In 1784, a call to prayer was issued among Baptist churches in England. These churches were in a state of serious decline, both in number and in spiritual vitality. John Sutcliff was the pastor of the Baptist church in Olney, Buckinghamshire for thirty-nine years. He was good friends with both Andrew Fuller (1754-1815) and William Carey (1761-1834) and was one of the founders of the Baptist Missionary Society. It was Sutcliff who took the main initiative in what is now referred to as the Prayer Call of 1784.
In April 1784 John Ryland mailed a copy of a treatise by Jonathan Edwards dealing with corporate prayer and revival, he had received, with both John Sutcliff and Andrew Fuller. The title was not untypically long for its’ day: An Humble Attempt to Promote Explicit Agreement and Visible Union of God’s People in Extraordinary Prayer for the Revival of Religion and the Advancement of Christ’s Kingdom on Earth, pursuant to Scripture Promises and Prophecies concerning the Last Time. Reading the Humble Attempt clearly had a profound effect on these three Baptist pastors since within days of reading it they, together with a few other ministerial colleagues, had committed themselves to meeting the second Tuesday in every other month ‘to seek the revival of real religion, and the extension of Christ’s kingdom in the world’.
In June 1784 Fuller preached at the annual meeting of the Northamptonshire Association in Nottingham on 2 Corinthians 5:7 entitled ‘The Nature and Importance of Walking by Faith’. During the course of his sermon Fuller appealed to his hearers to engage in ‘earnest and united prayer’ to God for ‘an outpouring of God’s Spirit upon our ministers and churches, and not only of those of our own connexion and denomination, but upon “all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours” (1 Corinthians 1:2).’ [1]
Following this Sutcliff proposed that they as an association heed what the Spirit was saying to them through their brother’s stirring appeal. Sutcliff advocated the churches of the association should establish monthly prayer meetings for the outpouring of God’s Holy Spirit and the consequent revival of the churches of Great Britain. His proposal was met with the wholehearted approval by the representatives of the sixteen churches at the meeting. On the last page of the circular letter sent out that year to the churches of the association was a call for them to “to wrestle with God for the effusion of his Holy Spirit, which alone can produce the blessed effect.” The recommendation was there be corporate prayer for one hour on the first Monday evening of the month and it was Sutcliff who drafted this call to prayer, which continued:
The grand object in prayer is to be, that the Holy Spirit may be poured down on our ministers and churches, that sinners may be converted, the saints edified, the interest of religion revived, and the name of God glorified. At the same time remember, we trust you will not confine your requests to your own societies [i.e. churches], or to your own immediate connection [i.e. denomination]; let the whole interest of the Redeemer be affectionately remembered, and the spread of the gospel to the most distant parts of the habitable globe be the object of your most fervent requests. We shall rejoice if any other Christian societies of our own or other denomination will unite with us, and do now invite them most cordially to join heart and hand in the attempt.
Who can tell what the consequences of such an united effort in prayer may be! Let us plead with God the many gracious promises of his word which relate to the future success of his gospel. He has said, ‘I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them, I will increase them with men like a flock’ (Ezekial 36:37). Surely we have love enough for Zion to set apart one hour at a time, twelve times in a year, to seek her welfare’. [2]
Haykin notes there were at least four noteworthy points about this Prayer Call:
- The conviction any renewal of the Church could not be accomplished by mere human zeal, but must be effected by the Holy Spirit.
- The catholicity recommended with regard to the subjects of prayer with a clear recognition the kingdom of God was bigger than Calvinistic Baptists.
- The distinct missionary emphasis.
- The foundation for praying for revival was rooted in the scriptures. [3]
There is a recognition the Prayer Call of 1784 had a hugely significant impact longer term:
- The revitalization of the churches: The regular, unified prayers led to a spiritual awakening within the Baptist churches, reversing periods of decline and fostering renewed commitment among congregations.
- The catalysing of global mission: Within a decade of the beginning of the Prayer Call, in 1792, The Baptist Missionary Society was founded in Kettering, Northamptonshire. Sutcliff, Carey and Fuller were all among the founders. William Carey is regularly referred to as the ‘father of modern missions’ and it is the events of 1784 which can be seen with hindsight as being a seed-bed for a movement rippling outwards to this day.
Seventy-two exists to be a catalyst for missional movement today and we’ve drawn inspiration from the events of 1784. It all began when a few pastors, concerned about the spiritual decline evident all around them and recognising their desperate need of a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit, began to pray.
In line with the pattern of 1784, we began setting aside an hour a month to pray for the spiritual renewal of the church & the spiritual revival of Christianity across our nation, under the banner Opening our Doors to God. Both individually and collectively if there is a need to open our doors to God again it is now. You’re very welcome to join us for our monthly online gathering, but our heart is to see many, many groups and gatherings springing up for the same purpose.
[1] One heart and One Soul. p163.
[2] One heart and One Soul. p164.
[3] One heart and One Soul. p164-5.
