MEMOIRS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 LIFE, CHARACTER, AND LABOURS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH, 
 
 LATE OF SHEFFIELD. 
 
 BY EICHAED TKEFFKY, JUN. 
 >\ 
 
 WITH AN INTEODUCTOEY ESSAY 
 BY THE REV. JAMES DIXON, D.D. 
 
 " Faith is the master-spring of a Minister. Hell is before me, and 
 thousands of souls shut up there in everlasting agonies. Jesus Christ stands 
 forth to save men from rushing into this bottomless abyss. He sends me to 
 proclaim His ability and love. I want no fourth idea. Every fourth idea is 
 contemptible ! Every fourth idea is a grand impertinence ! " CECIL. 
 
 ELEVENTH EDITION. 
 
 LONDON: 
 WESLEYAN CONFERENCE OFFICE, 
 
 2, CASTLE-ST., CITY-EOAD ; 
 SOLD AT 66, PATEENOSTEE-EOW. 
 
 1867.
 
 [ENTERED AT STATIONERS'- HALL.] 
 
 LONDON: PRINTED Bt WILLIAM NICHOLS, 46, HOXTON SQUARE.
 
 INTRODUCTORY ESSAY, 
 
 BY THE 
 
 REV. JAMES DIXOX, D.D. 
 
 IN conducting a lovefeast in Carver-street chapel, Sheffield, 
 several years ago, the author heard a deep-toned but trem- 
 ulous voice exclaim, "I am the father of John Smith; I 
 have been to visit the grave of my son." These exclamations, 
 with others accompanied by deep emotions, produced a 
 thrilling effect through the assembly. The good father gave 
 expression to the thankfulness of his heart that God had 
 given him such a son ; and was wrought up to ecstasy at the 
 thought of meeting him in heaven. That meeting has long 
 since taken place. The son, first in glory, has hailed his 
 sire, not at a meeting in which one was prostrate in the 
 grave, and the other a mourner by its side, but in living 
 and blissful companionship. 
 
 All the links, however, are not broken which connect the 
 name of John Smith with earth. The father has been re- 
 moved ; but the widow and children remain. Such a family 
 is an interesting spectacle. It has some claim upon the 
 regard of the living world. A hero who dies in the field of 
 battle not only leaves the example of his noble deeds, as a 
 legacy to his country, but also those who bear his name. 
 The church has its spiritual heroes, its lights, its martyrs. 
 The subject of these Memoirs died a young man through his 
 excessive labours : have not his family a right to affection- 
 ate remembrance, and something else ? 
 
 The fact that the "LIFE" of John Smith has already 
 passed through seven [eight] editions, shows that he has 
 not been forgotten. Many thousands have derived edifica- 
 tion by its perusal ; some, it is hoped, have been brought to 
 God. The piety, labours, and talents of the dead become the 
 stock of the living church. Their example and spirit, when 
 rescued from oblivion, constitute a seed of piety to succeeding 
 generations. The religion of Christ is embodied in the ex- 
 perience and habits of its disciples, and the accumulation 
 a 2
 
 IV INTRODUCTORY ESSAY. 
 
 and increase of these examples of its excellency are con- 
 stantly augmenting the evidence of its Divine power. The 
 memorials of holy men have a natural tendency to keep the 
 flame of piety alive ; and the bright and useful career of an 
 eminently successful Minister, to preserve the office, in the 
 case of others, from sinking into professional formalism. It 
 seems scarcely possible for the present generation to slumber 
 with these voices, numerous and loud, crying to them from 
 the tomb. 
 
 When a man, belonging to a numerous class, stands out 
 in bold relief, obtains a distinguished position, and becomes 
 eminent in his day, we are naturally desirous to understand 
 such a person. What is there in him ? Is he in possession 
 of some extraordinary natural powers, or is he indebted to 
 fortuitous circumstances for his popularity and distinction ? 
 Has he fallen under the spell of some human influence which 
 has powerfully operated upon his mind, and raised him to 
 eminence ? Has he been the subject of a very marked and 
 marvellous discipline in the school of experience, by which 
 he has been trained for his successful labours, like the vete- 
 ran in the field of conflict ? Is there anything remarkable 
 in the call of God ? in the influences of the Holy Spirit ? Has 
 the individual been placed in some commanding sphere, more 
 so than that possessed by others ? Have extraordinary cir- 
 cumstances elicited some latent energies which might other- 
 wise have lain dormant ? These, and similar questions, 
 spontaneously arise in the mind when we contemplate tho 
 career of a person of great piety, of eminent gifts, of sur- 
 passing usefulness. 
 
 That JOHN SMITH was a remarkable man every one who 
 peruses the following pages must feel. There can be no 
 doubt of his pre-eminent sanctity, his glowing zeal, his great 
 talent in his own line, and his equally extraordinary success 
 in his Master's service. His was a bright path, and as 
 serviceable to the church as it was brilliant. Did he owe his 
 distinction to eccentricity, or to genuine andlegitimate means ? 
 That an affectation of peculiarities, the assumption of singular 
 sanctity, the pretence of something bordering on the mar- 
 vellous, the adoption of clap-trap expedients to gain notoriety 
 and impose upon the credulous, (always a numerous class,) 
 in fine, that the vocation of the airy phantom, the painted 
 hypocrite, may succeed for a while, must be admitted. Can. 
 this last ? We think not. At any rate, we must see that none 
 of these things, in any way, belong to the subject of these
 
 INTRODUCTORY ESSAY. V 
 
 Memoirs. Whatever elements might blend in the constitu- 
 tion of his moral character, they were real. 
 
 Though in a high degree popular, there was no grain of 
 fictitious tinsel in the combination. Eight or wrong, the 
 blazing fire, the earnest zeal, the devoted labours, the thunder 
 and lightning of his pulpit-exercises, the wonderful power 
 and the great effects of the ministry of this singular man, 
 were substantive things. The distinctive characteristics of 
 John Smith were himself, and not a dress put on. He was, 
 at any rate, a true original. All the forces which united to 
 produce his religious character,, to fascinate and draw forth 
 his powers, to create his undying zeal, to nerve him to 
 activity and exertion, to arm him with unflinching courage, 
 and to lay everything he possessed in requisition to God, all 
 these forces had place in his own heart. His Christian in- 
 dividualism was complete. He borrowed nothing. He seems 
 to have scorned the idea of putting on a second-hand, a 
 cast-off" armour ; and, because natural, or rather divine, it 
 was congenial, suitable, fitting, and always bright. 
 
 This feature of character must be constantly kept in mind, 
 or otherwise confusion will arise. If such a man is measured 
 by other men, he will be found unlike them ; and will be 
 blamed on account of the deviation, unless it is recollected 
 that he professes to receive the law from, God's own mouth, 
 and simply to follow the inspirations of a sanctified nature. 
 This is a rare thing when the person in question belongs to 
 a class ; is one of many ; is expected to walk on the same 
 line with them ; is drilled under the common discipline ; and 
 is required to move in the same round of duties. A Minister 
 in these circumstances is in infinite danger of satisfying 
 himself with the current requirement ; doing neither more 
 nor less than others ; sinking to the common level ; and 
 wearing out his existence in the midst of the common-place 
 engagements of his vocation ; it may be with the approval 
 and plaudits of his compeers, but making no impression, 
 during his life, and leaving no trace of his footsteps when dead. 
 
