the time, Wesley was at Norwich; but, five days afterwards, he wrote:――
“Saturday, November 10, 1770. I returned to London, and had
the melancholy news of Mr. Whitefield’s death confirmed by his
executors, who desired me to preach his funeral sermon on Sunday,
the 18th.[707] In order to write this, I retired to Lewisham
on Monday; and, on Sunday following, went to the chapel in
Tottenham Court Road. An immense multitude was gathered together
from all corners of the town.[708] I was at first afraid that
a great part of the congregation would not be able to hear; but
it pleased God so to strengthen my voice, that even those at the
door heard distinctly. It was an awful season: all were still
as night; most appeared to be deeply affected; and an impression
was made on many, which one would hope will not speedily be
effaced.
“The time appointed for my beginning at the Tabernacle was half
an hour after five; but it was quite filled at three; so I began
at four. At first, the noise was exceeding great; but it ceased
when I began to speak; and my voice was again so strengthened
that all who were within could hear, unless an accidental noise
hindered here or there for a few moments. O that all may hear
the voice of Him with whom are the issues of life and death; and
who so loudly, by this unexpected stroke, calls all His children
to love one another!”
In addition to the services on November 18, Wesley, on two other
occasions, improved the death of his old and much-loved friend. Hence
the following extracts from his Journal:――
“Friday, November 23. Being desired by the trustees of the
Tabernacle at Greenwich to preach Mr. Whitefield’s funeral
sermon there, I went over to-day for that purpose; but neither
would this house contain the congregation. Those who could not
get in made some noise at first; but in a little while all were
silent. Here, likewise, I trust God has given a blow to that
bigotry which had prevailed for many years.
“Wednesday, January 2, 1771. I preached, in the evening, at
Deptford, a kind of funeral sermon for Mr. Whitefield. In every
place, I wish to shew all possible respect to the memory of that
great and good man.”
Wesley’s sermon was official; and was published, with the title, “A
Sermon on the Death of the Rev. Mr. George Whitefield. Preached at the
Chapel in Tottenham Court Road, and at the Tabernacle near Moorfields,
on Sunday, November 18, 1770. By John Wesley, M.A., late Fellow of
Lincoln College, Oxon., and Chaplain to the Right Honourable the
Countess-Dowager of Buchan. 1770.” (8vo. 32 pp.)
No man was so well qualified to form a correct estimate of Whitefield’s
life as Wesley was. For thirty-seven years, they had been loving, frank,
confiding friends. Wesley was a singularly keen observer of human
character; and, moreover, he was without envy, was incapable of using
flattery, and was far too honest to say anything but what he thought.
In this instance, he took a text (Numbers xxiii. 10) without expounding
it. His sermon was simply a review of Whitefield’s “life, and death,
and character,” with an enquiry how his sudden removal ought to be
improved. The first dozen pages are filled with a condensed summary of
Whitefield’s Journals down to the year 1741;――“Journals,” says Wesley,
“which, for their artless and unaffected simplicity, may vie with any
writings of the kind.” And then, in reference to Whitefield’s labours
already sketched, Wesley adds:――
“How exact a specimen is this of his labours, both in Europe and
America, for the honour of his beloved Master, during the thirty
years that followed! as well as of the uninterrupted showers of
blessings wherewith God was pleased to succeed his labours! Is
it not much to be lamented, that anything should have prevented
his continuing this account till at least near the time when
he was called by his Lord to enjoy the fruit of his labour? If
he has left any papers of this kind, and his friends count me
worthy of the honour, it would be my glory and joy to methodize,
transcribe, and prepare them for the public view.”
Wesley then gives an extract from the _Boston Gazette_, which he
virtually adopts as expressing his own opinions:――
“In his public labours, Mr. Whitefield has for many years
astonished the world with his eloquence and devotion. With what
divine pathos did he persuade the impenitent sinner to embrace
the practice of piety and virtue! Filled with the spirit of
grace, he spoke from the heart; and, with a fervency of zeal
perhaps unequalled since the days of the apostles, adorned the
truths he delivered with the most graceful charms of rhetoric
and oratory. From the pulpit he was unrivalled in the command
of an over-crowded auditory. Nor was he less agreeable and
instructive in his private conversation: happy in a remarkable
ease of address, willing to communicate, studious to edify.”
