This revival, taking place at Count Zinzendorf's estate in Germany, was birthed during the course of a quest for unity.
“Endeavoring to keep the unity...in the bond of peace.”
A special outpouring of the Holy Spirit occurred on August 13, 1727.
Describing it, a church historian wrote: “We saw the hand of God and His wonders, and we were all under the cloud of our fathers and were baptized with their Spirit. The Holy Ghosts came upon us and in those days great signs and wonders took place in our midst. From that time scarcely a day passed but what we beheld His almighty workings amongst us. A great hunger after the Word of God took possession of us so that we had to have three services every day—in the evening at 5, 7: 30, and at 9. Everyone desired above everything else that the Holy Spirit might have full control. Self-love and self-will, as well as all disobedience disappeared and an overwhelming flood of grace swept us all out into the great ocean of Divine Love.”
Count Nicholas Zinzendorf described it this way: “We needed to come to the Communion with a sense of the loving nearness of the Saviour.... (On) this day twenty- seven years ago the Congregation of Herrnhut, assembled for communion were all dissatisfied with themselves. They had quit judging each other because they had become convinced, each one, of his lack of worth in the sight of God and each felt himself at this Communion to be in view of the noble countenance of the Saviour. O head so full of bruises, so full of pain and scorn. In this view of the man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, their hearts told them that He would be their patron and their priest who was at once changing their tears into oil of gladness and their misery into happiness. This firm confidence changed them in a single moment into happy people, which they are to this day, and into their happiness they have since led many thousands of others....
The disgruntled community at Herrnhut early in 1727 was deeply divided and critical of one another. Heated controversies threatened to disrupt the community. The majority of the people came from the ancient Moravian church of the Brethren. Others believers included Lutherans, Reformed, and Baptists. They argued about predestination, holiness, and baptism.
The young German nobleman, Count Zinzendorf, pleaded for unity, love and repentance. Converted in early childhood, at the age of four he had already composed and signed the following covenant: ‘Dear Saviour, do Thou be mine, and I will be Thine.’ His life motto was, ‘I have one passion: it is Jesus, Jesus only!’
At Herrnhut, Zenzendorf visited all the adult members of the deeply divided community. He drew up a covenant calling upon them ‘to seek out and emphasize the points in which they agreed’ rather than stressing their differences. On May 12, 1727 they all signed an agreement to dedicate their lives, as he dedicated his, to the service of the Lord Jesus Christ.
On July 16 many of the community covenanted together on their own accord to meet often to pour out their hearts in prayer and hymns.
On August 5 the Count spent the whole night in prayer with about 12 or 14 others following a large meeting for prayer at midnight.
On August 10, their pastor, while leading the service, was “overwhelmed” by the power of the Lord at about noon. He sank down into the dust before the Lord. So did the whole congregation. They continued till midnight in prayer and singing, weeping and praying.
On Wednesday August 13, the Holy Spirit was poured out on them all. Their prayers were answered in ways far beyond anyone’s expectations. Many of the members decided to set aside certain times for continued earnest prayer.
On August 26, 24 men and 24 women covenanted together to continue praying intervals of one hour each, day and night, each hour allocated by lots to different people. Soon another 77 joined them. They met as a group once per week to hear prayer requests. Children, observing their elders, were deeply moved and decided to follow a similar plan. Their prayers had a powerful effect on the rest of the community. So began a prayer meeting, which last for the next 100 years. More than that, over the next 25 years, more than 100 Moravian missionaries left that community to take the Saviour to the world, constantly supported through prayer.
It was the Moravian missionary Peter Boehler who played such a role in bringing the Wesley brothers to a confident walk in Jesus.
Everywhere the Moravians went, they spoke of their Lord, sang of Him and witnessed continually. The Holy Spirit had filled them with a great love for their Lord.
We are still reminded of the Moravians’ influence in our own church every time we sing the hymn, “O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing My Dear Redeemer’s Praise, for Peter Boehler had told Charles Wesley, ‘If I had a thousand tongues, I would praise Jesus with every one of them.” This prompted Wesley to write the words that have blessed so many.
Reviewing the events that brought about the baptism of the Holy Spirit, J Kenneth Pfohl, a Moravian pastor, wrote: ‘The great Moravian Pentecost was not a shower of blessing out of a cloudless sky. It did come suddenly, as suddenly as the blessing of its great predecessor in Jerusalem, when the Christian Church was born. Yet, for a long there had been signs of abundance of rain, though many recognized them not. In short, the blessing of the 13th of August 1727 was diligently and earnestly prepared for. We know of no annals of Church history which evidence greater desire for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit and more patient and persistent effort in that direction than those of our own Church between the years 1725 and 1727. Two distinct lines of preparation and spiritual effort for the blessing are evident. One was prayer; the other was individual work with individuals. We are told that "men and Women met for prayer and praise at one another's homes and the Church of Berthelsdorf was crowed out." Then the Spirit came in great power. Then the entire company experienced the blessing at once and the same time.’—Adapted from Greenfield's Power on High.