Historical Origins And Development Of The Solemn Assembly

Solemn national assemblies for prayer, fasting, and repentance are described in the Old Testament Scriptures. In America, local and national leaders have called for days of prayer and fasting at times of crisis and when they perceive a need for repentance by the entire society. In 1989 Southern Baptist leaders issued a call to prayer and solemn assembly.

Biblical Basis for the Solemn Assembly Holy convocations and/or solemn assemblies may be described as a day or days in which God's followers come together under concerned leadership to confess sins and to be brought into a renewed relationship with God. Worshipers confess both personal and corporate sins which have separated them from God. The spirit of the solemn assembly may be found in 2 Chronicles 7:14, "?if my people who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.?" This is the biblical intention of the solemn assembly: confession, forgiveness of sin, personal restoration, national blessing, and the healing process. The concept of solemn assembly emanates mainly from Old Testament literature. The terminology does not appear in the New Testament largely for two reasons. The first reason is that New Testament Christian leaders and writers were Jews (some exceptions being noted) who practiced Jewish custom while being Christians. They knew about holy days and solemn assemblies. Therefore, there was no real need to deal with solemn assemblies. The second reason has to do with the constant and ongoing confession of sin believed to be necessary for an appropriate relationship with God the Father as taught in New Testament literature. Practicing this teaching made even mentioning solemn assemblies unnecessary, since they were called only in the case of gross personal and corporate sin. In addition to these two reasons, the national and religious life of Israel had been interrupted by the defeat and pagan rule of the country. Israel was not a free nation. In the face of Roman rule, calling a solemn assembly would have been extremely difficult. The Old Testament records at least twelve solemn assemblies, if the Old Testament revivals are equated with solemn assemblies. The term solemn assembly is sometimes but not always used. The following is a listing of these solemn assemblies: Exodus 33:7–11 1 Samuel 7:5–6 2 Samuel 6:14–19 (1 Chronicles 13:1–16:43 [same event]) 2 Chronicles 15:9–15 2 Chronicles 29:5–29 2 Chronicles 34:31–33 Ezra 6:16–22 Ezra 8:21–23; 9:5–15; 10:7–12 Nehemiah 8:1–12 Joel 1:14; 2:12–17, 19, 28–29

The solemn assemblies of the Old Testament all have several things in common. First, Israelites turn away from God and involve themselves in sins. Second, God then sends some form of corrective or remedial judgment upon the people. Third, the leader or leaders of the people become burdened, recognize the judgment, and see the cause as sin. The fourth common element is the action taken by the leaders. This is usually a call to repentance in the form of a solemn assembly. There is no more vivid expression of the burden felt by the leader than can be found in Exodus 32:32: "?But now, please forgive their sin—but if not, then blot me out of the book you have written.?" It should be noted that God directs the leader to call a solemn assembly. This is no mere human plan to deal with a personal and collective crisis.