Wesley next proceeds to give his own sketch of Whitefield’s character,
and which, abbreviated, is as follows:――
“Mention has already been made of his unparalleled _zeal_,
his indefatigable _activity_, his _tender-heartedness_ to the
afflicted, and _charitableness_ toward the poor. But should we
not likewise mention his deep _gratitude_ to all whom God had
used as instruments of good to him? of whom he did not cease
to speak in the most respectful manner, even to his dying
day.[709] Should we not mention, that he had a heart susceptible
of the most generous and the most tender _friendship_? I
have frequently thought, that this, of all others, was the
distinguishing part of his character. How few have we known
of so kind a temper, of such large and flowing affections! Was
it not principally by this that the hearts of others were so
strangely drawn and knit to him? Can anything but love beget
love? This shone in his very countenance, and continually
breathed in all his words, whether in public or private. Was
it not this, which, quick and penetrating as lightning, flew
from heart to heart? which gave life to his sermons, his
conversations, his letters? Ye are witnesses.
“He was also endued with the most nice and unblemished _modesty_.
His office called him to converse, very frequently and largely,
with women as well as men; and those of every age and condition.
But his whole behaviour toward them was a practical comment on
that advice of St. Paul to Timothy, ‘_Intreat the elder women
as mothers, the younger as sisters, with all purity._’[710]
“The _frankness and openness_ of his conversation was as
far removed from rudeness on the one hand, as from guile and
disguise on the other. Was not this frankness at once a fruit
and a proof of his _courage_ and _intrepidity_? Armed with these,
he feared not the faces of men, but used _great plainness of
speech_ to persons of every rank and condition, high and low,
rich and poor; endeavouring only _by manifestation of the truth_
to _commend himself to every man’s conscience in the sight of
God_.
“His _steadiness_ appeared in whatever he undertook for his
Master’s sake. Witness one instance for all, the Orphan House
in Georgia, which he began and perfected, in spite of all
discouragements. Indeed, in whatever concerned himself, he was
pliant and flexible. In this case, he was _easy to be intreated_,
easy to be either convinced or persuaded. But he was immoveable
in the things of God, or wherever his conscience was concerned.
None could persuade, any more than affright him, to vary in the
least point from that _integrity_, which was inseparable from
his whole character, and regulated all his words and actions.
“If it be enquired, what was the foundation of this integrity,
or of his sincerity, courage, patience, and every other valuable
and amiable quality, it is easy to give the answer. It was not
the excellence of his natural temper; not the strength of his
understanding; it was not the force of education; no, nor the
advice of his friends. It was no other than faith in a bleeding
Lord; _faith of the operation of God_. It was _a lively hope
of an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, and that fadeth
not away_. It was _the love of God shed abroad in his heart
by the Holy Ghost, which was given unto him_, filling his soul
with tender, disinterested love to every child of man. From
this source arose that torrent of _eloquence_, which frequently
bore down all before it; from this, that astonishing force of
_persuasion_, which the most hardened sinners could not resist.
This it was, which often made his _head as waters_, and his
_eyes as a fountain of tears_. This it was, which enabled him to
pour out his soul in _prayer_, in a manner peculiar to himself,
with such fulness and ease united together, with such strength
and variety both of sentiment and expression.
“I may close this head with observing, what an honour it pleased
God to put upon His faithful servant, by allowing him to declare
His everlasting gospel in so many various countries, to such
numbers of people, and with so great an effect on so many of
their precious souls. Have we read or heard of any person since
the apostles, who testified the gospel of the grace of God,
through so widely extended a space, through so large a part
of the habitable world? Have we read or heard of any person,
who called so many thousands, so many myriads of sinners to
repentance? Above all, have we read or heard of any, who has
been a blessed instrument in the hand of God of _bringing_ so
many sinners from _darkness to light, and from the power of
Satan unto God_?”
Like all Wesley’s writings, this sketch of Whitefield’s character
is concise, but terse, pointed, and comprehensive. He concludes by
improving Whitefield’s death. The grand lesson to be learned was to
“keep close to the _grand doctrines_ which” Whitefield “delivered;
and to drink into his _spirit_,” a lesson which the Methodists of
the present day have more need to study and to lay to heart than the
Methodists of any previous generation.
