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The Sermons of George Whitefield Volume 1 eorgeWhitefieldwastheleadingevangelicalclergymanofthe Geighteenthcenturyandoneofthedrivingforces,humanly speaking,ofrevivalsonbothsidesoftheAtlantic.Yetuntilnow,his sermonshavebeenleftasanuntappedresourcefortoday’schurch. EditorLeeGatisshasthusreproduced57sermonsthatwere originallyauthorizedtobepublishedbyWhitefieldhimselfinthelate 1700s,inadditiontotwosermonseditedbyGilliesforWhitefield’s Works,andtwomorethatareofgreatimportance.Gatissincludes carefulandextensivefootnotesdetailingthehistoricalandtheological backgroundtoWhitefield’spreaching,whichputsthemanandhis messagesintocontextforanewgenerationofreaders.Thetexthas alsobeenupdatedforthetwenty-firstcenturywithmoderngrammar, spelling,andpunctuation—revisedinamannerthatleavesWhitefield’s distinctvoiceintactandcoherentfortoday’sreader. Finally,thepowerfulandpassionatepreachingthatsettheworldon fireintheGreatAwakeningisavailabletoallinthistwo-volumeset. “GeorgeWhitefieldhasimpactedmylifeandministrymorethanI couldevermeasure.Icouldnotbemoreexcitedaboutthesesermons beingbackinprint.OnecanonlypraythatthesameLordwhoused thesesermonstoshaketheworldsolongagowillgiveusanotherGreat Awakeningthroughthem.” Jason C. Meyer, Associate Pastor for Preaching and Vision, Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis “IfindthewrittensermonsofWhitefieldtohaveanintrinsicfervor, power,clarity,andtheologicalpungencythatleapsoffthepageinto theconscienceandaffectionsinagrippingandedifyingway.This publicationiswelcome;itwilldousgoodanddemonstratesonceagain thatGod’struthtranscendsallgenerationsandculturesandthatGod givesgiftstothechurchastransparentlygoodasGeorgeWhitefield.” Tom Nettles, Professor of Historical Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary f•a Lee GatissisdirectorofChurchSociety,visitinglecturerin churchhistoryatWalesEvangelicalSchoolofTheology,andeditor ofTheologian.Heholdsdegreesinhistoryandtheologyfromthe UniversityofOxford,OakHillCollege,andWestminsterTheological Seminary,andisworkingtowardhisdoctoratefromCambridge, focusingonseventeenth-centurybiblicalinterpretation. 2 VOLUME SET NOT FOR INDIVIDUAL SALE The Sermons of George Whitefield Copyright North America edition © 2012 by Church Society Published by Crossway 1300 Crescent Street Wheaton, Illinois 60187 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, except as provided for by USA copyright law. Cover design: Erik Maldre Cover image: George Whitefield preaching by John Collet (c. 1725–80) Private Collection / The Bridgeman Art Library Nationality / copyright status: English / out of copyright First printing 2012 Printed in the United States of America Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-4335-3245-0 PDF ISBN: 978-1-4335-3246-7 Mobipocket ISBN: 978-1-4335-3247-4 ePub ISBN: 978-1-4335-3248-1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Whitefield, George, 1714 –1770. The sermons of George Whitefield / edited and with an introduction by Lee Gatiss. p. cm. — (Reformed evangelical Anglican library) Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 978-1-4335-3245-0 (hc) 1. Presbyterian Church—Sermons. 2. Sermons, English— 18th century. I. Gatiss, Lee. II. Title. BX9178.W5S286 2012 252'.075—dc23 2012013402 Crossway is a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. SH 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Sermons of GW.532450.volume1.i02.indd 6 7/16/12 11:21 AM Contents Introduction by Lee Gatiss 13 1 The Seed of the Woman and the Seed 45 of the Serpent [Genesis 3:15] 2 Walking with God [Genesis 5:24] 64 3 Abraham’s Offering Up His Son Isaac [Genesis 22:12] 82 4 The Great Duty of Family-Religion [Joshua 24:15] 96 5 Christ the Best Husband [Psalm 45:10-11] 109 6 Britain’s Mercies and Britain’s Duty [Psalm 105:45] 123 7 Thankfulness for Mercies Received, a Necessary Duty 139 [Psalm 107:30-31] 8 The Necessity and Benefits of Religious Society 152 [Ecclesiastes 4:9-12] 9 The Folly and Danger of Not Being Righteous Enough 168 [Ecclesiastes 7:16] 10 A Preservative against Unsettled Notions 186 [Ecclesiastes 7:16] 11 The Benefits of an Early Piety [Ecclesiastes 12:1] 204 12 Christ the Believer’s Husband [Isaiah 44:5] 215 13 The Potter and the Clay [Jeremiah 18:1-6] 242 14 The Lord Our Righteousness [Jeremiah 23:6] 262 15 The Righteousness of Christ an Everlasting 281 Righteousness [Daniel 9:24] 16 The True Way of Keeping Christmas [Matthew 1:21] 297 Sermons of GW.532450.volume1.i02.indd 11 7/16/12 11:21 AM 17 The Temptation of Christ [Matthew 4:1-11] 307 18 The Heinous Sin of Profane Cursing and Swearing 322 [Matthew 5:34] 19 Christ the Support of the Tempted [Matthew 6:13] 334 20 Worldly Business No Plea for the Neglect of Religion 346 [Matthew 8:22] 21 Christ the Only Rest for the Weary and