Two Great Men of Valour

Savonarola

When revival came to Florence, Italy, during 1496-98, God’s instrument was the Italian Roman Catholic monk Savonarloa. At that time, Martin Luther who was greatly influenced by Savonarloa was just a small boy. Savonarola was shocked by the vice and immorality of the world and by the corruption that existed in the Roman Catholic Church. As a youth he would walk beside the River Po, signing to God and weeping for the sins, the injustices, and the poverty of the people. He wept and grieved over the lewdness, luxury, and cruelty of many leaders of the church. He would lie for hours prostrate on the altar steps in the church, weeping and praying for the sins of the age and the sins of the church.

Although he was a devout Catholic, his prayers and Spirit-filled life helped prepare the way for the Protestant Reformation. Martin Luther called him a Protestant martyr.

For years he studied the Bible, waited for God and prayed. Suddenly one day God gave him a vision: the heavens opened and a voice commanded him to announce the future calamities of the church to the people. Filled with a new powerful anointing of the Holy Spirit, he began to preach to the people.

When the Spirit of God came upon him, the voice of Savorarola thundered as he denounced the sins of the people. Revival power gripped the whole area. His audience – men and women, poets and philosophers, craftsmen and laborers – all sobbed and wept. On several occasions, while seated in the pulpit, all in the church could see his face seemingly illuminated with a heavenly glow, and he would sit in the pulpit lost in prayer or in a trance for up to 5 hours at a time.

According to his words of prophecy, the city ruler, the pope, and the king of Naples all died within a year. The revival brought tremendous moral change. The people stopped reading vile land worldly books. Merchants made restitution to the people for the excessive profits they had been making. Hoodlums and street urchins stopped singing sinful songs and began to sing hymns in the streets.

The corrupt pope, the cardinals, and the priests were outraged. Savonarola and two companion monks were brought out to be executed before a mob of thousands of onlookers. An awesome silence gripped the whole crowd. His last words were, “Should I not die willingly for Him who suffered so much for me?” He then communed so deeply with God that he seemed unaware of what was happening around him. He and his two friends were hanged in the public square, and then their bodies were burned.

David Brainerd

1718-1747

Missionary to the American Indians in New York, New Jersey, and eastern Pennsylvania. Born in Connecticut in 1718, he died of tuberculosis at the age of twenty-nine in 1747. Jonathan Edwards preached the funeral sermon and published the diary which David had kept.

A man who is physically weak – can he involve in God’s ministry. David Brainerd’s life history replies in the affirmative.

David Brainerd was born on 20th April 1718 at Haddam in Connecticut, USA. His parents had nine children. But his father died when Brainerd was 9 years and his mother, when he was 14 years old. So, even while he was young, he became gloomy and possessed with fear of death. His childhood was marked by unhappiness and lack of enthusiasm for play. He thought yielding to temptations and desires of the heart would satisfy him. These devilish pursuits tainted his conscience and he was overcome by guilty feelings. He was 20 years old then and was working in a farm at Durum along with his sister.

One Sunday, unexpectedly, he was overcome by the fear of God’s judgment and condemnation. He began to seek the Lord. He set apart a day and began to pray with fasting. That day God opened his eyes of the inner man. He confessed his sins to God and sought forgiveness. The result was, peace came into his heart. Following this new spiritual experience, he joined the Yale College at the age of 21. Unfortunately, he fell ill and couldn’t continue with his studies. In 1742, when he heard Ebenezer Bembertone, he felt God’s call coming to him to go as missionary to the Red Indians. He readily responded to God’s call and said, “Send me Lord. I will go. I am ready to work even among the rough and the barbaric people. I am ready to give up all the comforts of this world. I am ready to walk through death. To build Your kingdom, I will go anywhere”.

Having confirmed God’s call to him, David Brainerd joined the Scotland Mission. First he stayed at Kaunaumeek in New York and learned the language of the Red Indians. John Sergeant who taught him the language had worked among the Red Indians for eight years. Brainerd learned many things about the ministry from this experienced missionary.

He started his ministry among the Red Indians living in Kaunaumeek. He used to get up early in the morning and spend considerable time in prayer and meditation. Then he would go and preach the Gospel to the people. His ministry among the Red Indians bristled with many difficulties. His life was a life of simplicity. He used to spread hay on wooden plank and sleep on it. He walked through rough and difficult terrains to reach the people. The first winter was very difficult to manage. Once, he lost his way while going through a forest. After many hours of wandering he got back to his house. Another time he sank in a river but fortunately escaped death. Since he had to walk 15 miles to get bread, he started eating the food of the Red Indians.

Wherever Brainerd preached, the people turned to the Lord in tears. When he preached in New Haven, people of different background accepted Christ’s Lordship. He became sick at New Haven. So he stayed there for six months. Then he came to Delaware. He received many invitations from his friends to take charge of big churches. But Brainerd declined to accept them and was firm in his commitment to serve the Red Indians.

“Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy” (Ps. 126:5). In fulfillment of this, the labours of Brainerd began to yield fruits. One day in August 1745, when he preached to the Red Indians, many began to weep, overcome by remorse and repentance. Some white men who came to see what fun was going on in his meeting were convicted by the Lord.

In one week, 25 persons accepted Christ and boldly confessed their faith on Him. Brainerd founded a school also, among them.

In 1745, there broke out a great revival at Crossweeksung. In 1746, when the Indians in New Jersey moved to Cranberry, Brainerd established a Church among them. As a result of sustained effort, Brainerd could lead to Christ as many as 150 persons within 1½ year.

His sufferings for Christ also kept pace with his success. People falsely accused him that he was instigating the Red Indians against the Englishmen. Consequently, government officials began to harass him and tried to punish him.

But Brainerd was undaunted. He said God was his refuge and that he would go on preaching Christ, even if he were beheaded.

In September 1746 he fell ill with severe cough and fever. Yet he never stopped but preached the message of Christ, walking the distances by foot. He used to say that it was God’s concern whether he was to live or not. ‘It is none of my business’. So he wrote in his diary. Another time, he was totally incapacitated that he was not able to walk or write. Yet he said, “I feel refreshed in my mind”. His condition grew worse with T.B. The doctors said he wouldn’t be able to live longer. But Brainerd was cheerful even at the face of death.

Brainerd was going through the valley of the shadow of death. Jerusha who was engaged to him and some of his friends ministered to him during his last days on earth. He began to suffer from severe dysentery and death was nearing him. He called Jerusha and asked her. ‘Are you prepared to live without me? I am ready to be away from you. Even if I don’t see you, we shall see each other in eternity’.

He was on his deathbed for 19 weeks and on 9th October 1747; he entered the presence of the Lord. At the age of 29, Brainerd died. He had served the Lord only 5 years. A research scholar, who studied his life, came to the conclusion that Brainerd had achieved more than people who lived 70 years.