Brief Biography
I. The Boy of the Bell Although a number of George
Whitefield's relatives had gone to Oxford and become members of the clergy; his
grandfather was a businessman, and his father was proprietor of the Bell Inn in
Gloucester. It was the largest and finest establishment in town, and its main
hall had two auditoriums, one of which was used to stage plays. But when he was
only two tragedy struck this young prosperous family, George's father died. For
the next few years his mother ran the business alone, with the help of her
eldest son. For the first sixteen years of his life, George must have seen both
the frivolous and the terrible side of life at the Bell Inn. While the other
children worked, George's mother saw his ability and made sure he attended
school from the age of 12 in the local parish. He was a gifted speaker, had a
great memory, and often acted in the school plays. By 16 he was proficient in
Latin and could read new Testament Greek. When George was 8 years of age his
mother remarried. The marriage was tragic, and the inn was almost lost due to
financial difficulties. At age 15 George had to drop his studies and worked for
a year and a half to help support the family. It seemed tragic, but it was a
good experience for George to experience real life. He learned to associate
with people from all ranks of society, as poured liquor for them and cleaned up
after them. George worked by day and at night he read the Bible and dreamed of
going to Oxford.
In time this husband left, and his older brother took back
control of the inn. But there was no longer any money to send George to college
with. For a time he and his mother were heartbroken. But over time they learned
that he could go to Oxford as a "servitor," and at age 17 he left for the
University with great eagerness.
II. Oxford. In America, the Puritan
era had passed and religious fervour died down, some would say it had fallen
asleep. But from just this time to the Revolutionary War itself came the Great
Awakening. It began with Jonathan Edwards. He was a preacher in the Puritan
mould from Massachusetts. He was the most learned and respected theologian
America had yet produced. He was brilliant in mind, but his sermons were
reserved and dry. In 1734 he began to preach against the popular notion that
man by his own effort could accomplish the purposes of God. Edwards taught that
all we accomplish is by God's grace. And with this simple Biblical message, a
revival began that surprised even Edwards. Within a year a great revival was
spreading through out the towns of Massachusetts. In 1732, two years before,
the Massachusetts revival began, George Whitefield entered Oxford University.
Whitefield was extremely devout, and he busily visited prisoners and
poorhouses, with a mind to earn God's approval. As a "servitor" he lived as a
butler to 3 or 4 highly placed students. He would wash their clothes, shine
their shoes, and do their homework. A servitor lived on whatever scraps of
clothing or money they gave him. He had to wear a special gown and it was
forbidden for students of a high rank to speak to him. Most servitors left
rather than endure the humiliation. Initially, other students tried to get
George to join their party life, but he resisted, and they soon left him alone.
Whitefield plunged ahead in his studies, but he longed for some spiritual
fellowship. His mates at Pembroke College had begun to call Whitefield a
"Methodist," which was the derogatory word they used to describe members of the
Holy Club. The Holy Club was a small meeting at of Oxford students led by a
University Fellow named John Wesley. To other students their disciplined way of
life looked foolish, and the word "Methodist" implied that they lived by a
mindless method, like windup robots. George actually had never met them, and
being a servitor he couldn't introduce himself to them. But Charles Wesley
heard of this devout and industrious student, and breaking traditional
boundaries approached George and invited him to breakfast. The friendships made
among the core members of the Holy Club and the casual associates were the most
important friendships for all of them throughout their life. The Holy Club
members rose early, had lengthy devotions, strove for self-discipline, insuring
there was no moment left throughout the day that was wasted. At night they kept
a journal to review their life and to root out sin. They celebrated the
Eucharist on Sunday, fasted Wednesday and Friday, and used Saturday as a
Sabbath to prepare for the Lord's feast. The Holy Club was strongly devoted to
the Church of England and knew its history and rules better anyone. They also
visited the prisons and poor houses, and contributed to a relief fund for the
needs of inmates and especially their children. The Holy Club also took great
pains to shepherd younger students, teaching them to avoid bad characters and
encouraging them to live a sober and studious life, even helping them when they
got stuck in their studies.
The Holy Club was great, but they had a
problem, theirs was a works-based righteousness. All their work brought them
little joy because the nature of their salvation was still a distant mystery.
In short they had not experienced or learned of the true grace of God present
in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Whitefield became aware of his inner yearning to
know God more and more, but did not know where to turn. He read voraciously,
and chanced upon a book written long ago by an obscure Scot, the Rev. Henry
Scougal, entitled "The Life of God in the Soul of Man." From this book
he learned that all his good things, which he thought earned him God's favour,
were of no account at all. What he needed was to have Christ formed "within"
him that is to be born again. Scougal taught that Christianity is not about
external duties to perform, nor is it an emotion or feeling one has. Scougal
defined true religion as the union of the soul with God a participation in the
divine nature, living according to image of God drawn upon our soul, or in the
apostle's phrase, it is to have "Christ formed within us." This book, however,
drove Whitefield crazy because he did not know how to be born again. So he
tried to do so with all his efforts. He stopped eating certain foods and gave
the money saved to the poor, he wore only a patched gown and dirty shoes, he
would spend all night in fervent sweaty prayer. To deny himself he quit the
only thing he enjoyed, the Holy Club. His studies faltered and he was
threatened with expulsion. He became subject to strange and terrible emotions
and students threw dirt at him, concluding he was mad. At Lent in 1735
Whitefield decided to eat only a little bread and sage tea. He prayed outdoors
even on the iciest mornings until part of one of hands turned black. Then he
was so sick, emaciated, and weak, he could not even climb the stairs to leave
his room. Finally a physician was sent for and he was confined to bed for 7
weeks.
