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Andrew Murray

Andrew Murray (1828 - 1917). South African pastor, author, and revivalist born in Graaff-Reinet, Cape Colony, to Dutch Reformed missionary parents. Sent to Scotland at 10, he studied at Aberdeen University and Utrecht, Netherlands, returning ordained in 1848. He pastored in Bloemfontein and Worcester, later moderating the Dutch Reformed Church’s Cape Synod. In 1860, he sparked a revival in the Orange Free State, preaching to thousands across racial lines despite apartheid’s rise. Murray wrote over 240 books, including Abide in Christ (1882) and With Christ in the School of Prayer, translated into dozens of languages. His emphasis on holiness, prayer, and divine healing influenced global Pentecostalism. Married to Emma Rutherford in 1856, they had eight children, four becoming missionaries. He founded theological seminaries and the Huguenot College for women. Despite chronic illness, he traveled to Europe and America, speaking at Keswick Conventions. His devotional works remain widely read, shaping Christian spirituality across denominations.
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Andrew Murray emphasizes that for the church to truly be a dwelling place for God, sin must be recognized, judged, and expelled. He asserts that sin is the only barrier that can obstruct God's presence and blessings among His people. The history of Israel illustrates that God rewards obedience and turns away from sin, a principle that remains true for believers today. A deeper experience of God's presence often follows a recognition and deliverance from sin, and true revival cannot occur until ordinary sins of daily life are no longer tolerated. Murray calls for believers to embrace the power of Christ to overcome these sins for a genuine revival of holiness.
Ordinary Sins of Daily Life Must Not Be Tolerated.
If the church is to be an habitation of God in the Spirit, if God is really to dwell among his people, sin must be judged and cast out. Judgment must begin at the sanctuary. In the whole universe of things, sin is the only thing that can hide God or hinder his being to his people what he is in his nature, a very fountain of love, goodness and happiness. The whole history of Israel proves to us that God delights in and blesses obedience – and that he turns away from sin. It is just as true in the experience of the saints today. Any deeper experience of God’s presence to save from sin and to reveal his nearness is usually preceded by a new discovery of sin and a more complete deliverance from it. The failure of so much earnest sighing and struggling to attain a deeper and more settled peace and victory is almost always due to not allowing God himself to deal with the sin that is overcoming us. Any revival of holiness and devotion to Christ’s service will be but partial and passing until believers are brought to see that the ordinary sins of daily life are no longer tolerated and the power of Christ to cast them out is known and claimed. (Excerpted from The Coming Revival, by Andrew Murray , pg. 46)
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Andrew Murray (1828 - 1917). South African pastor, author, and revivalist born in Graaff-Reinet, Cape Colony, to Dutch Reformed missionary parents. Sent to Scotland at 10, he studied at Aberdeen University and Utrecht, Netherlands, returning ordained in 1848. He pastored in Bloemfontein and Worcester, later moderating the Dutch Reformed Church’s Cape Synod. In 1860, he sparked a revival in the Orange Free State, preaching to thousands across racial lines despite apartheid’s rise. Murray wrote over 240 books, including Abide in Christ (1882) and With Christ in the School of Prayer, translated into dozens of languages. His emphasis on holiness, prayer, and divine healing influenced global Pentecostalism. Married to Emma Rutherford in 1856, they had eight children, four becoming missionaries. He founded theological seminaries and the Huguenot College for women. Despite chronic illness, he traveled to Europe and America, speaking at Keswick Conventions. His devotional works remain widely read, shaping Christian spirituality across denominations.