5For our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance, as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake.6And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Spirit,7so that you became examples to all in Macedonia and Achaia who believe.
There are two words I wanted to key in on: word and power. God's Word gives us direction in our lives - as we study the Bible and make it our aim to apply His principles in the way we live, then we will see His character expressed. There's also the dynamic of the Spirit - He is our Teacher and our Helper - He brings the Word to life and helps us to make those applications. If we are to truly experience spiritual growth and awakening in our lives, we need to study God's Word and to connect with His Spirit through prayer and obedience.
Paul ministered in the cosmopolitan city of Athens, where there was no small number of people who denied God. Here's the account in Acts 17:
22Then Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, "Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious;23for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you:
He goes on to teach the people that God has made Himself known...27so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us;28for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, 'For we are also His offspring.'
I've never been to New York City - been to Boston, Philadelphia, and D.C., but never the Big Apple. Perhaps that will change one day. But, this week, as the musical philosopher Billy Joel said, The Meeting House has been in a "New York State of Mind" - let me explain.
On Monday, Carol Cymbala, Director of the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir, was my guest - her husband, Jim, began the church back in the early 1970's. Yesterday, Rick Hagans, who has preached at that church and has been involved with Times Square Church, founded by David Wilkerson, was on the program - Rick was a leader in the effort to help victims of Superstorm Sandy last year, coordinating the efforts of area churches. And, yesterday, Dr. Joe Savage of the University of Mobile discussed the 1857 revival that took place in the city, resulting in thousands coming to know the Lord.
And, this week, Joy Allmond, writing for Crosswalk.com traces the dynamic growth in evangelical Christianity in the city. She says that over the recent decades—particularly this last one—New York has seen a surge in evangelicalism. Some cultural experts believe the Big Apple to be on the brink of another ‘Great Awakening.’
Gregory Thornbury, president of The King’s College—the only free-standing Christian institution of higher learning in New York City—compares this rise in Christianity to the the great Wall Street revival of 1857.
Allmond traces some of the growth that has taken place over the past few decades. For example, there's New York Fellowship, founded in the 1980's, which grew beyond the meeting of businessmen and extended its reach into the city. Chaplaincy to New York City’s professional sports teams began, along with ministry to the homeless and inner city youth.
New York also had other evangelical pioneers like the late David Wilkerson, whose heart was pierced for the gang members and drug addicts of New York. He moved there in the 60’s and began Teen Challenge, a ministry that is still considered successful today.
These ministries, and others, gained momentum and flourished over the next two decades.
As the 80’s came to a close, a man considered by many to be one of the most influential pastors of our time answered a call to New York City to start a church: Tim Keller planted Redeemer Presbyterian, hailed as one of the most vital congregations in New York City.
By that time, the abortion rate in New York City had skyrocketed. Through the planting of Redeemer, a need for a crisis pregnancy center was identified. Subsequently, Midtown Pregnancy Support Center was founded. Other Redeemer members saw the need for a classical Christian school in New York City. So, the Geneva School was formed. That brought families into the city that wanted their children to attend that school.
As the year 2000 neared, New Yorkers saw more than the turn of a new century; they found ways to intellectually examine faith.
The King’s College opened its doors in 1999, initially in the Empire State Building, placing the next generation of Christian thinkers in the hub of New York—and American—culture. This brought hundreds of young people to area churches. In 2000, Eric Metaxas started Socrates In the City, a monthly forum that facilitates discussion around “the bigger questions in life.”
Then, you have 9/11, which Metaxas said, "...focused hearts on New York City...This caused a lot of people to move to the city and start churches and other ministries.”
Although a 2011 Barna survey has yielded mixed results about the impact of 9/11, you can't deny the growth spurt since then. According to a report on the data on the ChurchLeaders.com website, worship attendance in New York City grew from 31 percent to 46 percent since the turn of the century, and Bible reading has increased from 29 to 35 percent. Even the number of unchurched—those who haven't attended a worship service in the past six months—has decreased eight points to 34 percent since 2000. Now, three out of every five poll respondents said their religious faith is very important in their lives. The nation's overall church attendance has decreased in the same time period, and only slightly more U.S. adults say their faith is very important to them.
NYCReligion.info reports on a a Values Research Institute study that says that forty percent of the evangelical Protestant churches in Manhattan were born after 2000, an increase of about 80. During one two-month stretch in 2009, at least one Manhattan church was planted every Sunday.