The “_grand doctrines_” specified by Wesley were, that “There is _no
power_ (by nature) and _no merit_ in man. All power to think, speak,
or act aright, is in and from the Spirit of Christ: and all merit is
in the blood of Christ. All men are _dead in trespasses and sins_: all
are _by nature children of wrath_: all are _guilty before God_, liable
to death, temporal and eternal. We become interested in what Christ
has done and suffered, _not by works, lest any man should boast_;
but by faith alone. _We conclude_, says the Apostle, _that a man is
justified by faith, without the works of the law_. And _to as many as_
thus receive Him, giveth He power _to become the sons of God: even to
those that believe in His name, who are born, not of the will of man,
but of God_. And except a man _be thus born again, he cannot see the
kingdom of God_. But all who are thus _born of the Spirit_, have _the
kingdom of God within them_. That _mind is in them which was in Christ
Jesus_, enabling them to _walk as Christ also walked_. His indwelling
Spirit makes them both holy in heart, and _holy in all manner of
conversation_.”
These were the doctrines of Wesley, Whitefield, and the first
Methodists, _par excellence_, and no pulpit of the present age has
a right to be designated _Methodist_, in which these doctrines do
not occupy the same prominent position. “May they not,” says Wesley,
“be summed up, as it were, in two words, _The new birth_, and
_justification by faith_”?
Immediately after the publication of his sermon, Wesley was attacked by
the _Gospel Magazine_, and charged “with asserting a gross falsehood,”
in saying that “the grand fundamental doctrines which Mr. Whitefield
everywhere preached,” were those just specified. In an unamiable
outburst of Calvinistic zeal, the editor maintained that Whitefield’s
“grand fundamental doctrines, which he everywhere preached, were the
everlasting covenant between the Father and the Son, and absolute
predestination flowing therefrom.”
To this Wesley quietly replied:――
“I join issue on this head. Whether the doctrines of the
eternal covenant, and of absolute predestination, are the grand
fundamental doctrines of Christianity or not, I affirm again,
1. That Mr. Whitefield did not everywhere preach these; 2. That
he did everywhere preach the new birth, and justification by
faith.
“1. He did not everywhere preach the eternal covenant, and
absolute predestination. In all the times I myself heard him
preach, I never heard him utter a sentence, either on one or
the other. Yea, all the times he preached in West Street chapel,
and in our other chapels throughout England, he did not preach
these doctrines at all,――no, not in a single paragraph; which,
by the bye, is a demonstration that he did not think them the
fundamental doctrines of Christianity.
“2. Both in West Street chapel, and all our other chapels
throughout England, he did preach the necessity of the new birth,
and justification by faith, as clearly as he has done in his two
volumes of printed sermons. Therefore all that I have asserted
is true, and proveable by ten thousand witnesses.”[711]
It is scarcely necessary to add to Wesley’s delineation of his
much-loved friend and fellow-worker; and yet there are other sketches,
by those who were intimately acquainted with the great evangelist,
which may be briefly noticed. “Funeral sermons were preached in the
principal cities of America,”[712] including one at Newbury Port,
by the Rev. Jonathan Parsons; three at Savannah,[713] by the Rev.
Samuel Frink, rector, the Rev. Edward Ellington, and the Rev. John
Joachim Zubley,[714] Presbyterian; two at Charlestown, by the Revds.
Mr. Whitaker, and Josiah Smith; at least, one at Philadelphia, by the
Rev. James Sproat, D.D., the successor of Gilbert Tennent; and two
at Boston, one by the Rev. Ebenezer Pemberton, D.D., and the other by
the Rev. Samuel Cooper, D.D.[715] In England, sermons were preached
by Wesley, Venn, Romaine, Madan, John Newton, Berridge, Haweis, and
several other clergymen of the Church of England; also by the Rev.
Thomas Gibbons, D.D.; the Rev. John Trotter, D.D.; the Rev. John
Langford; the Rev. Samuel Brewer; the Rev. Charles Skelton;[716] and
others among the Dissenters.[717] Besides Wesley’s, the following
sermons were _published_:――1. “To Live is Christ, to Die is Gain.