Heavy Laden 355 [Matthew 11:28] 22 The Folly and Danger of Parting with Christ for the 366 Pleasures and Profits of Life [Matthew 8:23-34] 23 Marks of a True Conversion [Matthew 18:3] 384 24 What Think Ye of Christ? [Matthew 22:42] 402 25 The Wise and Foolish Virgins [Matthew 25:13] 422 26 The Eternity of Hell Torments [Matthew 25:46] 441 27 Blind Bartimeus [Mark 10:52] 453 28 Directions How to Hear Sermons [Luke 8:18] 467 29 The Extent and Reasonableness of Self-Denial 476 [Luke 9:23] 30 Christ’s Transfiguration [Luke 9:28-36] 488 Sermons of GW.532450.volume1.i02.indd 12 7/16/12 11:21 AM Contents . continued from Volume 1 31 The Care of the Soul Urged as the One 7 Thing Needful [Luke 10:42] 32 A Penitent Heart, the Best New Year’s Gift [Luke 13:3] 27 33 The Gospel Supper [Luke 14:22-24] 44 34 The Pharisee and the Publican [Luke 18:14] 60 35 The Conversion of Zaccheus [Luke 19:9-10] 74 36 The Marriage of Cana [John 2:11] 89 37 The Duty of Searching the Scriptures [John 5:39] 105 38 The Indwelling of the Spirit, the Common 115 Privilege of All Believers [John 7:37-39] 39 The Resurrection of Lazarus [John 11:43-44] 129 40 The Holy Spirit Convincing the World of Sin, 153 Righteousness and Judgment [John 16:8] 41 Saul’s Conversion [Acts 9:22] 169 42 Marks of Having Received the Holy Ghost [Acts 19:2] 187 43 The Almost Christian [Acts 26:28] 200 44 Christ the Believer’s Wisdom, Righteousness, 213 Sanctification and Redemption [1 Corinthians 1:30] 45 The Knowledge of Jesus Christ the 230 Best Knowledge [1 Corinthians 2:2] 46 Of Justification by Christ [1 Corinthians 6:11] 239 47 The Great Duty of Charity Recommended [1 Corinthians 13:8] 250 Sermons of GW.532450.volume2.i02.indd 5 7/16/12 11:24 AM 48 Satan’s Devices [2 Corinthians 2:11] 262 49 On Regeneration [2 Corinthians 5:17] 275 50 Christians, Temples of the Living God [2 Corinthians 6:16] 288 51 Christ the Only Preservative against 301 a Reprobate Spirit [2 Corinthians 13:5] 52 The Heinous Sin of Drunkenness [Ephesians 5:18] 314 53 The Power of Christ’s Resurrection [Philippians 3:10] 326 54 Intercession Every Christian’s Duty [1 Thessalonians 5:25] 336 55 Persecution Every Christian’s Lot [2 Timothy 3:12] 347 56 An Exhortation to the People of God Not to Be 362 Discouraged in Their Way, by the Scoffs and Contempt of Wicked Men [Hebrews 4:9] 57 The Day of Small Things [Zechariah 4:10] 368 58 Peter’s Denial of His Lord [Matthew 26:75] 387 59 The True Way of Beholding the Lamb of God 404 [John 1:35-36] 60 The Method of Grace [Jeremiah 6:14] 423 61 The Good Shepherd [John 10:27-28] 441 Sermons of GW.532450.volume2.i02.indd 6 7/16/12 11:24 AM Introduction George Whitefield (1714-1770) was the leading Reformed Evangelical Anglican clergyman of the eighteenth century. The driving force, humanly speaking, of evangelical revivals on both sides of the Atlantic and both North and South of Hadrian’s Wall, he also made a substan- tial impact in Wales. He was a gigantic presence in the English-speaking church and world: dramatic and controversial, passionate and bold, heroic and flawed, adored and despised in equal measure. Yet despite the enor- mous influence and impact he had in his own time, today he is almost, as Dr. Lloyd-Jones put it, ‘the most neglected man in the whole of church history. The ignorance concerning him is appalling.’1 This is not the place for a full biography or character assessment. Born in Gloucester, Whitefield’s father was the proprietor of the Bell Inn, though, more widely, he came from a clerical, educated, and cul- tured ancestry. When he was about four years old he caught measles, the cause of his lifelong squint which can be seen in the best portraits of him and later earned him the sobriquet Dr. Squintum. He matriculated at Pembroke College, Oxford, performing servile duties to pay his way through the undergraduate degree (1732-1736). During this time he was a member of the so-called ‘Holy Club’ along with John and Charles Wesley, and was rigorously ascetic in his religious practice. Only in 1735 did he experience the freedom of new birth, an inner conversion to Christ and the gospel of grace. ‘God was pleased,’ he wrote, ‘to remove the heavy load, to enable me to lay hold of his dear Son by a living faith.’2 1 D. M. Lloyd-Jones, ‘John Calvin and George Whitefield’ in The Puritans: Their origins and successors (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1987), 105. 2 George Whitefield’s Journals (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1960), 58. 13 Sermons of GW.532450.volume1.i02.indd 13 7/16/12 11:21 AM Introduction In 1736, at the tender age of only 21, he was ordained in Gloucester Cathedral. That Sunday he preached his first sermon (Sermon 8 below). He was for a time a chaplain at the Tower of
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