 This cannot satisfy all, and it ought not to satisfy any. 
 Religion must stamp some few of her disciples with the 
 impress of originality, just as nature furnishes a fine and 
 elevated genius to some of her children. Were it not for 
 these, (alas ! but " few and far between,") the church would 
 stagnate and die of inertia. Let a body of Ministers borrow 
 their opinions, their belief, their style, their oratory, their 
 modes of operation, their obligations of duty, from one 
 a 3
 
 VI IKTEOBUCTOET ESSAY. 
 
 another ; or let all these be adopted from conventional 
 rules ; and then let this class of men never rise above this 
 circumscribed order, this human guidance ; and, in one 
 generation, they themselves must become a mere automaton 
 ministry, and the church a lifeless mass. Any age, and 
 any community, will owe its life and its progress, for the 
 time being, to the intelligence, the exertions, the holiness 
 of the men who, in addition to the observance of the current 
 routine, feel their responsibility to God, replenish their souls 
 at the fountain-head of Divine influence, and act on the 
 commission they have received from heaven. Preserving 
 their individuality of piety, and looking on all things with 
 their own eyes, and not with those of others, they follow 
 out the convictions thus wrought, and a great character is 
 produced. A certain originality must necessarily belong to 
 such men as these. This will often be misunderstood, and 
 be attributed to some singular conceit ; sometimes, from 
 malevolence mixed with ignorance, to weakness, to a crazed 
 brain. This is not to be wondered at. What can be more 
 natural than for a person engaged in the common business 
 of life to imagine, for instance, that the poet, who spends his 
 life in flights of genius, is mad ? To acquire wealth, to live 
 in ease, to eat and drink, to rise in social life, to gain a little 
 authority in the local combinations of his fellow-citizens, 
 and to see his sons and daughters the admiration of a gaping 
 and wondering crowd at the municipal festivity ; and espe- 
 cially if all this is seasoned with a measure of applause on 
 his wisdom and thrift; how, we say, should such a person 
 as this help considering genius as madness ? This prosper- 
 ous man of the world forgets all this time, or, more properly, 
 he never knew, that his appliances for the acquisition of his 
 beloved gain are all the creations of other minds ; the dis- 
 coveries of genius ; the results of the ponderings, the calcu- 
 lations, the flights of the hair-brained enthusiasts whom, 
 in his homespun wisdom, he is led to despise. The men who 
 enjoy the blessings of social life are rarely the parties who 
 originate them : generally speaking, the intelligence which 
 does this leaves its possessor in poverty, and, as such, the 
 object of neglect, not to say of contempt. Those who reap 
 the fruit of his studies, consider him as erratic and useless, 
 foolish and fanatical ; indeed, nothing more than a dreamer 
 of dreams. 
 
 The transition from this is easy. In the church, as in the 
 world, the common level of mind, of religion, of feeling,
 
 IXTKODTJCTOKY ESSAY. Vll 
 
 and labour, must predominate. The great body of Chris- 
 tians are satisfied with just as much knowledge, piety, and 
 attainment in the spiritual life as are found in their neigh- 
 bours ; and it must always be expected that the majority of 
 Ministers will be content with rendering such services at 
 the altar of God as pass current, come up to the common 
 standard, and agree to the understood ratio of duty. No 
 passions are roused, no prejudices are startled, no offences 
 are caused, by moving within the prescribed circle. And, 
 moreover, good men are found within this circle. They 
 are in their own place ; they are doing their own work well ; 
 and great respect is due to those who are assiduously culti- 
 vating their proper field, and not attempting to travel 
 beyond their line. Those Christians, whether Ministers or 
 others, who only possess the power, whether of faith or 
 talent, to tread in the beaten path, ought not to be blamed 
 for not moving in the higher and sublimer regions of God's 
 spiritual world. But then they ought not to blame others. 
 They may not know it; but in fact they are indebted to the 
 larger faith and the originality of men of creative power 
 for their own position. The routine in which they work 
 has arisen from the labours of sanctified wisdom, not their 
 own. Wherever a platform of religion in doctrine and 
 polity is found, there must have been hands to lay its 
 foundations. The parties producing these recognised and 
 admitted creations must, in their day, either have been 
 original thinkers, or laborious workers in the Lord's vine- 
 yard. The men who quietly and peacefully occupy the 
 pastures of the church, and luxuriate in the abundance 
 provided, have no right to complain of those who have been 
 instrumental in the production of all this. And yet nothing 
 is more common rightly considered, nothing more natural 
 than that persons of the common mould should be suspicious 
 of those who move more rapidly than themselves, who rise 
 into loftier regions, and gainfor themselves more public notice. 
 Yet religion must have its extraordinary men as well as 
 other departments. We have been much in the habit of 
 considering genius, originality, and greatness of mind, as 
 limited to the literary departments of the church. But why 
 should not one man's life be great, as well as the thoughts of 
 another ? The life exhibits the characteristics of the soul, 
 as well as the productions of the study. A Christian who 
 lives great, is in advance of one who only thinks, speaks, 
 and writes on a great scale. In such a case, existence is a
 
 Vlll UfTKODTJCTOET ESSAY. 
 
 sublimity. A life resplendent with wisdom, holiness, joy, 
 consistent and successful labour, is a greatness in itself. 
 But the life never moves beyond the power of the soul ; the 
 one is the type of the other. In like manner, spiritual 
 excellency cannot go beyond the measures of faith, love, 
 and the image of God. A great life is the visible exhibition 
 of a great man. Nothing is so great as religion ; and no 
 character can be equal to that of the Christian. All the 
 elements combining to form his state, and to move him on 
 his line of action, infinitely transcend all others. They are 
 divine. A character created by the faith of the Gospel ; the 
 indwelling of the Spirit of God ; the impulse of Divine love ; 
 an insight into the hidden and spiritual world ; the prospect 
 of the transcendent solemnity of eternivy, and the glorious 
 destiny of man as immortal ; such a mind must exceed, in 
 expansion and vigour, as well as in purity and happiness, a 
 character only formed by such teaching and impressions as 
 lie on the surface of time. A man who embodies all these 
 in himself, and acts upon them, will present the spectacle of 
 a great life ; the impulses applied by these conceptions must 
 be prodigious, intense, and overwhelming. But such a 
 person will be unlike others. He will rise above the common 
 level, just as the rock and soil, pushed up by the hidden 
 fires of the volcano, rise into mountainous elevations. 
 
 Such was the case with Mr. Smith. It is evident from 
 every fact of his lite, that the energy and zeal he evinced 
 were real, the expression of an inward state of emotion and 
 feeling, all supplied by his apprehension of the great truths 
 of religion. Whether it is considered that John Smith was 
 a great man or not, his life was certainly a great life. His 
 purpose was the grandest which the mind can propose to 
 itself; and this purpose was supported by a power which 
 never flagged. But this is stating the case inadequately. 
 He not only proposed the highest interests as objects of 
 pursuit, but he also proposed to himself the highest degrees 
 of the greatest blessings. Religion, which, if true at all, 
 must be the greatest truth in the universe, may be con- 
 sidered as having its elementary and lower degrees of 
 privilege and purity, as well as its higher, its perfection. 
 Those who give themselves to religion at all, consequently, 
 give themselves to the greatest subject possible ; but only 
 those who seek the highest attainments in this ascending 
 scale of its privileges and purity, the scale which reaches 
 from the first dawn of grace to perfect love, and from perfect
 
 rN'TEODUCTOEY ESSAY. IX 
 
 love to perfect glory, can be deemed as proposing to them- 
 selves the full measure of Christian blessings. 
 
 John Smith entered on his pursuit boldly, nobly, and 
 with all his heart. He contended for the greatest prizes of 
 piety ; no difficulties discouraged him. He saw a remedy 
 for all sin in his Saviour, and sought it. . He discovered a 
 perfect fountain of purity and happiness in the indwelling 
 Spirit, and welcomed His residence, opened his heart, and 
 yielded to the heavenly Visitant a willing submission. He 
 beheld in the eternal Father the ultimate object of desire, 
 the First Cause of all truth, power, holiness, love ; in fine, 
 the height of the soul's enjoyment ; and he lived in incessant 
 longings, and put forth a mighty faith, to attain all which 
 might be found by mortals in God. Properly speaking, his 
 religion was God ; and no man can propose to himself the 
 knowledge and enjoyment of the Deity, but his spirit in 
 some sort partakes of the purity and greatness of the God 
 he seeks and adores. Yes ; we shall see that he stayed not 
 at the threshold of the temple, but adventured to approach 
 as near to the Divinity as man dwelling in the flesh is per- 
 mitted ; to look upon the glory of the Godhead with as 
 steady a gaze, and as open a vision, as is allowed to the poor 
 powers of mortals ; to get as near to the fountain of grace, 
 the rock ever flowing with streams of salvation, as he could 
 possibly approach ; and, moreover, to drink as largely as 
 his capacity would allow. He was not content with a title 
 to the heavenly kingdom ; he sought, whilst below, as much 
 of its spirit, as full an approximation to its employments 
 and its happiness, as is within the reach of men on their 
 pilgrimage. 
 
 The very purpose to enter upon such pursuits as these is 
 elevating. The reading, prayer, meditation, abstraction of 
 mind from the world, and corresponding exercises of faith, 
 all implied in such objects of desire, must give an almost 
 angelic tone and vigour to the soiil. The reaction of reli- 
 gious studies and pursuits upon the character of the person 
 making them is very obvious. And, moreover, repose and 
 inaction, in such a state of mind, can never take place, 
 inasmuch as the highest attainments in the Divine life only 
 place us in a position to behold greater heights, and to 
 aspire to their possession. 
 