A Funeral Sermon on the Death of the Rev. Mr. George Whitefield,
who died suddenly of a fit of the Asthma, at Newbury Port, at six of
the clock, Lord’s-day Morning, Sept. 30, 1770. The Sermon preached
the same day (afternoon), by Jonathan Parsons, A.M., and Minister of
the Presbyterian Church there. To which are added, An Account of his
Interment; the Speech over his Grave, by the Rev. Mr. Jewet; and some
Verses to his Memory, by the Rev. Thomas Gibbons, D.D. 1771.” (8vo.
35 pp.) 2. “Heaven, the Residence of the Saints: a Sermon, delivered
at the Thursday Lecture at Boston, in America, October 11, 1770.
By Ebenezer Pemberton, D.D., Pastor of a Church in Boston, 1771.”
(8vo. 31 pp.) 3. “The Reproach of Christ the Christian’s Treasure:
a Sermon preached at Christ Church, Savannah, in Georgia, on Sunday,
November 11, 1770. By Edward Ellington, V.D.M. London, 1771.” (8vo.
31 pp.)[718] 4. “A Minister Dead, yet Speaking. Being the Substance of
two Discourses, preached November 11, 1770. By the Rev. Mr. D. Edwards.
London.” (8vo. 24 pp.) 5. “A Token of Respect to the Memory of the Rev.
George Whitefield, A.M. Being the Substance of a Sermon preached on his
Death, at the Right Hon. the Countess of Huntingdon’s Chapel at Bath,
the 18th of November, 1770. By the Rev. Mr. Venn, London, 1770.” (8vo.
20 pp.) 6. “The Exalted State of the Faithful Ministers of Christ,
after Death, described and considered. A Sermon preached on Sabbath-day
Evening, December 2, 1770. By John Langford, Minister of the Gospel,
and Pastor of that part of the Church of Christ, meeting in Black’s
Fields, Southwark. London, 1770.” (8vo. 40 pp.) 7. “Grace and Truth,
or a Summary of Gospel Doctrine, considered in a Funeral Discourse,
preached on the Death of the Rev. Mr. George Whitefield, A.B. By R.
Elliot, A.B. London, 1770.” (12mo. 46 pp.)
From these, and from contemporaneous publications, many extracts
might be furnished. Mr. Parsons told his congregation that he had
enjoyed Whitefield’s friendship for thirty years; and that it was by
Whitefield’s “advice and influence” that he had settled at Newbury Port
a quarter of a century ago. Mr. Parsons continued:――
“When Mr. Whitefield first came to Boston, Dr. Coleman wrote
to me, that, ‘the wonderful man was come, and they had had a
week of sabbaths; that Mr. Whitefield’s zeal for Christ was
extraordinary; and yet he recommended himself to his thousands
of hearers, by his engagedness for holiness and souls.’ I soon
had opportunity to observe, that, wherever he flew, like a
flame of fire, his ministry gave a general alarm to all sorts
of people, though, before that, they had, for a long time, been
sunk into dead formality. Ministers and their congregations
seemed to be at ease; but Mr. Whitefield’s preaching appeared
to be from the heart. We were convinced that he believed the
message he brought to us, to be of the last importance. His
popularity exceeded all that I ever knew. The last sermon that
he preached only yesterday, though under the disadvantage of
a stage in the open air, was delivered with such clearness,
pathos, and eloquence, as to please and surprise the surrounding
thousands. As, for many years, he had been waiting and hoping
for his last change, he then declared that he hoped it was the
last time he should ever preach. His countenance shone like the
unclouded sun.”
Dr. Pemberton, in his sermon, founded upon 1 Peter i. 4, observes:――
“I am not fond of funeral panegyrics, which are oftener adapted
to flatter the dead than to instruct the living. But where
persons have been distinguishedly honoured by heaven, and
employed to do uncommon service for God’s Church on earth, it
would be criminal ingratitude to suffer them to drop into the
dust without the most respectful notice. Posterity will view Mr.
