The account of the Astbury awakening raised some thoughts about the nature of repentance. My reading of the old Testament passages has highlighted how the Lord dealt with the people of Israel as one unit. (although its interesting that in apportioning the land, the tribes were separated). One sin by an individual was repented of by all the people. Repentance can mean that I'm before God to turn away from a particular sin, attitude, way of thinking, but there is this suggestion that at Astbury the repentance was for sins of the churches. The individuals were acting as priests for the church. This repentance for the corporate suggests that although we have a personal response to the Holy spirit's convictions, there is also a response on behalf of the church. Most of us would feel that it is presumptuous to confess and repent of the churches, or the nations sins, however we see from the Astbury example that the Lord is, willing, desperate even to pour out his spirit if we dare to do it.
The account of the Astbury awakening raised some thoughts about the nature of repentance. My reading of the old Testament passages has highlighted how the Lord dealt with the people of Israel as one unit. (although its interesting that in apportioning the land, the tribes were separated). One sin by an individual was repented of by all the people. Repentance can mean that I'm before God to turn away from a particular sin, attitude, way of thinking, but there is this suggestion that at Astbury the repentance was for sins of the churches. The individuals were acting as priests for the church. This repentance for the corporate suggests that although we have a personal response to the Holy spirit's convictions, there is also a response on behalf of the church. Most of us would feel that it is presumptuous to confess and repent of the churches, or the nations sins, however we see from the Astbury example that the Lord is, willing, desperate even to pour out his spirit if we dare to do it.