1956 Timor Revival in Indonesia

1956 Timor Revival in Indonesia: In 1965, God poured out His Spirit on the people of the Island of Timor, Indonesia, in response to prayers of His saints. The revival was received with scepticism in the West, especially among the Cessationists who insist that operations of the Holy Spirit ceased after the church was established in first century AD. The miracles recorded during the revival were too astounding for their unbelieving hearts to comprehend or accept.

Beginning in the 1600s, the Dutch had colonized Indonesia. They had introduced Christianity, and the people were “Christianized” but never evangelized. Before the revival came to Timor, Christians in the island still clung to their occult practices.

If they possessed charms, amulets or fetishes, they would always return to them in their hour of need. Magic, sorcery, promiscuity, and drunkenness were also common and acceptable among the Christian population. Most of the Indonesian pastors saw no problem with their congregation’s continual involvement with occult practices.

In fact, some pastors claimed that their powers of sorcery were God-given, having been handed down to them by their forebears. According to some estimates, 90% of the Christians routinely patronized the services of local “shamans” (witch doctors).

       Several events that led to the Timor revival. In 1964, Johannes A. Ratuwalu, an Indonesian healing evangelist from the Island of Rote, conducted a highly successful ministry in the Timor city of Kupang. Among those healed were the blind, deaf, mute, lame, and mentally ill. Same year, a man from the Maranatha Church in the city of Soe had a vision of the judgments of God, similar to the imagery found in the Book of Revelation. A woman in the same church had a vision of the Lord Jesus Christ with the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4), and this left her thirsting for more of God. Both visions prompted a small group of people to start praying for revival.

         In October 1964, Ratuwalu conducted a healing evangelistic campaign in Soe. Hundreds of people were healed and a greater hunger for a manifestation of the power of God was awakened among the locals. In January and February 1965, one of the two pastors at Maranatha Church, Soe identified as Binjamin Manuain preached a series of evangelistic messages that were said to have awakened the congregation with a great desire for revival. In 1965, Detmar Scheunemann, the German senior lecturer at the Indonesian Evangelistic Institute in the city of Batu on the island of Java, visited Timor with a team of students and conducted evangelistic campaigns in Kupang, Soe and some villages. In response to Scheunmann’s message, many Christians brought their amulets, charms, and fetishes to the church, where they were burnt.

In August 1965, a 25-year-old girl from the Maranatha Church, Hennie Tunli’u known as Priscila, received multiple visions of Christ, and began sharing with other young people. This led to 87 of them confessing Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour.

Pricilla then felt led to attend the Indonesian Evangelistic Institute. During a farewell service held in her honour, her testimony led to the conversion of 100 youths. In September 1965, in a service held in a church building in Timor, Scheunemann prophesised that God will raise teams to preach the Gospel in the island and beyond.

The prophesy began to be fulfilled on Sunday night, September 26, 1965, following a mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit at the Maranatha Church in Soe. The Spirit descended on the 200 people present, just like it fell upon the early disciples on the Day of Pentecost.

Some people reported that there was a sound like a tornado within the building. The presence of the Lord was so tangible that many wept uncontrollably while lying on the floor.

At the same time, the officer at the police station close to the church triggered the fire alarm, as he saw that the church was on fire. The people in the community, who were the only functioning “fire department”, rushed to the scene to extinguish the fire.

When they got to the church, they saw the flames but no evidence of the church building burning. They then recognized that it was the “fire of God”. Following this miraculous experience, the convicting power of the Holy Spirit became evident, as many of the people who came to extinguish the fire received Christ. Thereafter, they ran to their homes, collected all their occult paraphernalia, returned to the church and burnt them.

One of the believers identified as Nahor Leo later led an evangelistic team comprising 23 young people to preach the Gospel all over the island. Other teams were also formed to take the work beyond Timor. In October 1965, a team visited the town of Niki-Niki. About 9,000 people accepted Christ there. Many healings and deliverances took place in the town.

Unique Features of the Revival

Visions and Dreams – Many of those involved in the revival experienced visions and dreams. These served the purpose of calling people into ministry roles, as well as giving direction to ministry decisions.

Prophecies – Men and women alike received the gift of prophecy. Often, this gift was used to tell people that they had occult objects hidden, and specifically where they had them hidden in their homes.

Conviction of Sin – As is common in most revivals, there was an overwhelming conviction of sin that accompanied the preaching of the Gospel.

Public Confession of Sin – Public confession of sins was made before the entire church, in small groups, and in private settings.

Team Ministry – Many evangelistic teams were formed to take the Gospel to unbelievers across Timor and beyond.

Miracles

• The revival at Maranatha Church spread to other churches
• A new layman’s Bible Institute was established in Soe in 1967
• There was renewed love for the Bible and the Lord
• Many believers were sent out to start Christian schools in remote villages
• Evangelistic teams took the Gospel to neighbouring islands
• Missionaries were sent to Japan, Thailand, Pakistan, Germany and other locations
• The spiritual fruit remained. For instance, in 1972, a church in Kupang, which prior to the revival found it difficult to fill its building on time in a week, began conducting three services Sunday morning. Many other churches in Timor and other islands experienced the lingering effect of the revival
• More than 200,000 people were converted between 1965 and 1970

No group of people have resisted the Gospel of Jesus Christ as much as “Cessationists.” These are deluded folks, who, without any Scriptural grounds whatsoever, assert that operations of the Holy Spirit ceased with the early church. They are clearly demon possessed!

**** Culled from 1965 Timor Revival, https://www.romans1015.com