 It may be asked, If religion is peace, holiness, the love of 
 God, and the enjoyment of His salvation in assurance, why 
 should not such men as John Smith be quiet when they
 
 3C rNTEODTJCTOEY ESSAY. 
 
 have once attained its possession ? Why are they so con- 
 stantly on the wing ? always in motion ? perpetually stirring 
 up the fire ? incessantly in a fervour of excitement ? un- 
 wearied in praying and pressing on, as if nothing had been 
 attained ? daily and hourly stretching forward to some 
 unexplored point of elevation, without abatement ? trying 
 the principle, the power, the uses of faith, as if faith had 
 not done its work in bringing the soul to the Saviour ? The 
 answer to such questions is obvious. No state of grace in 
 our probationary life is stationary, no attainment here final. 
 And besides, every advance only makes way for a greater 
 advance ; every new blessing of the Holy Spirit, as it clears 
 the vision of the soul, only makes way for more delicate 
 and comprehensive knowledge of the "things of God ; " and 
 while every enlarged enjoyment of Divine love reacts upon 
 the feelings, and causes an ecstasy of happiness, it also 
 causes, at the same time, an intensity of desire for an in- 
 crease of the same blessing. And although holiness, and 
 the principles involved in its greatest attainments, produce 
 purity, tranquillity, and rest from sin, yet they also 
 produce power, life, and profound emotions; and these 
 again must lead to energetic activity. 
 
 Dull and slothful natures, in common life, are quiet, 
 repose in poverty, are content with little things, browse like 
 cattle on the herbage of nature, and are scarcely one 
 remove above them. But this is not the case with high- 
 minded men. One of the known laws of an elevated state 
 of social advancement, is to create wants, and with these 
 the desire of enjoyment. The same law obtains in the 
 Christian life. The men of small attainments in piety will 
 be sufficiently quiet and easy in their dulness ; whilst those 
 of great spiritual enjoyments must, from the force of the 
 grace of God within them, exhibit a corresponding longing 
 after greater things. 
 
 This was the case with John Smith. Can any one imagine 
 for a moment that his feelings were not in agreement with 
 his external actions? But what produced these feelings? 
 There can be no doubt that strong convictions of the tre- 
 mendous importance of the salvation and damnation of 
 mankind, on the one hand, and an equally strong belief in 
 the intensity of God's love, and the richness and freeness of 
 Gospel blessings, on the other, excited his profound emotions. 
 "Were they not legitimate ? Can any one feel too much on 
 questions of this importance ? On the supposition that hia
 
 IlfTRODTTCTOBY ESSAY. XI 
 
 inward impressions corresponded to his living fire and energy, 
 it must be seen that he was the consistent Christian, the 
 faithful Preacher : whilst those who profess to consider the 
 state of an unconverted world in danger of perishing ever- 
 lastingly, and also to believe that the Gospel is a complete 
 remedy ; and yet, with this faith, live in comparative ease 
 and inactivity, praying little, and doing less, to bring about 
 a change ; -these, wherever found, are the inconsistent men, 
 the unfaithful servants in their Lord's vineyard ; not to say, 
 the Judases, who betray their Master with a professional 
 kiss. John Smith, with thunders on his lips, while his 
 inmost soul throbbed under the mighty impulses of the truths 
 he held, was the rational, the consistent man, whilst many 
 of us, who profess to hold the very same truths, and in the 
 same manner, yet failing to act upon them with anything 
 like an adequate zeal and labour, are the irrational, the 
 inconsistent, the defective Christians. 
 
 But John Smith'swas a great life ; not only by reason of the 
 objects pursued, but especially by reason of the breadth and 
 scope which he proposed in his Master's service. His office 
 and calling was that of a Christian Minister. How did he dis- 
 charge this high, this greatest of all functions ? The answer is, 
 With singular fidelity, power, and effect. He not only entered 
 upon the most glorious department of service which can, even 
 by Christ, be assigned to man, but he faithfully attended to 
 its highest work without the slightest deviation. "We say the 
 highest department, inasmuch as there are many. In an ex- 
 tended church there is, must be, economical work to be done ; 
 but can it be said that this economical work is as great and 
 important as spiritual service ? Is secular employment as 
 elevated, as closely connected with the greatest and best 
 interests of the church, as " prayer, and the ministry of the 
 word ? " Is the economist, however useful in his own depart- 
 ment, employing his talents in things as essential, as enno- 
 bling, as singly Christian, as the Minister who is devoting his 
 utmost energies in promoting the work of God, the Saviour's 
 glories, the salvation of mankind ? No reflection is intended 
 on those who are called, or consider themselves called, to 
 " serve tables." But they are not in the highest places of the 
 Christian temple. Their work is only secondary, auxiliary 
 to religion, not religion itself. In this secular world, and in 
 the midst of the powerful tendencies to material and temporal 
 things found in human nature, these employments, even in 
 the church, may bring both honour and influence ; but it is a
 
 ill INTRODUCTORY ESSAY. 
 
 sad dereliction from the principles and designs of the Gospel, 
 to put the man of business before the man of pulpit and 
 ministerial fidelity and power. This can only be done when 
 the secular interests of the church gain an ascendency over 
 those which are spiritual and divine. And, moreover, to 
 overlay the spiritual glories of Christianity by these secular 
 interests, and to place the servants of this department over 
 the heads of those who hold the pastoral and spiritual 
 function, can only end in the death, or the dissolution, of 
 such a Christian body. The presence of the soul is not 
 more necessary to the life and activity of the body, than the 
 ascendency of the spiritual element over the temporal is 
 essential to the well-being of a church. The two things 
 may be compatible ; but in experience and fact it is found 
 that men of eminent spiritual taste and feeling have little 
 or no relish for secular employments ; and, vice versa, it is 
 equally found that persons who devote an undue share or 
 all of their time and attention to economical questions, and 
 a mere ecclesiastical polity, do not retain much power for the 
 higher the spiritual services of the sanctuary of God. 
 
 Mr. Smith had evidently no taste for secular things ; and 
 hence his mind, his life, was left free for the spiritual work 
 to which he was called. But mere employment, in even 
 this department, did not satisfy him. He aimed at great 
 things, in this greatest field of enterprise. Yet here we are 
 met with the question, What did he consider as the highest 
 attainments in this sphere ? The general notion is, that 
 great eminence in the ministerial office is, elevated scholar- 
 ship, profound philosophy, acute logic, accurate reason, a 
 poetic genius, flowing diction, and impassioned eloquence. 
 These distinctions have their use, and must produce their 
 effects. A Minister in their possession cannot be considered 
 otherwise than as occupying a very commanding, a very- 
 lofty, position. The world is sure to do him justice ; and, 
 sanctified, his great abilities cannot fail to be appreciated by 
 the church. It is evident, however, that though Mr. Smith 
 had a correct impression of the just value of erudite attain- 
 ments in connexion with the ministry, yet he evidently 
 considered that there was even a higher region than this, 
 and into this region he strove to enter. 
 
 Did he judge rightly ? Let his object be kept in mind. 
 "What did he propose to do as the greatest good, the highest 
 achievement of the ministry ? Evidently, the conversion of 
 men to God. This being his purpose, the business he pur-
 
 INTEODUC10BT ESSAY. Xlll 
 
 sued, the one undeviating object of his life, how did he 
 prepare for its accomplishment ? The work proposed is con- 
 fessedly Divine. None can change, none can regenerate the 
 heart, but God. This being so, it follows that the means 
 must be in accordance with the Divine appointment. God 
 is not likely to bestow His Spirit, and His blessings, in the 
 conversion of men through a sinful channel. This involves 
 another point ; namely, that the means employed by the 
 ministry must be in harmony with the economy of grace, and 
 the express injunctions of the word of God. So Mr. Smith 
 understood the matter. He did not believe that any human 
 means could reach the case of the dead in sin, and bring 
 about a change. He no more confided in polished com- 
 positions, rounded periods, flowing eloquence, ornate em- 
 bellishments, tropes and figures, or any or all the arts of 
 oratory, for the conversion of men to God, than he expected 
 this great work to take place by the fascinations of decorated 
 buildings, beautiful paintings, or the touching tones of 
 church-music. He knew that as the salvation of men 
 is, in all its features, and in all its stages, the work of 
 God, he could only expect this issue just as he was made 
 the prophet of a Divine message, or the medium of Divine 
 grace and spiritual influence. Hence his great object 
 was to put himself in communion with God ; to live in 
 fellowship with Christ; to receive the Holy Ghost. The 
 Divine word, his biography tells us, was his constant 
 study ; he treasured it in his memory and heart ; it was his 
 aim to be the minister of this word ; to proclaim it, to ex- 
 plain it, to apply it ; and thus to buckle on, so to speak, 
 that sword which is emphatically called the " sword of the 
 Spirit," the weapon which, in the lips of a man, the 
 Spirit of God uses, in his ministry, as a sword. This was 
 John Smith's notion of preparation for the pulpit ; this was 
 his power. 
 
