Jacob Knapp's Third Great Awakening

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A prominent voice in the third great awakening, Jacob Knapp was a Baptist preacher in the 19th century. He led many to Christ for the first time and brought many back. Ultimately, he was an important instrument both in the Great Awakening and American history. The third Great Awakening began approximately in 1850 and lasted until the turn of the twentieth century. This time was a time of reform, and the third Great Awakening paralleled this ideal with a strong sense of social activism. It also placed emphasis on evangelizing and spreading the gospel, which also paralleled the United States growing imperialism. This was a time of growth for both the church and the state. This was also a time for waning Christian faiths. The second Great Awakening …show more content…

However, he was mostly considered an itinerant preacher, never staying in one play for too long. A problem that he faced was that there were not many travelling Baptist evangelists. Many of the examples that he had to go by were either Presbyterians or Congressionalist. The beginning of his ministry was hard for him. In his own words, “I looked upon the past eight years of my ministry [as a pastor] as comparatively wasted,” he later commented. “I felt that I had turned aside for ‘filthy lucre.’ What he lacked was inspiration. He lacked passion. However, he turned himself to God and found what he needed not only to be inspired, but to inspire other people. In the Awakening, the idea that people could do anything to promote a revival spread rapidly. This was directly against Knapp’s teachings and caused his sermons to amass much controversy. His message was that revival is something given by God to those who have earned it. Another controversial doctrine that Knapp preached was the idea that Christ can free his followers from sin. The popular contradictory belief at the time was that Christians must undergo a second “act of grace” to cleanse them of their sins later in life. However, Knapp would eventually become very popular, having campaigns that lasted for days and speeches that lasted for hours, with thousands gathering to hear them. He was one of the first men in America, at least in the Northeastern region, to completely devote his life to teaching. He found these days to be some of the best in his life. “These were golden days, sunny spots, heavenly seasons. The memory of them is precious,” described

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