John Stevenson of Carrick - How John Welsh was the cause of his Conversion
Both doctrine and application had great weight with me, and
made me go away longing to be reconciled to God, and resolved never to be easy
till it were so.
After this, in the same year, 1678, and 12th of August, I
heard Mr John Welsh on Craigdowhill, who preached on the above- named text, 2
Cor. v. 20, and insisted chiefly on this, "We beseech you, be ye
reconciled to God." In speaking to which words, the Lord helped his
servant, not only to show what it was to be reconciled to God, but also
earnestly to press reconciliation, and to make a free, full, and pressing offer
of glorious Christ as Mediator and day's-man, and the great peace-maker,
who would make up the breach, and bring about this much needed reconciliation.
I, being fully convinced how greatly I needed this reconciliation and
day's- man, who is the only way to the Father, I with all my heart and
soul did cordially and cheerfully make the offer welcome, and with out known
guile, did accept of and receive glorious Christ on his own terms in all his
offices as Mediator, and did give myself away to the Lord in a personal and
perpetual covenant never to be forgotten, accepting of God for my Lord, and my
God, and my guide to the death, and great reward after it; resolving, though
strange lords had dominion over me, yet henceforth I would be called by His
name, whom I now avouched for my only God and Lord; upon which I took the
heavens, earth, and sun in the firmament that was shining on us, as also the
ambassador who made the offer, and clerk who raised the Psalms, I say, I took
all these to witness in the great judgment-day, that I had uprightly and
cheerfully entered into this everlasting marriage covenant, resolved through
grace to be stedfast in his covenant till death.
After which, my soul was
filled with joy and peace in believing; it was a joy unspeakable and glorious,
having now got good hope through grace, that though he was angry, yet now his
anger was turned away, and he was now become my salvation. I rejoiced in the
thoughts of my new relation to God the Saviour, and felt the ravishing
sweetness of a reconciled state, and went away firmly resolving that I would
walk all my days in the bitterness of my soul, and never be vainly lifted up,
but would fear the Lord and his goodness, who had so far condescended to stoop
so low as to pardon a rebel, and be reconciled and pacified to me after all I
had done, and all my bones at this very time shall and do cry out, "Who is
a God like unto thee, a God keeping covenant, and whose faithfulness and mercy
endure to all generations ?" Though after this sensible and sweet
covenanting with God on the hill of Craigdow, I always studied to improve this
covenant relation with God, according to my various cases, tentations,
necessities, and distresses, yet the most memorable time of my renewing this
covenant was at Craigdarroch in Nithsdale.
In the year 1686, where in
secret prayer the Lord determined to renew that covenant I had entered into
with him on Craigdowhill, and wonderfully condescended to bring me as it were
nigh to his seat, and filled my mouth with arguments, and allowed me to plead
with him as a man does with a reconciled friend; there was I helped with great
enlargement to renew and adhere to the everlasting covenant, and there the kind
God manifested himself to me otherwise than to the world, and I may say that
truly my fellowship was with the Father, and with his dear Son Jesus, in as
sensible a way and eminent degree as ever I met with before or since, though
many times he has been even since kind to my soul."
From "Select Biographies" by Rev. W.K.Tweedie