Charles Finney

Charles G. Finney (1792-1875) often viewed as the father of modern revivalism, ministered in the wake of the "Second Awakening," as it has been called. A Presbyterian lawyer, Finney one day experienced "a mighty baptism of the Holy Ghost" which "like a wave of electricity going through and through me ... seemed to come in waves of liquid love." The next morning, he informed his first client of the day, "I have a retainer from the Lord Jesus Christ to plead his cause and I cannot plead yours." Refusing to attend Princeton Seminary (or any seminary, for that matter), Finney began conducting revivals in upstate New York. One of his most popular sermons was "Sinners Bound to Change Their Own Hearts." 
"Finney’s one question for any given teaching was, "Is it fit to convert sinners with?" One result of Finney's revivalism was the division of Presbyterians in Philadelphia and New York into Arminian and Calvinistic factions. His "New Measures" included the "anxious bench" (precursor to today's altar call), emotional tactics that led to fainting and weeping, and other "excitements," as Finney and his followers called them." 
"In Finney’s theology, God is not sovereign, man is not a sinner by nature, the atonement is not a true payment for sin, justification by imputation is insulting to reason and morality, the new birth is simply the effect of successful techniques, and revival is a natural result of clever campaigns." 
==External links==
* Charles Finney (Wikipedia)
* The Complete Works of Charles Finney
* Finneyism (from Monergism)
* An analysis of Finney's Perfectionism
* How Charles Finney's Theology Ravaged the Evangelical Movement, by Phillip R. Johnson
* Charles G. Finney: The Architect of Modern Evangelism, by Thomas R. Browning
* The Theology of Charles Finney: A System of Self Reformation (PDF), by Jay E. Smith
* The Legacy of Charles Finney, by Michael Horton
* Charles Finney's Theology of Revival: Moral Depravity (PDF), by Sean Michael Lucas
* Theological Observer - Charles Finney on Theology and Worship, by Lawrence R. Rast, Jr.
* Dr. Lloyd-Jones on the Altar Call
Finney
* Charles Finney's Assault Upon Biblical Preaching by Don Strickland
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