George Whitefield: A Biography, with special reference to his labors in America

by Joseph Belcher

In accordance with this proposal, the convention met in Boston on Thursday, July 7. The Rev. Dr. Sewall of Boston officiated as Moderator, and the Rev. Messrs. Prince of Boston, and Hobby of Reading, as Scribes. Ninety persons thus assembled, and letters were read from twenty-eight who were absent. A committee was appointed, consisting of the Rev. Dr. Sewall, the Rev. Messrs. Wigglesworth, Prince, Adams, Cooper, Nathanael Rogers, Leonard, and Hobby, to prepare a report. On the next morning this committee presented a document, which, after full discussion, was signed by all present; and the meeting was dissolved.

Our limits will not allow us to give the whole of the report to which we have referred, but a few sentences will show its general character:

"We, whose names are undersigned, think it our indispensable duty—without judging or censuring such of our brethren as cannot at present see things in the same light with us—in this open and conjunct manner to declare, to the glory of sovereign grace, our full persuasion, either from what we have seen ourselves, or received upon credible testimony, that there has been a happy and remarkable revival of religion in many parts of this land, through an uncommon divine influence, after a long time of decay and deadness, and a sensible and very awful withdrawal of the Holy Spirit from his sanctuary among us.... The present work seems to be remarkable and extraordinary, on account of the numbers wrought upon. We never before saw so many brought under soul concern, and with great distress making the inquiry, 'What must we do to be saved?' And these persons were of all ages and character. With regard to the suddenness and quick progress of it, many persons and places were surprised with the gracious visit together, or near about the same time, and the heavenly influence diffused itself far and wide, like the light of the morning. Also [the work seems to be remarkable] in respect to the degree of operations, both in a way of terror, and in a way of consolation, attended in many with unusual bodily effects. Not that all who are accounted the subjects of the present work have had these extraordinary degrees of previous distress and subsequent joy. But many, and we suppose the greater number, have been wrought on in a more gentle and silent way, and without any other appearances than are common and usual at other times, when persons have been awakened to a solemn concern about salvation, and have been thought to have passed out of a state of nature into a state of grace. As to those whose inward concern has occasioned extraordinary outward distresses, the most of them, when we came to converse with them, were able to give what appeared to us a rational account of what so affected their minds.... The instances were very few in which we had reason to think these affections were produced by visionary or sensible representations, or by any other images than such as the Scripture itself presents to us. Of those who were judged hopefully converted, and made a public profession of religion, there have been fewer instances of scandal and apostasy than might be expected.... There appears to be more experimental godliness and lively Christianity than most of us can remember we have ever seen before.... And now we desire to bow the knee in thanksgiving to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, that our eyes have seen and our ears heard such things. And while these are our sentiments, we must necessarily be grieved at any accounts sent abroad representing this work as all enthusiasm, delusion, and disorder. Indeed, it is not to be denied, that in some places many irregularities and extravagances have been permitted to accompany it, which we would deeply bewail and lament before God, and look upon ourselves obliged, for the honor of the Holy Spirit, and of his operations on the souls of men, to bear a public and faithful testimony against; though at the same time it is to be acknowledged, with much thankfulness, that in other places where the work has greatly flourished, there have been few if any of those disorders and excesses. But who can wonder if, at such a time as this, Satan should intermingle himself to hinder and blemish a work so directly contrary to the interests of his own kingdom?... Finally, we exhort the children of God to continue instant in prayer, that He, with whom is the residue of the Spirit, would grant us fresh, more plentiful, and extensive effusions, that so this wilderness, in all the parts of it, may become a fruitful field; that the present appearances may be an earnest of the glorious things promised in the latter days, when she shall shine with the glory of the Lord arisen upon her, so as to dazzle the eyes of beholders, confound and put to shame all her enemies, rejoice the hearts of her solicitous and now saddened friends, and have a strong influence and resplendency throughout the earth. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus; come quickly."

This paper was signed by eighteen ministers in the county of Suffolk, among whom were Colman, Sewall, Prince, Webb, Cooper, Foxcroft, Checkly, Gee, Eliot, and Moorhead of Boston; twelve in the county of Essex, nine in Middlesex, six in Worcester, ten in Plymouth, one in Barnstable, three in Bristol, three in York, five in New Hampshire, and one in Rhode Island. There were one hundred and fourteen in all who gave attestations, either by signing their names to the above document, or by sending written attestations. Ninety-six of the one hundred and fourteen took their first degree of Bachelor of Arts more than ten years previously; consequently before the revival commenced. Twenty-six took their first degrees above thirty years before. Attestations were received but from twelve ministers in Connecticut, as the proposal did not reach them in time.