Amazingly, it was during this time of rest and recuperation where he
was finally changed. He kept simple devotions as his strength allowed. He began
to pray simply, and dropped all of his own ideas and efforts and began to
really listen to God. At one point he simply threw himself on the bed and cried
out, "I thirst!" It was perhaps the first time he had called out to God in
utter helplessness. And it was the first time in over a year that he felt
happy. At this moment of total surrender to Almighty God a new thought now came
to his heart, "George, you have what you asked! You ceased to struggle and
simply believed and you are born again!" It was so simple, almost absurdly
simple, to be saved by such a simple prayer that it made Whitefield laugh. And
as soon as he laughed the floodgates of heaven burst and he felt "Joy
unspeakablejoy that's full of, big with glory!" He returned home for 9 months
to recuperate, but in his heart was one desire: to share the Good News that
Jesus Christ had come for sinners, and that all a sinner needed to do was to
repent,accept Jesus' atoning death, and spiritually throw himself into God's
hands. At home in Gloucester Whitefield kept to the scheduled life of the Holy
Club but it now had a new meaning. The Bishop of Gloucester took notice of this
ordain him as soon as the orders came. But Whitefield was afraid of being
ordained too young and growing proud. So he made a Jacob's vow that he would be
ordained if, by some miracle, money was supplied for him to return to Oxford
and graduate. Soon come in drop by drop. An old vicar asked him to preach, and
enjoyed the sermon so much he gave him a pound. Another of his brothers had
become a sea-captain and returned to port, and gave him some money. Another
gave him a horse,another some clothes.
Then news came from Oxford that the
Wesley's had gone to Georgia as missionaries, and someone was needed to lead
the Holy Club. So Whitefield returned, graduated, and was ordained. He tried to
live quietly at Oxford for a while. From the time he gave a sermon, everyone
wanted to hear more. The four weeks he had spent giving inaugural messages in
Gloucester, Bristol, and Bath had caused a small revival already, and near the
end of that short time, the churches were packed full, and the streets were
mobbed with people trying to get in. He was only 22.
III. A Lion Begins
To Roar. At Oxford, Whitefield studied for a Master's degree and presided
over the Holy Club. At this time Whitefield was struggling with another
question, whether or not to follow the Wesley's example and be a missionary to
Georgia. He had received a good offer to preach in London. Wesley wrote of
adults from the farthest parts of Europe and Asia and the inmost kingdoms of
Africa; not to mention the countless native nations present, who were a vast
multitude without a shepherd, begging for spiritual help. Whitefield was
resolved to go, but had to wait a year until the next ship was ready to set
sail for Georgia. It was during this year that Whitefield startled the nation
awake. He returned to Gloucester and preached twice each Sunday, and thousands
began to flock to hear him. At Bristol he preached each day of the week, and
for the 4 weeks he was there the people nearly rioted to see him. His sermons
were fresh and full of spiritual joy. He was declaring not his message but
God's, "Ye must be born again."
On days he did not preach he was still busy
for 7 a.m. to midnight with those who sought his prayer or guidance. And as
soon a his preaching became nationally recognized, some in the Church began to
persecute him as an "enthusiast." Just prior to his departure for Georgia,
Charles Wesley returned and declared, "the whole nation is in an uproar."
Another said, "All London and the whole nation ring of the great things of God
done by his ministry." But at this very time, when thousands flocked after him,
George Whitefield set sail for America.
IV. A Missionary Life.
Whitefield made seven trips to America, lasting from half a year to four years.
Much of Whitefield reputation rests on the sensation he created in the colonies
during his second journey, where he along with Edwards and Gilbert Tennant,
served the Great Awakening at its peak. The Wesleys fared poorly in Georgia.
Perhaps they were too refined to endure pioneering life. But Whitefield, who
knew real life very well from his childhood at the inn, thrived. The large
audiences in England allowed him to bring many provisions, medicines, and foods
with him. His work to distribute them to the poor, and especially to help the
orphaned children made a lasting impression on the colony. Georgia was only
five years old, and many of the settlers were debtors released for prisons.
Many thought the colony would fail. Mission life was a great blessing, but he
soon he returned to England. In England the revival he had ignited in the
Bristol and Gloucester area continued, and at this time even those in the
nobility invited Whitfield to hear his messages. As the revival grew beyond
imagination, more and more churches began to be closed to him. Whitefield then
began to entertain a new idea, that of preaching in the open fields. He knew it
would provoke a strong reaction against him, but he wanted to be free of
depending on a church or society room being available.