The impact has been big on one scale and tiny on another. According to the institute's research, the percentage of New Yorkers in center-city Manhattan who identify themselves as evangelical Protestants has, since 1990, risen from less than 1 percent to 3 percent. In other words, the evangelical population has tripled.
This relatively small slice means that -- from an evangelical-Protestant viewpoint -- missionaries still consider the city's population an "unreached people group" when compared with other regions. Thus, in 2003 the North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention pinned its "Strategic Focus City" label on New York, initiating a four-year project offering additional funds, volunteers and church-planting professionals.
It's impossible to tell this story without discussing the impact of 9/11, noted journalist Tony Carnes, who leads the Values Research Institute team. Rescue workers poured into New York City from across the nation, including volunteers from heartland churches not known for their affection for New York City.
"For the first time, to a large degree, important evangelical leaders realized that New York City was not what they thought it was," said Carnes. "They learned that you didn't need to walk down the street at night looking over your shoulder, worried that you were going to get shot. ...
Carnes also says that, "They also learned that there were already many evangelical churches here and that they were not weak, struggling and embattled. Many were strong, vital and growing."
NYCReligion.info reports on a a Values Research Institute study that says that forty percent of the evangelical Protestant churches in Manhattan were born after 2000, an increase of about 80. During one two-month stretch in 2009, at least one Manhattan church was planted every Sunday.
The impact has been big on one scale and tiny on another. According to the institute's research, the percentage of New Yorkers in center-city Manhattan who identify themselves as evangelical Protestants has, since 1990, risen from less than 1 percent to 3 percent. In other words, the evangelical population has tripled.
This relatively small slice means that -- from an evangelical-Protestant viewpoint -- missionaries still consider the city's population an "unreached people group" when compared with other regions. Thus, in 2003 the North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention pinned its "Strategic Focus City" label on New York, initiating a four-year project offering additional funds, volunteers and church-planting professionals.
It's impossible to tell this story without discussing the impact of 9/11, noted journalist Tony Carnes, who leads the Values Research Institute team. Rescue workers poured into New York City from across the nation, including volunteers from heartland churches not known for their affection for New York City.
"For the first time, to a large degree, important evangelical leaders realized that New York City was not what they thought it was," said Carnes. "They learned that you didn't need to walk down the street at night looking over your shoulder, worried that you were going to get shot. ...
Carnes also says that, "They also learned that there were already many evangelical churches here and that they were not weak, struggling and embattled. Many were strong, vital and growing."
Allmond relates that a post-September 11 New York City would see the emergence of many new churches, such as Journey in 2002, Trinity Grace in 2006, and Hillsong NYC in 2011—representing a wide variety of theological and worship styles. More parachurch organizations, like Q, have popped up. Founded by Gabe Lyons in 2007, Q exists to help church and cultural leaders engage the Gospel in public life.
We can be encouraged by what God is doing in New York City. Churches are being planted by groups such as Redeemer Presbyterian, which has established congregations throughout the city. And, churches from outside the Big Apple are going in to do ministry and start churches. And, there are a few takeaways for us as we observe the activity.
First, don't be discouraged by the numbers. When Jim and Carol Cymbala began to minister at the Brooklyn Tabernacle, they were in a dilapidated building and had less than 20 people attending. The great revival of 1857 began with just a handful of people, and grew to 20 the second week, then 40, and the growth exploded. Even with the growth in New York City, there is still plenty of room to grow - only 3% of the population of Manhattan identify as Protestant evangelicals.
And, keep in mind that Jesus said that where two or three or gathered, he would be with them. In an age when large churches and ministries so often get the spotlight, that doesn't mean that smaller works are insignificant. A Hartford Institute for Religion Research study in 2010 showed that 59% of churches have less than 100 in weekly attendance. There are great effectiveness in "small" - and even in larger churches, much of the vitality is in small groups. Sometimes God will bring dynamic growth to certain ministries, according to His plan, but He is calling each of us to be faithful.
And, remember, God desires to work in the hearts of His people. He is calling us to come into a saving knowledge of Christ and to grow in His grace and knowledge. Each day, we can evaluate whether we are moving forward in our spiritual journey or standing still - of course, there's really no such thing as being static in the Christian life. If we are complacent, that means we are in real danger of being swept away by the cultural tides. New York's spiritual renaissance should be a great indicator to us that where His people are seeking His face, He will show up in their midst. C.S. Lewis, writing about the Messianic figure in The Chronicles of Narnia, said "Aslan is on the move". We acknowledge that our God is on the move - question is, are we moving with Him?
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