EVAN ROBERTS IN THE CONDITIONS OF THE PREPARATION.
HIS SPIRITUAL CONSCIOUSNESS.
1. FEELING THE INTENSITY OF HIS SPIRITUAL CONSCIOUSNESS
The growth of the spiritual life in our subject was gradual. In his conversion there is nothing like that of Saul of Tarsus. The date of his regeneration he does not know. Almost the first thing he remembers is the yearning of the spiritual life within him. This life was probably implanted before he became conscious of life’s great changes. But when thirteen years old he experienced a great intensity in his regenerate consciousness. This is the time he was received as a member of Moriah (C.M.), Loughor, by the pastor, the Rev. Daniel Jones. They came upon him suddenly in the church meeting one night, and approached him with a view to his becoming a member. This conversation with him and his entrance into membership increased his consciousness greatly, and from that time on he clung steadfastly to religion. He has no doubt that he had the new life long before that; but on the night referred to and from that time on, this life was made manifest in some new aspects. He came to feel so deeply at this time that he said ‘I would have been in destruction were it not for the grace of God’. In spite of this, he asserts that he did not then see Christ in all His glory.
The reason for this, in his opinion, was, that he was not filled with the Holy Sprit. He believed that he was saved, but his salvation was not accompanied by a burning consciousness of God’s Love in the heart, and an intense zeal for the Savour’s glory. But from now on, he felt something gradually increasing within him, which more and more brought his passions and feelings into subjection. In every struggle between it and the evil of his heart he was conscious that the evil was overcome. Something continually told him that he was not doing enough for Christ, and the desire to do more grew in him day by day. We are almost struck with wonder that a child so loving, so obedient, so humble and sincere should be conscious of such things until we remember that man is sinful by nature. The light of grace in his soul made him feel the terror of his fallen condition. The more of goodness there is in a man, the more terrible and hateful is his nature’s evil in his sight. The sins that troubled Evan Roberts were those of the mind, and not outward ones. Grace and his own good nature kept these sinful thoughts from breaking out into presumptuous sins; but when the Holy Spirit came to work with power in his heart, they revealed their strength, and he experienced a terrible time. He now saw the worth of a soul’s salvation, and what would be the importance of being lost for ever. What Wonder then that at that time he said, I would have been in hell were it not for the grace of God. This period in his history was a kind of conversion, that is, a conscious conversion. Yet, be it borne in mind not the conversion that follows immediately upon regeneration, nor regeneration itself. Conversion in that sense was an old fact in his life, but as for this one, it was a conversion accompanied by an intense consciousness. This, then, will be the place to begin with the treatment of the conscious preparation of the spiritual possibility of the Revivalist in Evan Roberts. We must get spiritual conditions in order to adequately prepare the possibility for spiritual work.
II. THE FIRST REVELATIONS OF HIS SPIRITUAL CONSCIOUSNESS
These revelations were of necessity the result of conversion, for their existence was conditioned by it. Without a spiritual conversion, spiritual consciousness and spiritual experience are impossible. A very clear revelation of this kind, in his history at this time, was the presentation of a Bible by him to the branch at Moriah. This section conducted its meetings, as already mentioned — the Sunday School and prayer meetings — in the colliery offices near Bwlchymynydd, for Pisgah was not then built. It became known that the brethren who gathered together to worship there were in need of a Bible and hymn-book. Evan asked his mother if he should supply them with one. His parents consented at once, and it was agreed that his father should give a hymn-book. On the following Saturday night, February 16th, 1895, he walked to Gower in search of a Bible, but to his great disappointment, he failed to get one. He returned home through the town of Loughor, and in the shop of Mr. C. Harris he saw a Bible which took his fancy. But after entering and ascertaining the price, it was a few shillings more than he was able to give. He only had four shillings, while the Bible was valued at seven and sixpence. Be that as it may, he bought it on the understanding that he would pay the remaining three and sixpence again. He brought it home, and although it cost more than the one his parents had originally intended him to give, they were not unwilling. To them, a few shillings were as nothing compared with their youthful son’s desire to do something for the cause of Christ. To this day, this is the Bible used in Pisgah, and no doubt it will be held in great respect henceforth by the brethren there. When it becomes too torn for use, it is to be hoped that the church will hand it over to the Welsh National Museum to ensure its preservation. It will be interesting to the children of future ages, and they will be inspired by the sight of the Bible that the great Revivalist of 1904 endeavoured to ohtain for the Bwlchymynydd fraternity when he was about sixteen years old. The knowledge of his sacrifice in connection with it may be the means of drawing out great self-sacrifice in many. Possibly, this Bible will be the cause of bringing some to give hundreds of pounds towards religious work, and make them energetic helpers with the kingdom of Christ.
About this time, on the occasion of making a presentation to one of the deacons of Moriah, Evan Roberts’s spirituality was clearly manifested. A pair of gold spectacles was given to this brother, and a public meeting was held to make the presentation. Our hero was deeply interested in the service, and its more spiritual aspects touched his heart. On the way home, he remarked to his mother, My heart rejoiced when I saw the presentation to John Morgan This, said the mother, made me think of him differently from the way I used to think of him. His attention on this occasion shows that he took in the best things of the meeting. It was the feeling represented by the gift, and the honour conferred upon the recipient that appealed to him. It is no wonder that his mother pondered over it; because it was extraordinary that one so young should notice this view of the gathering. His words reveal the best qualities of human nature changed by grace, for, according to his mother’s testimony, one could easily see at the time that his words expressed his deepest feelings. In meetings of this kind, it is the humorous side that boys of this age most commonly see, and they watch their opportunity to speak of it or to do something productive of fun. Not in with Evan Roberts. He was alive only to the most spiritual aspect of the meeting.
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