In Feb 1789,
Whitefield deliberately set out for Kingswood, near Bristol. At Kingswood there
was no parish or school. The district was home to thousands of coal miners, who
existed in deplorable conditions. Men, women, and children worked long hours in
the dark earth amidst death and disease. Field preaching was allowable by the
church when no building was available, and another clergyman before him had
indeed taught the miners in the open air. Whitefield was resolved to try. In
February it was freezing cold, but when he went through he settlements and
huts, he found 200 people willing to come and hear him. Whitefield spoke
graphically about how much Jesus loved them and how in cruel crucifixion he
died for them, just to save them from their sins. And as he preached Jesus love
and salvation to them, he began to notice pale streaks on the blackened faces
of a few miners. Soon all of their dark faces were streaked with white gutters
formed by tears as the gospel of Jesus convicted all of them one by one. Three
days later Whitfield was summoned before the chancellor of the dioceses who
forbade him to preach in Bristol again. The next day he preached at the coal
mine and this time 2000 were listening. The next Sunday their were 10,000, and
by this time the townspeople began to far outnumber the coal miners. And on
Sunday March 25, 1739, the crowd was estimated at 23,000. At Bristol,
Whitefield began a young people's meeting. It started with 50 people in his
sister's house. But within 6 weeks time, this meeting filled a nearby bowling
green with 5,000 people. All told there were about 30,000 people who came to
hear him in open spaces around Bristol each week. Whitefield was perplexed
about how to shepherd them while he prepared to leave for his second missionary
journey to America.but was able to prevail on John Wesley to enter into the
open air. Later he did the same with Charles Wesley. In this way shepherds for
the thousands raised up where provided, and the Wesleys were set at the head of
England's greatest revival.
Whitefield preached all over England that
summer. It is estimated that he preached to over two million people that
summer. His bold fieldpreaching had shaken for good the weak and timid
Christianity of the times. In August 1739 he finally set sail for America. On
his arrival in Philadelphia the paper proclaimed the George Whitefield had
preached to more people than any other man alive, probably more than any other
man in history. Yet he left his position in England, and came to the colonies,
because he had a burden for them and a prayer, that they may not live as
thirteen scattered colonies, but as one nation under God. As Whitefield arrived
in America, a number of regional revivals were under way. In New Jersey and
Pennsylvania William Tennant and his four sons preached the new birth to
Presbyterians. Tennant was fed up with the resistance of Yale and Harvard
Administrators to the new evangelical fervour, and he founded his own school to
train preachers. Derisively his school was called, "log college," but it would
lead to the formation of Princeton University. When revival in Jonathan Edwards
congregation died down he invited George Whitefield to speak, and he himself
was moved to tears. Edward's wife Sarah wrote, "It is wonderful to see how he
casts a spell over the audience by proclaiming the simplest truths of the
Bible..."
Few realized at first what God was doing through GW, but his
endless travel was spiritually uniting the nation spiritually as community
after community were moved by his sermons. Whitefield preached to
Presbyterians, Congregationalists, Episcopalians, Catholics, Quakers, and
Moravians. He was the first man to so clearly cut across all denomination
barriers by preaching the simple truth of the gospel. America had been
populated by numerous sects, each trying to live a purer life to the Lord, than
did their parent church. GW seemed to be reversing this trend, and huge crowds
gathered to hear him from Providence to Baltimore. Many people were gathering
together and discovering their common joy in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Soon
the regional mentality of Europe and the sectarian spirit that brought them to
America was uniting them in a common experience of faith. George Whitefield
died in 1770, just a few months after British troops had opened fire on a mob
in Boston, killing five, in what would be known as the Boston Massacre. But
even as his health was failing, the crowds who came to hear him were larger
than ever. His last message was preached on Exter Green in New Hampshire.
Whitefield preached about the incomparable excellencies of Christ, all the
while he seemed to look straight into heaven. Finally he cried out, "I go! I go
to rest prepared. My sun has arisen and by the aid of heaven has given light to
many. It is now about to set... No! It is about to rise to the zenith of
immortal glory.... O thought divine! I shall soon be in a world where time,
age, pain, and sorrow are unknown. My body fails, my spirit expands. How
willingly I would ever live to preach Christ! But I die to be with Him!" Early
the next morning, his words came true.
Useful
Links
http://www.reformed.org/documents/Whitefield.html
Sermons
http://www.seii.com/ccn/bio/bio100.txt
More biographical information
http://gbgm-umc.org/umw/wesley/quiz/2a.stm
More on Whitfield, and the Wesleys.
http://www.banneroftruth.co.uk/Books/Revivals/select_sermons_of_george_whitfield.htm
Banner of Truth
http://www.piney.com/WhitefSer54Funeral.html
Sermon by John Wesley on funeral of Whitfield.
http://www.sovereign-grace.com/whitefield.htm
More sermons and articles.