 Thus prepared, he went to the business of endeavouring 
 to reconcile men to God. This he did directly, without any 
 circumlocution, any finesse. We see no scheming, no expe- 
 dients, no policy. He received his message from God, and 
 then faithfully delivered it to men. What he sought was 
 power ; what he studied were the lively oracles of truth ; 
 and the means he employed was the most impressive and 
 moving language he could select. His object being one, its 
 singleness preserved his own mind from distraction, and 
 gave a vast momentum and force to Ms message. This 
 b
 
 XIV INTBODUCTOEY ESSAY. 
 
 unity of purpose, and intercourse with God, which insured 
 the influences of the Holy Spirit, also gave a freshness to 
 his ministry which all felt, though they might not under- 
 stand its causes. This communing of the soul with the 
 Divine, with the Author of the Gospel, and with the Foun- 
 tain of all holy influence, was his great resource, and his 
 preparation for his ministerial exercises. Could anything 
 be more appropriate? "Whatever he learned from books, 
 from the study of great writers, from the experience of 
 good men, and from the history of God's work in the world, 
 was converted into spiritual aliment in his own mind, and 
 thus became an element of knowledge and power belonging 
 to himself. His strength lay in this. Not in nicely adjusting 
 an external armour ; putting on a coat of mail ; hurling 
 artificial darts : no, but, by prayer and fellowship with God, 
 his object was to obtain an inward anointing of the " Holy 
 One ; " the strengthening of his own powers ; the renewal of 
 his commission ; the stimulus of his own soul to an elevation 
 with the importance of the life-and-death message which he 
 was commissioned to deliver. 
 
 But his purpose was as practical as his intercourse with 
 God was direct. He sought not to do good in some indefinite 
 manner, or on a limited scale ; but led men in penitent faith 
 to Christ now, to receive an instant salvation. It is evident 
 from the "Memoirs" that he could not content himself, in 
 the least degree, with ministering to the edification and 
 comfort of the household of faith, building up believers, and 
 extending around him the savour of religion. He con- 
 sidered that the Gospel had the specific object of saving the 
 sinner ; leading him to pardon and acceptance with God ; of 
 producing a new creation : and, moreover, that all this 
 might be effected at once ; and, when so effected, that its 
 evidences to the person must be sensible and certain. To 
 bring about these results was evidently the purpose of every 
 sermon. He aimed at this directly; at the same time, 
 lucidly and powerfully, instructing sinners how they might 
 obtain these blessings. The selection of individual cases, 
 the analysis of the heart, the methods adopted to cause the 
 sinner to see himself, and to feel that he was "the man " 
 meant by the preacher, were intended to have a general 
 effect, as well as to search the conscience, and lay bare the 
 hidden iniquity of a particular person; inasmuch as one 
 person may be taken as the type of all; human nature 
 being the same, sin being uniform, and the feelings of self-
 
 INTEODTTCTOIS.Y ESSAY. XV 
 
 sufficiency, of pharisaism, being only shaded off by some 
 accidental differences. Every single man is the race in 
 miniature ; and he who can reach, by his searching light, 
 the case of this one, in truth reaches all. 
 
 The multiplication of these cases was the object of John 
 Smith's ministry. He spared no pains to accomplish this, 
 and his success was very great. Knowing that none 
 Avould come to the good Physician but the sick, the maimed, 
 the heavy-laden, he denounced sin, thundered forth the 
 threatenings of the law, and pointed to the certain conse- 
 quences of living in hostility to God. But his was especially 
 a message of peace. In his hands the law was only " a 
 schoolmaster, to bring " the guilty " to Christ, that they 
 might be justified by faith" To see a large number thus 
 pressing into the liberty of the Gospel, and becoming the 
 children of God, was his great delight, and the subject of 
 his ardour, prayers, and labours. This must be regarded 
 as a noble desire. Howard is considered a great philanthro- 
 pist, not merely because of the tenderness and intensity of 
 his benevolence ; but because of its extent, and the number 
 and outcast character of the parties it embraced. Because 
 he plunged into the very depths of human misery found in 
 jails, workhouses, lazarettos, and the wretched abodes of 
 pining poverty and want; because he spared no pains, 
 personal risk, expenditure of money, and means of relief, he 
 was esteemed the prince of philanthropists. Why should 
 not a similar spirit, in a much higher cause, win for men 
 such as John Smith similar admiration ? His charity, too, 
 lay amongst the outcast throng ; only it was charity to their 
 souls, the desire for their eternal salvation. Spiritually, all 
 are poor and wretched till enriched by the grace of G od. The 
 pavilions of splendour, the draperies of elegance and fashion, 
 the groaning boards of luxury, the ease and inanity of 
 fashionable life, are no exception. Sin has stripped the soul 
 of all its beautiful adorning, and left nothing but meager 
 poverty and corroding misery. But John Smith did not 
 neglect the poor of this world ; doubly so when destitute of 
 the blessings of religion. Neither had he any despair of 
 their state if he could have free access to their hordes of 
 miserable depravity, if he could reach them with his 
 message of salvation. Whether by some Divine instinct, 
 some especial impulse of the Spirit of God, or by the natural 
 attractions of such a spirit, we know not, but it generally 
 happens that those ministers who care for the multitude 
 b 2
 
 Xvi INTEODTTCTOUT ESSAY. 
 
 are followed by them those who possess a yearning pity 
 for the poor, are confided in by them as their friends ; and 
 those who compassionate the case of even depraved and 
 profligate sinners, seeking, at the same time, their salvation , 
 attract their attention, and win their audience. This was 
 the case with our friend. He was not only followed by the 
 pious, but by the impious ; and his large and overflowing 
 congregations were made up, in most cases, of great bodies 
 of the thoughtless, the gay, and the ignorant. 
 
 Amongst these he threw his net, and with great effect. 
 Not satisfied with the conversion of now and then one, as the 
 fruit of his ministry, he expected success in every service. 
 Unless he could count conversions by scores in a week, by 
 hundreds in a year, he had little satisfaction. To maintain 
 the ground occupied, to retain his hold of a Christian society 
 or congregation, to uphold discipline and order, and to see 
 the beautiful fruits of piety growing, however rich and 
 abundant, in old enclosures, could ill satisfy the longings of 
 the soul of John Smith. He beheld, with intense pity, the 
 vast population of the world living without God, wearying 
 themselves in very vanity, grasping at shadowy phantoms ; 
 or, even worse, plunging into the depths of vice. But what 
 added poignancy to his feelings, was the idea, the certainty 
 of their danger. To look abroad at the millions of mankind 
 found in the world, who are feeding on the husks of vanity, 
 is sufficiently painful ; but to add the fearful thought of 
 their eternal damnation, aggravates the feeling a thousand- 
 fold. This was certainly the impression which nerved this 
 "son of thunder" to his zealous exertions in behalf of this 
 class of persons. He was a believer in the realities of sin, 
 as well as the realities of religion ; in the truth of God 
 speaking in the law, as well as in the Gospel ; in the revela- 
 tions of hell, as well as the revelations of heaven ; in the 
 wrath of God, as well as in His love ; in an infinity of 
 misery, as well as in an infinity of happiness. Neither 
 philosophy nor sentimentalism had the effect of levelling 
 these eternal truths in his mind, and of leading him to blunt 
 their edge, or neutralize their force. Sin, the law, eternal 
 punishment, the anger of God, the miseries of a lost soul, 
 must have been tremendous topics on the lips of our departed 
 friend. Handling them in his peculiar manner, he must 
 have appeared as charged with a Divine electricity, bursting 
 in thunderings and lightnings over the heads of the aston- 
 ished multitudes. But the love of the Gospel in his soul
 
 IXTHODUCTORY ESSAY. XVU 
 
 was as intense, or more intense, than his sense of danger in 
 the case of the impenitent ; and the tenderness of this love, 
 flowing from his lips in impassioned strains of moving pity 
 towards these wretched men, must have caused him to be 
 regarded as pregnant with feelings of charity, pity, and 
 compassion, next to one of the ancient prophets. Nothing 
 in his case was little ; nothing mediocre ; nothing common- 
 place. Denouncing in some sense, personating the auger 
 of God, he appeared as the lion rousing himself from his 
 repose, and making the forest echo with his roar ; but, 
 speaking the language of redemption, and unfolding the 
 riches of grace, he appeared in possession of a large degree 
 of the charity which in Christ wept over Jerusalem, and 
 died for the world. 
 
