A Brief History of Gospel Meetings - Part 2
By:  H.E. Phillips

My experience in gospel meetings did not begin until near the end of World War II. Reflecting upon the gospel meetings at that time, I believe several factors merged to make them as successful as they were. Some of these factors were:
The war turned many to religion to seek God for a solution for their problems that grew out of divided families and the anxieties of war.
Opportunities were opened for the gospel in the countries where the military had been during the war.
The militant attitude of most churches of Christ during the years immediately following the war.
Gospel meetings began to increase in number and preachers began to devote their full time to preaching in meetings rather than in local work.

During the 1930s and 1940s gospel meetings would often span three Sundays, and sometimes go through the third Wednesday evening. These long meetings resulted from increasing interest as they continued. I remember several meetings in which I preached during the middle 1940s and through the 1950s that would continue a week or more beyond the date advertised to close. The interest continued to mount and both the churches and preachers were eager to continue. How could one stop an effort when from one to twelve came to be baptized every night, and several were restored to the Lord each night?

During this period gospel meetings nearly always had day (morning or afternoon) services and evening services every day of the meeting. The preaching was distinctive and forceful. Sermon subjects expressed Bible matters. Doctrinal error was exposed and immorality was condemned without apology. Obedience was emphasized in clear language with Bible examples. Every member was interested in his relative and neighbor to hear the gospel of Christ, and they brought them to meetings night after night.

During the first half of this century the "pay" for gospel meetings was not what it is today. Often preachers traveled many miles and preached two full weeks or more, and received less than enough to pay for their travel expenses. That was almost the rule rather than the exception. That happened to me several times during my first twenty years of preaching. I remember talking with brother H. C. Shoulders in my home in the 1940s about his experiences in gospel meetings. He was in his 80s at the time. He told me that on one occasion he traveled over one hundred miles for a meeting, which lasted two weeks. On the last Sunday the brethren "took up a collection for the preacher" and brother Shoulders said he received $6.29. He put in $2.00 of that amount. He had to travel by train to his next meeting, and borrowed $10.00 from a brother to buy the train ticket. After two weeks in the second meeting, he received $8.50 for his labors. His total income for preaching in two gospel meetings for four weeks was $14.79. I think he said his expenses were about $39.00 for those meetings. That was not an isolated incident! I have preached in a few meetings that cost me up to $50.00 out of pocket to pay my travel expenses above what I received for the meetings. Most every gospel preacher of my generation had this same experience. Later churches began to pay preachers more for assisting them in gospel meetings.

During the 1950s gospel meetings were used by some preachers and churches to promote certain doctrinal issues that later divided churches across the land. The liberal ideas of the social gospel, institutional agencies through which churches should pool their financial resources in evangelism and benevolence, cooperation of churches through one eldership became the central theme in many gospel meetings across the land. This led to division. During the 1950s and 1960s I had many gospel meetings canceled because of the influence of the promoters of church supported human institutions. Efforts to talk to them often failed, and relationships became worse. In the 1960s gospel meetings began to be for shorter periods of time. The six day annual meeting became the pattern. During this period of time many churches requested preachers to deal with a specific subject during these six days. Usually that subject concerned the issues of that time.

During the 1970s and 1980s the three day meeting became popular. More television, ball games and social functions left no time for attending gospel meetings. Some churches decided to have one full week (six days, Sunday through Friday) meeting and a three-day meeting (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) during the year. The three day meeting generally was directed toward some special subjects.

Today serious concern plagues churches in general over the country regarding gospel meetings. It is becoming more difficult to get people to attend a gospel meeting. Even the members will not faithfully attend a gospel meeting. Forty or fifty years ago the buildings were filled from the first night with denominational people and those who were not members of any religious body. The members were able to bring their neighbors and family members. The members of the church where the meeting was conducted came regularly every day and night to the preaching. They did not depend upon faithful members of neighboring churches of Christ to have a decent audience. Interest increased during the meeting and many were obedient to the gospel. But now it is difficult to get the members of the church having the gospel meeting to attend more than Sunday morning and Wednesday night. We must depend upon other churches of Christ in the area to provide an audience, and that is not as easy as it was a few years ago. There are exceptions, of course. One of the major causes of this problem is the soft, denominational, weak preaching that is done in these meetings. The preachers are more interested in having people praise and exalt them than in pleasing God with the plain, pure gospel of Christ that will call one to repentance and a more obedient life.

Over the past two decades efforts have been made to stimulate gospel meetings by having "lectureships" in which two or more gospel preachers preach in three or four services each day on special subjects. These efforts expect to attract the attention of several churches in an area and rely upon their attendance to provide a good audience. The problem is that it does not attract alien sinners and denominational people, who really need good gospel preaching. The more mature and faithful Christians enjoy these lessons, but the ones who need them are not there.

Gospel meetings provide a good way to edify a local church and reach some few who come a time or two, but they are not presently reaching the majority of lost people who need the gospel. We must work harder to encourage people to attend meetings where the simple gospel of Christ is preached. We must secure men who will earnestly preach Christ unto the people, and preach "the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ" (Acts 8:12).