White Knuckles

Back in the revival days of the church, people were prone to get white knuckles.  It was not some kind of physical disease though it might have been contagious.  There were times when it would afflict a whole row of pew sitters.  This phenomena was a symptom of a spiritual problem which could only be cured by taking a trip down the aisle of the church to the altar.  Or, in the even earlier days of the camp meeting, it necessitated a trip down what was a sawdust aisle to an altar which was generally more primitive and plain in appearance. 

White knuckles came from holding on the back of the pew in front of you.  The knuckles turned white because the tightness of the hold would cut off blood circulation from the fingers.  What caused the tight hold really spoke to a heart problem.  People afflicted with white knuckles had heard a word from God that caused the heart to be overwhelmed with repentance and sorrow.  White knuckles was a sure sign that some sin needed handling.  It was what the revival preacher had come to do.  He had come to preach about Jesus in such a way that those who heard realized a choice had to be made between Jesus and the sin present in the heart. 

The church of our own day could use more preachers who came to the pulpit convinced that the most important message which could be preached was the message that called people to choose Jesus instead of a life of continued submission to the power of sin.  It would be the kind of preaching which would require a personal response or decision.  And, if such preaching once again became a dominant message from the pulpit, there would be more folks on the back row where I sat as a boy holding on with white knuckles.