We may add to this statement, as showing in some degree the extent of this revival, that while in 1729 the number of members in the Congregational and Presbyterian churches of this country may be estimated at thirty-three thousand, the number of communicants in 1745 could not be less than seventy-five thousand. "The special revivals of religion," says an able writer in the "American Quarterly Register," vol. 4, 1832, "were probably the means of adding from twenty thousand to thirty thousand members to the churches." The same writer adds, "The genuine fruits of holiness appeared, according to the acknowledgment of all parties, in multitudes of those who professed religion. They were Christians, who endured unto the end. This is the unanimous testimony of those men who were the best able to judge. Great numbers who were convinced of sin by Mr. Whitefield's preaching, gave ample evidence, living and dying, of sincere and fervent love to the commands of God. There is reason to believe that a preparation had been made for the descent of the Holy Spirit, many years before the revival commenced. The fasts and public reformations, the prayers and tears of good men, from 1700 to 1730, were not in vain."

One fact connected with the testimony against Whitefield, published by the faculty of Harvard college, we quote, as showing that then, as well as now, a difference of opinion existed as to written and extempore sermons. They thought his extempore manner of preaching "by no means proper," because extempore preachers are of necessity less instructive, the greater part of the sermon being commonly "the same kind of harangue which they have often used before, so that this is a most lazy manner" of preaching; and because it exposes the preacher to utter rash expressions, and even dangerous errors, as Whitefield, they thought, had done in several instances, probably from that cause. Assuredly he preferred extempore preaching to any other; yet he never pretended to preach without previous study. His sermons usually cost him as much previous labor as if they had been written; so that, in his case at least, it was not "a lazy way" of preaching. The errors which they said he had uttered, were a few hasty expressions, which he had retracted as soon as he had been reminded of them.

Itinerancy, which had also been objected against Whitefield as one of his crimes, he strenuously defended as scriptural and right; understanding an evangelist to be, what they said an itinerant was, "One that hath no particular charge of his own, but goes about from country to country, or from town to town in any country, and stands ready to preach to any congregation that shall call him to it." For the divine command, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature," he argued, "authorizes the ministers of Christ, even to the end of the world, to preach the gospel in every town and country, though not 'of their own head,' yet whenever and wherever Providence should open a door, even though it should be in a place 'where officers are already settled, and the gospel is fully and faithfully preached.' This, I humbly apprehend, is every gospel minister's indisputable privilege." He further asked, "Was not the Reformation begun and carried on by itinerant preaching?" He then quoted from "Baxter's Reformed Pastor," a plan which had been adopted in some parts of England, for circular lectures by settled ministers selected for the purpose, and with the consent of the pastors.

In reference to Harvard college, Whitefield lived long enough to take a Christian's revenge. In 1764, he solicited from his friends donations of books for their library, which had recently been destroyed by fire, and four years afterwards, while his old opponent President Holyoke was yet in office, the following minute was entered on their records: "At a meeting of the President and Fellows of Harvard college, August 22, 1768, the Rev. G. Whitefield having, in addition to his former kindness to Harvard college, lately presented to the library a new edition of his Journals, and having procured large benefactions from several benevolent and respectable gentlemen; voted, that the thanks of the corporation be given to the Rev. Mr. Whitefield, for these instances of candor and generosity."

It will be readily supposed, that notwithstanding all the opposition which Whitefield met, there were yet many thousands always ready to attend on his ministry. It was now the close of 1744, but the cold of winter did not prevent vast crowds assembling at early services long before daylight. Speaking of the opposition he met, "so that," says he, "for a while my situation was rendered uncomfortable," he adds, "But amidst all this smoke a blessed fire broke out. The awakened souls were as eager as ever to hear the word. Having heard that I expounded early in Scotland, they begged that I would do the same in Boston. I complied, and opened a lecture at six in the morning. I seldom preached to less than two thousand. It was delightful to see so many of both sexes neatly dressed flocking to hear the word, and returning home to family prayer and breakfast before the opposers were out of their beds."

The late Rev. Dr. Archibald Alexander tells us, that when he was at Boston, in 1800, he found in the Old South church a lingering relic of Whitefield's times, in a convert of his day, a lady between eighty and ninety years of age, who belonged to a prayer-meeting founded then, which had been kept up weekly until within a few years. Of this, she was the only surviving member.