Term Paper on "Dwight L. Moody"

Term Paper 7 pages (3176 words) Sources: 1+

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Dwight L. Moody

Moody was certainly one of the best evangelists of all time. (D. L. Moody: Deeper Experiences of Famous Christians) During the lifespan of Moody, it is projected that he toured in excess of one million miles, addressed over 100 million people, and guided hundreds of thousands, if not millions, to a personal association with Jesus Christ. (Dwight Moody: (www.intouch.org) Amongst the best meetings the world has ever seen exists the meetings held by Moody and Sankey. (D. L. Moody: Deeper Experiences of Famous Christians) in his popular revival services, Presidents Lincoln and Grant were present. At the Chicago World's Exhibition in 1893, over 130,000 people participated in Moody's revival services in a single day. (Dwight Moody: (www.intouch.org)

The meetings were the ways under God of exciting the church to new life and activity, and were the methods of gathering up tens of thousands of persons into the kingdom of God. (D. L. Moody: Deeper Experiences of Famous Christians) Moody's passion for Christ was not restricted to lecturing and training, although that was always his principal affection. He established educational institutions like the Northfield school for boys and girls, which persist working even today and the Chicago Evangelism Society; afterwards designated the Moody Bible Institute. Moody's untiring attempts also were medium for several Christian publishing endeavors, one of which assumes his name, Moody Publishing. He used lecture halls and theaters as his pulpits, crossing over inflexible denominational lines. He was able to contact masses that may not go to a church or pay attention to the assertions of the gospel. His fame rose rapidly. (Dwight Moody: (www.intouch.org)

Moody was one of the delicate instruments God has preferred to stun the mighty. He like Christian Evans had very little schooling before his change to Christ. He could barely read or write at the age of seventeen. Dwight Lyman Moody belonged to old New England Puritan stock. His ancestors lived the calm lives of farmers in the Connecticut Valley for seven generations or two hundred years. On February 5, 1837 he was born as the sixth child in a family of nine children in the town of Northfield, Massachusetts, where he later established the famous Bible schools. Moody's father died at the early age of forty-one, leaving his widow in scarcity with a mortgage on the home and seven children to support. (D. L. Moody: Deeper Experiences of Famous Christians)

Dwight left home at the age of ten with another brother to work at a place about thirteen miles away. At the age of seventeen Moody was weary of the farm life and was determined to work his way upward in the world and made his mind to go to Boston. He landed there without any money, and attempted in vain to find work till he was nearly in misery. He then got job with an uncle who was in the shoe business. He was successful as a salesman, and became a regular worker at the Mount Vernon Congregational Sunday School. As he had only little education, he took little part in the classes of the Sunday school, but was slowly attracted in the study of the Bible, and finally took part in the discussions in the class. His teacher, Mr. Kimball, took huge concern over him, and slowly guided him to see the plan of salvation. Moody's entire life was altered, and he became one of wonderful Christian service. (D. L. Moody: Deeper Experiences of Famous Christians)

In 1856, the second year after his conversion, Moody went to Chicago, where he joined the Plymouth Congregational Church and became a very vigorous Christian worker, putting his soul and energy into the work of winning men to Christ. Moody's great Sunday school work was achieved before he was more than twenty-three years of age. With all his work for Christ he had no idea of entering the ministry until he found that souls were being directed to Christ by his hard work. Mr. Moody decided to go to Great Britain in 1867 and learn the system of Christian work used in that country. It was in this first visit to Britain that Moody heard the words which set him yearning and thirsting after a profound Christian experience and which indicated a new period in his life. Moody had a continuous desire for an expansion of his own spiritual life and experience. He had been very much made use of God, but thought that there were much better things in store for him. For him the year 1871 was a crucial one. He understood more and more how little he was fixed by personal acquirements for his work, and how much he had to be trained for service by the Holy Spirit's power. (D. L. Moody: Deeper Experiences of Famous Christians)

The mystery of why God utilized D.L. Moody was that he had a very certain inducement with power from High, a very obvious and sure baptism with the Holy Ghost. Moody recognized that he had the baptism with the Holy Ghost; he was very sure about it. In his younger days he was a huge pusher; he had a wonderful wish to do something, but he had no genuine power. With the vigor of the flesh he toiled mostly. (Torrey on Moody: Why God Used D.L. Moody) Despite his victory in the ministry, Moody had an insistent need to understand more of the Holy Spirit's empowerment. Three happenings changed his spirit and preaching. The first took place in New York where he was asked to speak in a small Sunday school. As he was about to get into his carriage to go for another meeting, an elderly gentleman come up to him with these words: Young man, when you speak again, respect the Holy Ghost. The second included two godly women who were present at Moody's services in Chicago. (Dwight Moody: (www.intouch.org) in Moody's vocation, the year 1871 was an important one. He understood increasingly how little he was fired by personal acquirements for his work. Two women who used to listen to the meetings and sit on the front seat stimulated a strong desire and craving for spiritual power in him. (How Great Soul Winners Were Filled With the Holy Spirit)

Auntie Cook and Mrs. Snow were the two modest Free Methodist women who used to come over to his meetings in the Y.M.C.A. (Torrey on Moody: Why God Used D.L. Moody) He could notice by the expression on their faces that they were praying. They would say to him at the end of the service that they had been praying for him and also asked him to pray for the people. (How Great Soul Winners Were Filled With the Holy Spirit) at last, on one night Moody became quite annoyed and asked them why they are you praying for him and asked them why they do not pray for the unprotected. They answered that their prayer is to get power to Moody. Moody did not understand their answer but continued to deliberate about their answer. Then, he went to them and requested them to clearly tell what they meant. They told him that they meant the sure baptism with the Holy Ghost. Then he solicited that he might pray with them and not they simply pray for him. (Torrey on Moody: Why God Used D.L. Moody) These events left Moody with an immense desire for the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. (Dwight Moody: (www.intouch.org)

After some time, one day on his way to England, he was on foot up Wall Street in New York; and in the middle of the movement and rush of that city his prayer got responded; the power of God descended upon him as he walked up the street and he had to rush off to the house of a friend and ask that he might have a room by himself, and in that room he stayed unaccompanied for hours; and the Holy Ghost came upon him, pervading his soul with such delight that finally he had to ask God to withhold His hand, lest he die on the spot from very delight. He went out from that place with the power of the Holy Ghost upon him, and when he got to London, partially through the prayers of a bedridden saint in Lessey's church, the power of God formed through him mightily in North London, and hundreds were added to the churches; and that was what led to his being invited over to the magnificent movement that happened in afterward years. (Torrey on Moody: Why God Used D.L. Moody) struggle with the Spirit resulted, and was long sustained before he liked a new baptism and a complete sanctification, in the brightness of a faith that knew no shade of suspicion. In a prayer-meeting lecture, he talked about this fight years later, that is, in New York City, in 1876, declaring that for about four years ago he got into a cold state. It did… READ MORE

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