked by a theological revolution in the North, with rationalism and transcendentalism leading to cultural change. John Henry Thornwell framed it as Christianity vs. atheism.
Church Splits and Warnings of National Division: Presbyterians, Methodists, and Baptists split over abolitionism. Leaders like Charles Hodge and William S. Plumer warned that church division would lead to national disunion and bloodshed.
The Miracle of Southern Endurance: Despite being outnumbered and out-resourced, the South held out for four years. Weaver attributes this to better generals, better soldiers, defensive position, and especially God-sent revivals.
Christian Courage and Readiness to Die: Christians make better fighters because they are unafraid to die, knowing death means being with Christ. Examples include Dabney Carr Harrison, Lewis Coleman, and Stonewall Jackson.
Evidence of Genuine Revival Conversions: J. William Jones baptized 410 men and found only three not living for the Lord after the war. Soldiers worshipped under fire, read Bibles in battle, and exhibited supernatural composure.
The Role of Chaplains and Interdenominational Cooperation: Chaplains preached, prayed, and fought. They worked across denominational lines, exemplified by Presbyterian pastor Lacy bringing converts to a Baptist for immersion. Yankees despised them as instigators of rebellion.
The Need for Godly Preachers and Revival Today: Weaver laments the compromising pulpit and calls for men who will preach the law and gospel, endure hardship, and seek God for revival. He applies Psalm 44:4 as a prayer: 'Do it again, O Lord.'

Major Themes

Key Arguments

The South's four-year survival was miraculous and attributable to divine revival.

Given the North's overwhelming advantages, the South's endurance can only be explained by God's intervention through revivals that produced fearless, principled soldiers.

Weaver asks, 'Why in the world did the South hold out for four years?' and answers with the revivals and God's enabling.

Theological apostasy in the North caused the war.

A shift to rationalism and transcendentalism in Northern churches led to cultural change and the desire to impose that culture on the South, making the war theological at root.

Weaver states, 'the war was sparked by a theological revolution in the north... you always have a theological shift before you have a cultural shift.'

Genuine Christian conversion produces fearlessness in battle.

Those who are truly saved have no fear of death because they know they will be with Christ, making them better soldiers.

Hedley Vicars quote: 'For who should fight so fearlessly and bravely as those to whom death presents no after terrors?'

The Confederate revivals were marked by authentic, lasting conversions.

The high perseverance rate of converts baptized by J. William Jones demonstrates the genuineness of the work of God during the war.

Jones 'only found three who were not living for the Lord' out of all surviving baptized converts.

Chaplains were essential and often fought alongside soldiers.

Chaplains not only ministered spiritually but also physically fought, understanding that civil tyranny is as wicked as spiritual tyranny.

Chaplain Tichenor killed a colonel, a major, and four privates while preaching and fighting at Shiloh.

Modern America needs a return to bold, doctrinal preaching and prayer for revival.

The compromising pulpit is a major cause of national problems; only a return to the gospel of Christ and the example of the Confederate chaplains can bring revival.

Weaver says, 'We will never regain our history... until we come back to the foundation... of our Confederate ancestors.'

Scripture References

Psalm 44:1-4: Opening Scripture reading and later application: God gave victory in the past; the psalmist prays 'do it again.'
1 Timothy 6:5: William S. Plumer warned that if the assembly declared slaveholding a sin, Southern churches would withdraw per this verse.
Nehemiah 4:14: Nehemiah's command to remember the Lord and fight for families illustrates the Southern soldier's resolve.
1 Corinthians 16:13: Command to 'quit ye like men, be strong' applied to Christian soldiers fighting on principle.
2 Corinthians 5:8: Paul's confidence that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord removes fear of death.
Philippians 1:21-24: Paul's desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better, exemplifies Christian readiness to die.
2 Timothy 1:7-8: God has not given a spirit of fear; believers are not to be ashamed of the gospel but partake in its afflictions.
Mark 8:38: Warning that if we are ashamed of Christ, He will be ashamed of us at His coming.