 The effects of his ministry corresponded with the largeness 
 of the aim. " It was done to him according to his faith." 
 Great numbers were happily brought to God. These con- 
 sisted of " all sorts and conditions of men;" the poor, the 
 proiligate, and the outcast, forming a large aggregate. The 
 conversion of one of this class invariably made way for the 
 conversion of others. For a herd of immoral men to have 
 their ranks broken into by the abstraction of one of their 
 depraved companions, together with his reputed change, 
 must have fallen like a thunderbolt into their camp. Inquiry, 
 alarm, anger, remonstrance, would follow. The obvious 
 nature of the reformation, the testimony borne by the con- 
 verted man, his exhortations and reproofs, would produce an 
 impression, and one and another would be attracted to the 
 ministry of the extraordinary person who had instrumentally 
 effected so marvellous a change in their companion. The 
 innate tendency in man, designed by God to lead to religion 
 itself, is often changed into a superstition ; and, the spiritual 
 blessings provided by the mercy of redemption being missed, 
 the feeling is sometimes transferred to men reputed to 
 possess some talismauic power in the service of God. This 
 sort of feeling often prevails in the classes referred to. It 
 may, however, by the Divine blessing, become useful. The 
 fame of a minister having performed so extraordinary a 
 thing as the conversion of one of their companions, would 
 cause them to desire to see and hear him for themselves. 
 They were soon taught that the power by which their friend 
 had been changed into the Christian, did not belong to the 
 instrument, but to God ; and being once brought into con- 
 tact with so strange a sentiment, as well as hearing the 
 b 3
 
 XV111 rNTEODTJCTOKY ESSAY. 
 
 blessings of the Gospel unfolded, they one after another 
 fell under the influence of the truth, and became themselves 
 the subj ects of the same transforming power. The multiplica- 
 tion of these cases necessarily tilled the locality with religious 
 ferment. Attention was awakened, curiosity aroused, passions 
 of hatred excited, conversation bandied about, opinions for 
 and against these strange things elicited and expressed. 
 Thoughtfulness, reading, inquiry, silent and secret prayer, 
 would follow as the fumes of feeling gave way, and thus a 
 general interest be excited. 
 
 These were the scenes in which John Smith lived. He 
 had the wonderful power, as we see in his " Memoirs," in 
 all places where he went, to create this general agitation. 
 No locality favoured by his ministry could long remain 
 dormant. His presence and influence were felt in society at 
 large. The converts, always zealous at first, would make 
 themselves heard and felt. Their new sentiments, feelings, 
 and pursuits, awakened in them powers which they could 
 not repress if they would. Their joys would find utterance, 
 and their zeal a vent in exhortation and reproof; their 
 sanctified human affections, in expressions of tender, weep- 
 ing, yearning charity to their friends and neighbours ; their 
 higher emotions, as piety and love towards God, found their 
 vent in hymns, prayers, worship, often vehemently expressed. 
 The influence thus produced would touch everything, just 
 as some fermenting leaven in society agitates the mass. It 
 is for the advantage of more parties than those who are 
 immediately affected that these revivals of religion should 
 take place. The church, like nature, stands in need of the 
 vivifying breeze. Ministers of the ordinary stamp are often 
 moved to exertion by the stimulus thus afforded ; the morals 
 of the world are purified by the example and testimony of 
 converted men ; the general happiness is promoted by the 
 good order and virtue of religious families ; all interests, 
 temporal, social, and political, are rendered secure by being 
 placed on the basis of a living piety, and brought into accord 
 with the eternal laws of God's moral government. 
 
 A minister who lives for these purposes, and secures them, 
 may be said to live a great life. This, we repeat, was the 
 case with John Smith. His career was short, but was 
 glorious ; and if he did more good by the employment of 
 ordinary powers, sanctified by religion, and richly imbued 
 by the Holy Spirit, than others, who, possessing higher 
 mental power, but less grace, less zeal, less unction, con-
 
 IXTEODUCTOBY ESSAY. XIX 
 
 soquently do less good, his life must be considered a greater 
 life. Though his career was brief, yet in some sense 
 he lived long. The labours of a protracted life in his 
 case were pressed into a limited space. Living up to the 
 full tension of his strength, spiritual as well as corporeal, 
 he performed great service for God and man in the few 
 years allotted him. He is remembered even now in the 
 places of his ministry, as a prodigy of exertion ; and, were 
 the societies canvassed for the purpose, it would be found 
 that, directly and indirectly, his labours continue in their 
 effects to an unequalled extent. The seed he sowed still 
 lives in many happy and sanctified hearts, and from them is 
 being sown around. Such a man is not only a blessing in 
 his own person, in his living ministry, in the good he does 
 in his own day ; but he is a blessing as the centre of an 
 influence and holiness which lives and progresses to an 
 indefinite extent long after he is gone to his reward. The 
 work of our friend was soon done, but it is not now lost ; 
 his ministry has been long silenced in his own person, but 
 continues in its creations ; his noble and sonorous voice no 
 longer enunciates the threatenings of the law or the love of 
 God ; but even " being dead, he yet speaketh" in the many 
 voices of his converts : and although his bright example is 
 no longer seen, yet it is felt, and numbers even now are 
 stimulated to seek the high paths of both holiness and 
 usefulness by the lessons he has left as the legacy of his 
 piety and zeal. 
 
 The most remarkable characteristic in the religion of John 
 Smith, as appears from the " Memoirs," was his FAITH. 
 This principle of faith seems to have absorbed him. His 
 soul, his life, was a great belief. It aflected his entire 
 being ; it connected itself with everything. His personal 
 holiness, and all the blessings and joys of his spiritual state, 
 were the fruits of a living faith. He seems to hold nothing 
 as impossible which was found in the promises of the word 
 of God. The realization of these blessings is found to be 
 the difficulty, but the difficulty vanished in the presence 
 of the faith of this eminent Christian. His faith was not 
 an idle notion, or a mental exercise, by which he expatiated 
 in the midst of the truths and abstractions of the Gospel, 
 deriving delight and intellectual recreation. It was rather 
 an active, appropriating, assimilating power, by which the 
 lil- ssings of Divine grace were made his own, realized in hia 
 e, and received as the elements of his moral nature.
 
 XX INTRODTJCTOEY ESSAY. 
 
 "What may not be expected from such, a source, and made 
 sure by such an instrument ? Is experimental religion the 
 gift, the work of God ? Can the grace of God, by which we 
 are saved, be anything less than the sovereign power, the 
 munificent love, the rich blessing of God Himself ? Is not 
 salvation God in act, bestowing the privileges in question ? 
 Can His power, His love, His grace, be less, or be different to 
 Himself? Then can any faith transcend its object? go 
 beyond the ability of a Divine agency ? expect more than 
 the Divinity can bestow, or do ? This is impossible. The 
 simple principle that our religion is directly Divine, obviates 
 every difficulty, and makes every blessing, up to the very 
 highest, perfectly practicable. Little and great are terms 
 without meaning in reference to the Divine Being. What 
 we consider great is as easy to almighty love as the creation 
 of the universe is easy to almighty power. Considered in 
 this view, it will be evident that everything is possible to 
 faith, for the reason that everything is possible to God. It 
 is absurd to say that certain amounts of holiness, happiness, 
 strength, life, and religious power are impracticable: all 
 these are the effects of a Divine agency. The Holy Spirit 
 can surely raise the soul to any point of perfection consistent 
 with our humanity and with the unalterable conditions of 
 the Divine economy. 
 
 Then the question comes to this, Is it consistent with 
 the Divine economy to expect such blessings as we have 
 referred to, and such blessings as John Smith professed to 
 realize by faith ? Certainly it is. AVe may say here that 
 the doctrines, promises, descriptions of the New Covenant, 
 indicate things ; and again, that these blessings lead us 
 back to the Divine Being ; so that we again arrive at the 
 same point, the agency of God. He has undoubtedly made 
 known His purpose and will respecting the amount of grace 
 to be enjoyed : and yet this is rather expressed negatively 
 than positively ; that is, what we may expect to be saved 
 from, rather than what we may be made. There is, how- 
 ever, a close connexion between the one and the other. As 
 sin is the forfeiture of blessings, so a deliverance from sin 
 unbars the door to their restoration : as sin has ruined the 
 soul, stripped it of its ornaments, and prostrated it in the 
 dust of death, so deliverance from sin must restore the 
 spiritual man to a capacity and a condition to apprehend 
 and to enjoy the forfeited inheritance. 
 