Whitefield, in many respects, as one of the most extraordinary
characters of the present age. His zealous, incessant, and
successful labours, in Europe and America, are without a
parallel. We beheld here a new star arise in the hemisphere
of these western churches, and its salutary influences were
diffused through a great part of the British settlements in
these remote regions. We heard from a divine of the Church of
England those great doctrines of the gospel, which our ancestors
brought with them from their native country. In his repeated
progresses through the colonies, he was favoured with the same
success which attended him on the other side of the Atlantic. He
preached from day to day in thronged assemblies; yet his hearers
never discovered the least weariness, but always followed him
with increasing ardour. When in the pulpit, every eye was fixed
on his expressive countenance; every ear was charmed with his
melodious voice; all sorts of persons were captivated with the
propriety and beauty of his address. Many in all parts of the
land were turned from darkness to light, and from the power
of Satan unto God. He was no contracted bigot, but embraced
Christians of every denomination in the arms of his charity, and
acknowledged them to be children of the same Father, servants
of the same Master, heirs of the same undefiled inheritance. He
was always received by multitudes with pleasure when he favoured
us with his labours; but he never had a more obliging reception
than in his last visit. Men of the first distinction in the
province, not only attended his ministry, but gave him the
highest marks of respect. With what faithfulness did he declare
unto us the whole counsel of God! With what solemnity did he
reprove us for our increasing degeneracy! With what zeal did
he exhort us to remember from whence we were fallen, and repent
and do our first works, lest God should come and remove our
candlestick out of its place. On every occasion, he expressed
an uncommon concern for our _civil_ as well as our _religious_
privileges, the dear-bought purchase of our heroic ancestors.
With what fervency did he pray that they might be transmitted
entire to the most distant posterity! He embraced every
opportunity, in public and private, to persuade us to lay aside
our party prejudices and passions, that with undivided hearts
we might unite in every proper method to secure our future
prosperity. Perhaps no man, since the apostolic age, preached
oftener, or with greater success. If we view his private
character, he will appear in the most amiable light: the polite
gentleman, the faithful friend, the engaging companion――above
all, the sincere Christian――were visible in the whole of his
deportment. With large opportunities of accumulating wealth,
he never discovered the least tincture of avarice. What he
received from the kindness of his friends, he generously
employed in offices of piety and charity. His benevolent mind
was perpetually forming plans of extensive usefulness. I have
not drawn an imaginary portrait, but described a character in
real life. I am not representing a perfect man; but this may
be said of Mr. Whitefield with justice, that, after the most
public appearances for above thirty years, and the most critical
examination of his conduct, no other blemish could be fixed upon
him, than what arose from the common frailties of human nature,
and the peculiar circumstances which attended his first entrance
into public life. The imprudences of inexperienced youth he
frequently acknowledged from the pulpit with a frankness which
will for ever do honour to his memory. He took care to prevent
any bad consequences that might flow from his unguarded censures
in the early days of his ministry. The longer he lived, the more
he evidently increased in _purity of doctrine_, in _humility,
meekness, prudence, patience_, and the other amiable virtues of
the _Christian life_.”
A testimony like this, coming from, not only a distinguished minister,
but one who had been intimately acquainted with Whitefield for the last
thirty years, is of more than ordinary importance.
The sermon, written by Cornelius Winter, and preached by the
Rev. Edward Ellington, in Whitefield’s old church in Savannah, is
respectable, but contains no facts not already noticed. The same may
be said respecting the Rev. D. Edwards’s two discourses.
The sermon by the Rev. Henry Venn is what might be expected from a man
of his piety and talents; and as he and Whitefield were loving friends,
and Methodist co-workers, the following extract will be acceptable:――
“Mr. Whitefield’s doctrine was the doctrine of the Reformers, of
the Apostles, and of Christ; and the doctrine which he preached,
he eminently adorned by his zeal, and by his works. If the
greatness, extent, success, and disinterestedness of a man’s
labour can give him distinction amongst the followers of Christ,
we are warranted to affirm, that scarce any one of His ministers,
since the days of the apostles, has exceeded, scarce any one has
equalled, Mr. Whitefield.”
Venn proceeds to state, that, for many years, Whitefield preached
from forty to sixty hours every week, besides “offering up prayers and
intercessions, and singing hymns and spiritual songs in every house to
which he was invited.”
Mr. Langford’s sermon supplies no additional information respecting
Whitefield; neither does Mr. Elliot’s. Toplady wrote:――