Historical References

John Henry Thornwell: Prominent Presbyterian who framed the war as Christianity vs. atheism.
Charles Hodge: Eminent Presbyterian theologian who predicted abolitionism would lead to disunion.
William S. Plumer: Warned in 1837 that church split would lead to national bloodshed.
Dabney Carr Harrison: Pastor and captain who died at Fort Donelson, crying 'Never surrender.'
Lewis Coleman: Colonel fatally wounded at Fredericksburg who said, 'see how a Christian soldier can die.'
Stonewall Jackson: Said his religious belief taught him to be as safe in battle as in bed.
J. William Jones: Chaplain and author of 'Christ in the Camp'; baptized 410 men with remarkable perseverance.
Chaplain I. T. Tichenor: Preached a sermon during the Battle of Shiloh and fought, killing several enemies.
Beverly Tucker Lacy: Presbyterian pastor who cooperated with Baptist chaplain Webb to baptize converts by immersion.
W. W. Bennett: Author of 'The Great Revival of the Southern Armies,' estimated 150,000 soldiers converted.

Important Quotes

The parties in this conflict are not merely abolitionists and slaveholders. They are atheists, socialists, communists, Red Republicans, and Jacobins on the one side—that's the North—and the Friends of Order and Regulated Freedom on the other. In one word, the world is the battleground, Christianity and atheism the combatants, and the progress of humanity is at stake.

John Henry Thornwell's quote frames the war as a cosmic spiritual conflict, central to Weaver's thesis.

I die content and happy, trusting in the merits of my Savior Jesus, committing my wife and children to their father and mine.

Captain Dabney Carr Harrison's dying words show the peace of a Christian soldier.

Tell General Jackson and General Lee, they know how Christian soldiers can fight. I wish that they were here now, so that they could see how a Christian soldier can die.

Colonel Lewis Coleman's charge highlights the testimony of a faithful death.

We want effective gospel preachers whose burden shall be Christ and him crucified. It is a common mistake that anyone will do to preach to soldiers.

J. William Jones' call for qualified chaplains underscores the need for bold, capable ministers.

You may call this fanaticism, enthusiasm, or what you will, but remember, you're fighting an enemy that comes from its closet to the battlefield, that comes from its knees in prayer to engage in deadly strife, that comes in the belief that the battles are the battles of Jehovah.

A Yankee chaplain's tribute to the spiritual power of the Confederate soldier.

Thou art my king, O God, command deliverances for Jacob.

Psalm 44:4 applied as a prayer for God to repeat past revivals.

Discussion Questions

[Question]

How does the theological interpretation of the Civil War presented here challenge or confirm your understanding of the conflict?

[Context]

Weaver argues the war was sparked by a theological revolution in the North.

[Question]

In what ways does a genuine Christian conversion remove the fear of death, and how should that affect our daily lives?

[Context]

Examples of Harrison, Coleman, and Jackson show fearlessness rooted in faith.

[Question]

What can we learn from the interdenominational cooperation among Confederate chaplains, and how might it apply to churches today?

[Context]

Presbyterian Lacy and Baptist Webb worked together for the gospel.

[Question]

Why does Weaver emphasize that 'not just anybody can preach to soldiers,' and what qualities does he say are necessary for effective ministry?

[Context]

J. William Jones' letter calls for physically and spiritually tough preachers.

[Question]

How does the perseverance of converts during the Confederate revival compare to modern conversion statistics, and what does that imply about the nature of revival?

[Context]

J. William Jones found only three out of 410 not living for the Lord after the war.

[Question]

What does it mean to 'partake of the afflictions of the gospel' (2 Timothy 1:8), and why is being ashamed of the gospel a sign of spiritual timidity?

[Context]

Weaver applies 2 Timothy 1:7-8 to modern preachers.

[Question]

How can we pray and work toward the kind of revival described in this sermon, and what role does bold preaching of law and gospel play?

[Context]

Weaver concludes with a call to pray 'Do it again, O Lord' based on Psalm 44.

Applications

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