 The whole case, then, turns on the fulness of Christ ; for
 
 DTIKODrCTOEY ES3AT. XXI 
 
 our salvation is altogether in Him. Does the redemption of 
 Christ make provision for that great salvation on which 
 John Smith dwelt with so much intensity, and which, as he 
 helieved, he attained and enjoyed? Had his faith any war- 
 ranty of holy Scripture in this, one of the most important 
 articles of his experimental creed ? or is it to be taken as 
 the reverie of a heated imagination ? We answer, that in 
 this his faith was certainly sustained hy the letter of the 
 word of God ; and borne out, in its highest anticipations, 
 as we have seen, by the infinite sufficiency of those Divine 
 agencies to which the Scriptures invariably point. The 
 word of God is, in this respect, somewhat like the revela- 
 tions of the morning. All nature, in her bulk, amplitude, 
 laws, and provisions ; in her hills and valleys, rivers and 
 oceans, meadows and corn-fields ; in her teeming and living 
 population, whether of inferior or superior creatures ; afl. 
 this, we say, as really existed before the morning dawned as 
 afterward, but was hidden from the sight. When this 
 revelation of the morning comes, is not man warranted in 
 seeking for himself, by its light and the forces and means 
 pointed out, all the advantages, all the pleasures, all the 
 happiness of the system of nature so revealed ? What are 
 all his actions to avail himself of whatever blessings are 
 brought within reach, but confidence, faith in nature, belief 
 in the truth, certainty, and beneficence of the agencies at 
 work ? When he turns up the soil and sows his seed, does 
 he not believe in its fertility, together with the certainty of 
 enjoying the blessings of refreshing showers, warm suns, 
 breathing life in the atmosphere, and all other influences, 
 however intangible and unseen, which are necessary to the 
 ripening of his harvest? In some sort, all the works of 
 man are works of faith directed by the light of heaven, the 
 laws of the universe, the currents and forces which he 
 perceives to be at work ; he applies himself to his task, 
 trusting for the issue to the operation of causes on which he 
 cannot but know the whole human race has had to depend, 
 from the beginning of time. Is not the Gospel covenant, 
 amongst other things, a revelation of this kind ? Does it 
 not especially exhibit Christ in the fulness of His salvation ? 
 But what is implied in this? An everlasting, that is, a 
 perpetual, continued, ever-living sacrifice for sin, always 
 present in " the temple not made with hands ; " a merit by 
 virtue of this sacrifice, perfect, never-failing, and always 
 available to man, being in its nature vicarious and substi-
 
 XX11 INTRODUCTORY ESSAY. 
 
 tutional ; a power to save connected with this, His medi- 
 atorial work, in its nature sovereign, and, consequently, 
 adequate to any demand, to the conquest of any antagonistic 
 force, whether from sin or human nature, and equally 
 capable of leading the soul to the highest triumphs of piety 
 and obedience. But with Christ is closely, indeed essen- 
 tially, connected the Divine Comforter, who is considered 
 by Himself as His substitute in the world. The functions 
 and work of the Holy Spirit are directly conjoined with the 
 atonement and mediation of the Son of God ; they sustain a 
 necessary relation to redemption : the Spirit is, so to speak, 
 the administrative Agent in the Christian economy, and His 
 presence and influence are intended to make all its truths, 
 promises, and blessings possible. Hence one cannot go 
 beyond the other. The salvation of Christ, the merit of His 
 redemption, cannot stretch infinite as it is beyond the 
 ability of the Holy Spirit to make it real. He can sound 
 the depths of this great mystery ; He can comprehend its 
 fulness ; He can grasp all its grace ; He can remove the 
 covering from the hidden throne of the glorified Son ; He 
 can give -vitality to every purchased blessing, and life to 
 every word of God's covenant : in fine, His influence He 
 being Divine must be co-ordinate with redemption itself. 
 There must be unity in the acts and the work of God, as 
 there is unity in the Divine nature. The three Persons do 
 not constitute three Gods. We have three Persons, and yet 
 but one God. In like manner, the essential difference seen 
 in the economy of redemption as in the work of the 
 Father, the work of the Son, and the work of the Holy 
 Ghost does not indicate independence of operation, the 
 absence of unity. The Godhead being one while existing 
 in three Persons, the action of the Godhead must be one, 
 though sometimes represented in Scripture as that of the 
 Father, being appropriate to the paternity of the first 
 Person ; sometimes to the Son of God, being in agreement 
 with His incarnate glory and redeeming offices ; and some- 
 times to the Comforter, being in conformity with His peculiar 
 functions as the executive Agent in carrying the purposes 
 of the one God into practical effect. It follows that when 
 anything is said to be done by one of the Persons of the 
 Godhead, we are not to understand that the other Persons 
 of the Godhead have no function in the transaction, or the 
 grace. The operation of one Person is, in virtue of the 
 unity existing, in some sense, the work of the perfect Deity.
 
 INTKODUCTOBY ESSAY. 
 
 Hence those portions of the scheme of redemption which are 
 seen as being done by the "Man Christ Jesus" are Divine, 
 inasmuch as they are wrought by one of the Persons of the 
 adorable Trinity incarnate in our human nature ; and, as 
 we have seen, the Godhead can never be divided : "I and 
 my Father," our Lord said, " are one." 
 
 Now faith, in the proper sense of the expression, is faith 
 in this triune God. It may, in common parlance, be called 
 belief in the truth faith in the promises credence in the 
 doctrines of Christianity ; but we shall be conducted to the 
 same result even by this process, inasmuch as the " truth," 
 the "promises," the "Gospel," point expressly to the 
 Trinity ; reveal Him ; teach us how to approach Him, to 
 worship Him, to enjoy Him. Thus, then, faith in the 
 Gospel is in point of fact faith in God. Can it cany us too 
 far ? Can it anticipate too much ? Can it expect in matters 
 of holiness, spiritual life, Divine joys, and purity and power, 
 anything beyond the means of this infinite agency to 
 produce ? Fixed upon the truth, the mercy, the grace, the 
 power of God, faith cannot possibly connect its subject too 
 far, or attempt to realize too high a state of grace and holi- 
 ness. The faith of John Smith was of this exalted kind. 
 His accomplished biographer tells us repeatedly that it dis- 
 tinctly embraced the teaching of Scripture respecting the 
 Persons of the Trinity. No other faith can be Christian. If 
 the Divinity exists in fact as a Trinity, each Person sus- 
 taining specific functions in our redemption, how can faith 
 be true and real unless it embrace this doctrine ? Again, if, 
 as our Lord says, "no man can know the Father" know, 
 that is, in the sense of enjoy, "the Father " " save the 
 Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal Him," how can any 
 one be admitted to this exalted state except in the way pre- 
 scribed ? The Father in His love and grace, the Son in His 
 incarnation, His atonement, His mediatorial power and glory, 
 the Holy Ghost in His renewing, sanctifying, and consoling 
 infiuences, is the God of the Christian system ; and no one 
 can possibly be a Christian, in the true and proper sense of 
 the expression, without faith in the Three-One God. 
 
 Objections are taken against those notions of experience 
 which were entertained by John Smith, and especially 
 against the idea of Christian perfection. And yet every 
 system must have its first class, its highest grades, its 
 perfection. Must the disciples of Christ be left always to 
 grope in comparative darkness, flounder everlastingly in the
 
 XXIV INTEODUCTOEY ESSAY. 
 