In considering the biblical material relative to the solemn assembly, the term holy convocation must be considered. The two terms are often used in connection with the same event. Leviticus 23:8 designates the seventh day of the Passover as a holy convocation, and in Deuteronomy 16:8 the same event on the same day is called a solemn assembly. The same is true in several Old Testament passages. Both terms are necessary to convey fully the concept of a special day or a season when confession of sin and a turning to God are the emphases. There are eight days prescribed in the Old Testament, which are recognizable as holy convocations or solemn assemblies. They are: The first day of the Feast of the Passover The seventh day of the Feast of the Passover The Feast of First Fruits The Feast of Trumpets The Day of Atonement The first day of the Feast of Tabernacles The eighth day of the Feast of Tabernacles The Sabbath Day These eight days were observed annually at specified times. The solemn assemblies were also called when made necessary by radical departures from God. These observances served to help the people maintain their essential relationship with God. As has been stated, Christians in the New Testament period continued to observe many, if not all, of these days. An example of this is the New Testament Christian Jew who worshiped on the Sabbath (Saturday) in the synagogue and also on the first day of the week (Sunday) in celebration of the Resurrection. In the upper room experience, Jesus celebrated the Passover with his disciples. He then celebrated with them that meal which is observed by Christian groups under differing names such as, the Lord's Supper, Communion, and others. This meal is seen by many as a New Testament example of a holy convocation or a solemn assembly. Jesus said in that instance, "?let a man so examine himself …?" In this statement, he was suggesting that the confession of sin should be done before one partake of the meal, whether as a memorial or in some other context. Therefore, in the minds of many, the New Testament Christian does what the Old Testament saint did in solemn assembly as he or she observes this practice or ordinance, the Lord's Supper. This understanding in no way precludes the possibility of calling holy convocations or solemn assemblies at other times. Southern Baptist Solemn Assemblies Religious and secular history document the fact that solemn assemblies have been a part of America's national religious past. National leaders from the time of the New England Puritans to the nineteenth-century Civil War called solemn assemblies for the purpose of confessing personal and corporate sin, as well as for the purpose of seeking God during times when God was perceived to be judging the people. Many sermons for such assemblies have been recorded and preserved, thus informing and guiding successive generations. The solemn assembly was abandoned sometime during the latter part of the nineteenth century and the first quarter of the twentieth century, because it was perceived as an Old Testament activity which held no value for New Testament Christianity. Southern Baptist use of solemn assemblies has been of relatively recent origin, beginning in 1989 with a "?Call to Prayer and Solemn Assembly: A Timely Proclamation for our Nation's Churches … from Southern Baptist Leaders?" (September 17, 1989). This document was prepared by prayer leaders representing every board, auxiliary, and commission in Southern Baptist Convention headquarters. The one-page document was mailed to Baptist state leaders and distributed through the state conventions to local churches. The National Prayer Corps issued a Call to Prayer and Solemn Assembly on national television. This, according to some, was the beginning of the Southern Baptist Convention involvement in the solemn assembly movement. Perhaps Southern Baptist involvement did begin formally and officially in the manner described. However, a number of Southern Baptists other than the National Prayer Leaders were working on similar material and ideas prior to the televised national call. One writer developed a paper entitled "?A Journey into Prayer and Solemn Assembly?" as a model for the implementation of solemn assemblies in Baptist churches (see "?Guidelines,?" below, for details). Other individuals were working and developing materials in the area of prayer. Often these ideas were taken up by existing movements, such as the lay renewal process which was firmly established in such state conventions as Texas. In that state, the Baptist men's organization had taken the lead in the lay renewal process. This group was ready to begin working with the concept of the solemn assembly and providing leadership in a few churches. These early efforts in the state of Texas cannot be seen as solemn assemblies. Many weekend meetings were held and called solemn assemblies, but they were not solemn assemblies because they did not meet the biblical criteria for planning, introducing, and conducting solemn assemblies. They also did not meet biblical criteria in terms of the final results. The same story can be told with regards to other state conventions and the churches in them. However, all of the individuals who were working in the area of renewal, prayer for revival, solemn assembly, and other areas were motivated basically by the same convictions. These were: (1) God is holy and hates sin. (2) America has turned away from God. (3) America has become a very sinful nation. (4) God has begun America's judgment. (a) The judgment is currently remedial in nature. (b) If repentance does not occur, the judgment will become final. (5) The only hope America has is prayer and revival. (6) National revival is needed. (7) Extraordinary commitment to prayer is needed. As different individuals and groups prayed, sought God, planned, and developed materials, events were taking place within the life of the Southern Baptist Convention which indicated that God's Spirit was moving and that God intended to do something through the Southern Baptists. Throughout the year of 1989, a new fervor developed to seek God at the national level, at the state level, in conferences, in retreats, and in local churches. Since that time, the movement which began and held so much hope for revival has slowed. There seem to be several reasons for the slowing, among them the following: (1) Churches have been reluctant to become involved in planning and conducting solemn assemblies. (2) Southern Baptist churches are at the saturation point in trying to accommodate programs fostered by national and state conventions. (3) There is considerable difference of opinion as to who should conduct a solemn assembly and where. (4) Most local church leaders do not have the sophistication to develop an awareness of personal and corporate sin to the level necessary for a solemn assembly to be successful. (5) The authority to call a solemn assembly and to require all church members to attend is lacking in Southern Baptist churches. (6) When God begins a work by the Spirit, God will surely close the work down if humans begin to take credit for what is happening, rather than giving credit to God's Holy Spirit. Even though progress toward solemn assemblies and national revival has slowed, there continues to be some effort in this direction. Because God has promised to honor repentance and recommitment, the solemn assembly continues to be a biblically sound process which holds much hope for the present as well as for the future.