Thousands of followers of the Christian faith appear in the world every day. She simply cannot help but have great adepts who develop religious thought and give hope to those who have lost it through their books. Their works play a fundamental role not only in the history of Christianity. And often these people are well educated. One such person is Andrew Murray. This is a writer and missionary from South Africa.
Biography of Andrew Murray
He was born on May 9, 1928 in Hraff Reinet, South Africa. This city is also one of the largest in South Africa. Murray's father was a missionary in the Dutch Reformed Church. His family arrived in Africa from Scotland with a missionary purpose. His mother had ancestors of different views and nations: French Huguenots and German Lutherans. In addition to Andrew, the family also had an eldest son.
Father wanted to see Murray continue his work, which the son did not resist. Therefore, he, along with his older brother, went to Aberdeen (a city inScotland). Already in 1845 he completed his studies. But almost immediately after that, Andrew, like his brother, continued to study in the Netherlands, in the city of Utrecht. There he mastered the art of theology.
On May 9, 1848, Andrew Murray and his brother were ordained priests in The Hague. After that, the younger brother returned to South Africa to spread the Protestant faith there. In July 1856 Murray married Emma Rutherford. In marriage, she bore him eight children.
Preached in Bloemfontein, Worcester, Cape Town and Wellington as pastor.
Achievements
It's hard to find such clerics, so dedicated to their work. During his life, Murray wrote 240 works on religious topics. He was also one of the founders of the South African Religious Mission. Andrew Murray is still considered one of the key figures in the history of Christianity in the South African region.
Ideas
Murray considered fellowship with God to be the cornerstone of human life. He considered the ability to rejoice, love communication and be humble as the criteria for happiness.
Christianity has many branches that have differences in fundamental issues: calendar, attributes of faith, interpretation of scriptures, prayers, etc. There are three large branches into which Christianity is divided: Orthodoxy, Catholicism, Protestantism. Andrew Murray belonged to the Protestant faith, which also has many branches. One of them is revivalism, to which he attributed himselfMurray.
The main aspect of Andrew's religious life can be called experiences that will arise during a personal meeting with God (subjective religious experience). The emphasis in sermons was often on the second coming of Jesus Christ.
The peculiarity of revivalism is that for a long time it did not have the proper structure. The role of preachers spreading this idea was played by many leaders who were not connected with each other. So was Murray. Since 1860, he began to spread this belief, observing all its canons.
Andrew Murray and Humility
During his life he wrote several fundamental works, one of which is his book "Humility". It tells how it helps to cope with the difficulties of everyday life, and also provides answers to questions about how to come to the joy of love and be resilient through humility. Murray emphasizes that without humility it is impossible to be in the presence of God, that it is it that makes a person stronger, it is this that allows God to make a person better. Humility is the root of endurance, strength. That is where everything should start. Murray also reflects in this book on the benefits of goodness that comes to a person from interaction with God.
Other works
Andrew Murray left behind a rich legacy of many works. All of them were aimed at helping a person gain faith in God, pointing out the benefits of the Christian faith. There was also an emphasis on interaction withAlmighty.
An important role was played by the book "Experiencing the Holy Spirit", which tells how the holy spirit can help a person understand all the delights of the Christian faith. Murray does not forget to touch upon the fact that only true faith can radically change a person. Andrew Murray's books still serve as excellent literature to this day, helping to kindle religious fervor in the reader's heart.