 midst of worldliness and corruption, constantly alternate 
 betwixt happiness and misery, carry " the body of sin and 
 death " about them to the end, and only be able to oft'er God 
 a maimed and polluted service ? This is certainly not the 
 view given of the matter in the word of God. The obnoxious 
 terms "perfect" and "perfection" very often occur; and 
 occur in reference to the several graces, so as to represent 
 them in their maturity, ripeness, perfection. We do not, 
 indeed, read of a perfect faith. The reason seems to lie in 
 the fact that faith is the principle of everything else, and 
 cannot properly be classed with the other graces. Instru- 
 mentally it is the cause of the entire life of religion. When 
 we speak of perfect fruit, we do not, at the same time, 
 mention the root which bears the tree ; and yet it is clear 
 that the fruit could not ripen without a sound and vigorous 
 root. Faith sustains, in the spiritual life, an analogous 
 office. It is the root or power which sustains or invigorates 
 all the other graces and virtues. Not, indeed, of itself; but 
 it is the recipient instrument of all which goes to produce 
 these excellent qualities. The atonement, in its merit and 
 fulness, is received by faith ; and this great provision of the 
 Christian system changes everything in the relations of the 
 soul. But there is power in the blood of the cross as well as 
 mercy ; a positive as well as an imputed righteousness 
 follows the hearty reception of this great grace; a new 
 nature is the consequence of the incorporation of man in 
 Christ our Life, as well as new relations towards God ; re- 
 generation is the inseparable accompaniment of justification ; 
 the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is the certain consequence 
 of His regenerating influence ; and from all this a positive 
 holiness follows, which is the foundation of all subsequent 
 progress. Faith now sustains the glorious office of sustenta- 
 tion, of keeping- alive the new nature by receiving those 
 teachings, blessings of grace, effects of the merit and medi- 
 ation of Christ, which everlastingly flow from His throne in 
 heaven ; as well as those influences of the Spirit which are 
 appropriate to His work of entire sanctiflcation. But more 
 than this. When sin is destroyed in its guilt and dominion, 
 and a negative perfection is attained, namely, that of 
 freedom from pollution, defilement, and the carnal mind, it 
 then becomes the office of faith to lead the soul forward into 
 all the heights and depths of the Godhead ; into the fair and 
 beautiful fields of the spiritual and invisible ; into the light 
 and glory of the heavenly world ; into the unsullied regions
 
 INTEODUCTORY ESSAY. XXV 
 
 of pure truth, of Divine love, of spotless holiness. "Faith," 
 says St. Paul, " is the substance of things hoped for, the 
 evidence of things not seen." Can these glorious realities 
 be apprehended, these objects be dwelt upon with absorbing 
 intensity, these paths of truth and purity be trodden ; this 
 bright, dazzling, ethereal sunshine dwelt in ; and especially 
 can God the Trinity be thus habitually conversed with 
 by faith, without the most joyous feelings aud a most 
 exalted holiness being produced ? 
 
 In case these united spiritual forces, operating constantly 
 in the soul by faith, shall produce a love without alloy ; a 
 patience undisturbed and unruffled ; a submission to the 
 will of God without murmuring and rebellion ; a holiness 
 unstained by sin and the world ; if this is produced, is 
 there any inconsistency in the Scriptures calling this per- 
 fection? These things are referred to because they are 
 selected by the sacred writers. St. John speaks of " perfect 
 love casting out all fear which hath torment." St. James 
 exhorts Christians to " let patience have her perfect work, 
 that they may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing." 
 St. Paul writes to one church, that " they may be perfect in 
 all the will of God ;" and to another, " perfecting holiness 
 in the fear of God;" to a third, "Therefore, leaving the 
 principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto per- 
 fection." If, then, there is meaning in words, the sacred 
 writers do unquestionably hold out some sort of perfection 
 as attainable, as the duty of Christians to seek after, and as 
 the actual experience of some not all the saints of God. 
 
 These things may be misunderstood, and they may be 
 abused. They are not to be thought of lightly, to be irre- 
 verently touched, nor to be pretended to by every heated 
 religionist. But they have a reality, they belong to the 
 Christian dispensation, and they may be enjoyed by true 
 and earnest believers. 
 
 The faith of John Smith reached this point, and he became 
 a witness for this truth. As far as can be known, he was 
 perfectly sincere in this. He had no scruples, no doubts, 
 no misgivings, respecting the doctrine itself ; in his mind 
 the perfect holiness of the believer was as certainly provided 
 for, as the pardon of sin. He believed that God had 
 bestowed this grace upon himself. Did his life contradict 
 this profession? As far as human judgment can go, we 
 may say, not in the least degree. Certainly all the charac- 
 teristics of a pure and exalted piety shone most brightly
 
 XXVI INTEODUCTORY ESSAY. 
 
 in him. He was evidently one of those transparent men 
 of whose consistency there can be no question. But there 
 was harmony in his religion. It was exactly of a piece in 
 all things, at all times, in all places ; and it remained so 
 to the end. His happiness was ecstatic ; and do we not look 
 for ecstatic happiness in connexion with the soul's converse 
 with God, the enjoyment of a full redemption in Christ, 
 and the constant indwelling of the Holy Ghost ? His zeal 
 knew no bounds ; and do we not look for ardent, burning, 
 consuming zeal in fellowship with perfect love ? His 
 charity to dying souls, and to the bodies of men as well, 
 was most tender and expansive ; and do we not expect 
 the outward fruit of Divine love to correspond with the 
 inward anointing ? He was dead to all the fascinating 
 things of this world, its literature, its politics, its wealth ; 
 and do we not ahvays suppose that those who are fully and 
 only alive to God and eternity will be dead to all other 
 objects? His soul, his life, was one continued offering, 
 sacrifice, on the altar of devotion ; and do we not look 
 for this expression of worship and homage to God, 
 when the heart is filled "with all His fulness?" His 
 obedience seems to have been spontaneous, complete, and 
 absolute ; extending to the most minute, as well as the 
 graver business of life. And do we not calculate on this, 
 when the second blessing of the covenant is experienced, " I 
 will put My laws into their mind, and write them in their 
 hearts ?" He was, moreover, intensely jealous for the glory 
 of God, for the honour of his Saviour, for the interests of 
 religion ; and is it not to be expected that this will be found 
 where God's image and nature are possessed ? The presi- 
 dents and princes of Darius truly said, ' ' We shall not find 
 occasion against this Daniel, except we find it against him 
 concerning the law of his God." The same may be said of 
 John Smith. Nobody can find any flaw in him except it be 
 sought in connexion with his religion. It is quite easy to 
 say he was extravagant ; that he carried matters too far ; 
 that he was over-zealous ; that he was too exclusive, and 
 too much a man of one business ; it is easy to say all this. 
 But did he carry matters beyond his own conceptions, 
 feelings, and faith ? This is the test of truth and sincerity. 
 Had he done so, then his flame would have been painted 
 fire, his zeal would have been merely for effect, and his 
 services to God and His church would have been hollow. No 
 one ever imagined this. He had, from all, the credit of
 
 IXTRODTJCTOEY ESSAY. XXVU 
 
 honesty. Then it follows, that, if any discrepancy exists, it 
 must be sought in the difference between his faith and its 
 objects ; the faith, in case he is supposed to go too far, being 
 much larger, stronger, intenser, than the objects of faith 
 will warrant. Can any one suppose this ? No. The reason 
 of the feeling, wherever it existed, that John Smith ascended 
 too high, felt too deeply, was over-zealous, carried matters 
 too far, did not arise out of his excesses, but the defects 
 of others. He lived as most persons will wish they had lived 
 when the closing scene conies ; and as all will wish they 
 had lived when they see him in radiant brightness and 
 glory, as the fruit of his holiness and labours on earth. 
 ' ' There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the 
 moon, and another glory of the stars : for one star differeth 
 from another star in glory. So also is the resurrection of 
 the dead." 
 
 But we shall have a very inadequate conception of the 
 faith of John Smith, if we limit it to his personal experience 
 and attainments in the Divine life. In him it seems to have 
 existed as a universal power, and was applied to the whole 
 business of his being. It had the effect of transforming all 
 things into a sort of religion, a spirituality. He could not 
 look upon the race of mankind with the ordinary feelings of 
 other men. In his estimation they were not mere human 
 creatures, born to live and die like brute beasts ; they were 
 arrayed in the attributes of religion, that is, creatures 
 capable of religion, and destined to immortality. He thought 
 not of man as an intellectual machine capable of being 
 polished to a certain point of mental beauty, and then wound 
 up for various uses in the social system. Neither did he 
 consider man as merely sustaining important relations to his 
 fellows, to society, to the body politic, to domestic life, as 
 the ultimate design of his being. He little coincided with 
 the economist in judging of the duties and labours of man's 
 earthly lot, whether in the higher or lower scale of existence, 
 as developing the purposes of God in his being brought into 
 the world. Nor did he imagine for a moment that the joys 
 and sorrows, the deep-seated miseries of the heart broken 
 by care and misfortune, or the happiness of sensitive enjoy- 
 ment, can be the proper gauge of either. The prizes of 
 ambition or successes in business on the one hand, or the 
 mortifications and afflictions of disappointed hope on the 
 other, he could not consider as the adequate rewards or 
 punishments which most deeply affect the condition of man. 
 c 2
 
 XXV111 INTEODTJCTOBT ESSAY. 
 
 No. His views carried Mm much farther than this. He saw 
 in every man the deathless image of God, a soul redeemed, a 
 great moral being, a heart which might become the seat of 
 all the graces of religion, a nature capable of rendering to 
 the Most High a pure and a holy adoration ; and all this 
 irrespective of the accidents of birth, of poverty, and even of 
 the debasing influence of vice. His feelings respecting the 
 destinies of his fellow-men, arising from these conceptioas, 
 were most intense, and, moreover, were full of benevolent 
 hope. He did not despair even of the worst, in case they 
 could be got under the sound of the Gospel. His experience, 
 indeed, of the efficiency of the Divine truth must have re- 
 moved any doubt on the subject. He had witnessed such 
 results as were calculated to do this. Profound ignorance, 
 hardened vice, deep proliigacy, and an entire estrangement 
 from God, in his creed, formed no insuperable barrier 
 against the success of the message he delivered, backed as 
 he believed it to be by the omnipotent power of the Holy 
 Spirit. 
 
 This faith in man, that is, in his possible rescue, emanci- 
 pation, and regeneration, rested on a true principle ; namely, 
 his redemption. The inference with him was inevitable, 
 that a redeemed man may, in all conditions of his being, 
 become a saved man. Hence he knew he was not labouring 
 in a mine where possibly no diamond might be found ; where 
 all he might discover, for aught he knew, would be nothing 
 hut hardened mud, sandstone, granite reprobate, outcast 
 souls. He had no such thoughts. It is true he saw man. 
 fully and universally fallen ; but whilst he never blinked 
 the most humiliating truth respecting human depravity, he 
 saw that this sinful race was the object of a wonderful and 
 merciful scheme of salvation. An outcast from paradise, he 
 beheld him as cared for, sought out, and restored by the 
 paternal pity of his Almighty Father ; under the curses and 
 maledictions of the old, the covenant of works, he saw him 
 made the subject of the new, the covenant of grace ; de- 
 spoiled by sin of all the rights and blessings of his primeval 
 state, he perceived in the Gospel a remedy as complete as 
 the ruin, in the death of the Son of God ; justly deprived of 
 all the beauty and happiness of an innate and legal righteous- 
 ness, he found an adequate provision in the substitutional, 
 the meritorious , the infinite righteousness of Christ ; driven 
 into a wilderness of darkness, sterility, and misery, he 
 could not help perceiving that the Snepherd's voice of
 
 IXTEODUCTORT ESSAY. 
 
 invitation and love followed him in his wanderings ; and 
 dead in sin, like the valley of vision beheld by the prophet, 
 he knew that the wind from the "four quarters of the 
 heavens" could breathe life into the " slain." 
 
 This confidence in the recovery of man resolves itself into 
 confidence in the mercy of God, and the grace manifested in 
 the Christian dispensation. Few men felt this more power- 
 fully and strongly than the subject of our remarks. His 
 faith in the Gospel, as sent of God, and preached by himself, 
 corresponded with what he felt and knew in his own case. 
 It had saved himself. This was the best proof to him of its 
 efficiency and power ; and he knew that it could save others 
 even on the most enlarged scale, as well as in individual 
 cases. How should he doubt when the regeneration of one 
 man contains in it all the elements and agencies of the 
 regeneration of the world ? The religious character of every 
 true Christian is a type of the faith and feelings of all men, 
 supposing all men to be saved, and is evidence of the possible 
 salvation of all. It takes as much of everything Divine to 
 save one sinner, as to save all the sinners in the universe, 
 the aggregate being only the multiplication of individual 
 cases ; and surely that which is from God cannot be limited. 
 The question of efficiency was a living belief in the mind of 
 this good man ; and whenever he preached the Gospel to lost 
 sinners, he did it in the full and entire conviction that it 
 was the "word of salvation." Hence, in his creed and 
 apprehension, the cause of the world's ungodliness does not 
 arise out of any paucity of means for its recovery ; it lies in 
 the non-attendance of the world to the required conditions 
 of salvation, which are all included in one, faith. 
 
 The object of the ministry of John Smith was to produce 
 this faith. He indeed preached the law with great effect. 
 But it was to convince of sin, " for by the law is the know- 
 ledge of sin ;" and he knew that no man would be disposed 
 to accept the good Physician, but those who were previously 
 made sensible of their disease. In the prosecution of this 
 design, it is evident from the "Memoirs," that he anatom- 
 ized the heart by the most searching application of truth. 
 He, in some sort, may be said to have entered the heart of 
 the transgressor, assumed the character of a judge, and pro- 
 nounced a fearful sentence. By placing his own soul by 
 the side of the sinner's soul, and speaking for him and 
 in him, he became an extra conscience, denouncing sin, 
 bringing guilt home to the culprit, enforcing it upon his 
 c 3
 
 XXX INTUODUCTOBY ESSAY. 
 
 feelings, and rousing his fears and apprehensions of a 
 miserable doom. He stood in the place of God ; that is, he 
 spake in His name, delivered His message, uttered His words, 
 enforced His threatenings ; and, with the authority of "an 
 ambassador of Christ," he summoned the transgressor to 
 stand in the presence of his Judge and give his account. 
 There must have been something perfectly awful in his 
 message. The gravity and solemnity of his manner ; the 
 vehement earnestness of his appeals ; the thunders of his 
 stentorian voice ; the plainness and force of his language ; 
 the deep and affecting pathos and power put into his tones ; 
 the skill by which he individualized, and made every person 
 feel that " he was the man ;" the point and force by which 
 he touched, as by Ithuriel's spear, ail which lodges most 
 deeply in the soul, whether of fear or hope, all this, we 
 say, must have rendered some of the messages of this soul- 
 stirring preacher, as if an old prophet had come from the 
 invisible world to repeat one of his most awful prophecies. 
 
 But the design did not terminate here. He wounded in 
 order to heal ; and the proclamation of the grace of the 
 Gospel did not fall short in force, and especially in richness 
 and compass, to his declaration of the law, the one covering 
 the other. It would have been in him, as in all others, 
 worse than a waste of time, it would only have tended to 
 "torment" the people "before their time had the matter 
 ended in the denunciation of sin, however true and certain. 
 If possible, his exhibition of the peculiar mercy of the Gospel 
 exceeded his broad and bold exposure of the nature and 
 consequences of transgression. In this he seems to have 
 been a master ; and he who can compass the two may be 
 well considered as perfect a preacher as it is possible to be, 
 if the question of usefulness is considered apart from style 
 and delivery. Some excel in one, some in the other line, 
 few in both. To have listened to John Smith expatiating 
 on sin, announcing the threatenings, piercing and transfix- 
 ing the soul of the evil-doer, bringing home with tremendous 
 force his pointed artillery upon all the defences of the 
 unconverted, opening up the regions of lost spirits, and 
 hurling around him the sulphur and the fire ; listening to 
 all this, it would at once be thought that the same mind 
 could not equally excel on the opposite tack. But this was 
 certainly the case. His proclamation of the love of God 
 was never neutralized in its breadth and fulness by refine- 
 ments, by limitations and definitions, by any kind of re-
 
 INTKODUCTOBY ESSAY. XXXI 
 
 servations, as if this grace and love did not belong to some, 
 and ought to be cautiously fenced round against their 
 approach. Nothing of this nature occurred. His whole 
 soul seems to have been roused to the highest possible 
 tension, when dwelling on this subject. His sentences were 
 ingots, masses of concentrated thought. God ! The very 
 term indicates fulness perfection infinity. Who can 
 describe God? define, analyse, portray this glorious 
 Being ? Every proposition is a fallacy, every syllogism is 
 sophistry, every stroke of the pencil is but like an attempt 
 to paint on the atmosphere or the ocean. God exists in 
 peerless majesty, in incomprehensible being, in unfathom- 
 able mystery. Love ! The love of God ! No human in- 
 tellect can fathom this : even its developments, as in the 
 gift of Christ, and the wonderful provisions of man's salva- 
 tion, lie infinitely beyond the reach of the human mind. 
 We may indulge in ideas of paternity of intensity of 
 tenderness of universality ; but these furnish faint analo- 
 gies of the reality. John Smith was right in not attempting 
 to refine on a subject so great, and in limiting himself to 
 the task of a simple but full and pathetic declaration of 
 this love. This he did in words of fire. The readiness of 
 the God of love to save ; the freedom of His grace ; His 
 nearness, presence, and power ; the illimitable and universal 
 extent of the Divine compassion ; the inference that none 
 are too bad, too miserable, for God to reach, and that all, 
 however guilty, might be saved by this love, were intelli- 
 gible points. These were seized by our preacher. He handled 
 them, as is well known, with wonderful effect. And in the 
 same sermon the effect was often perfectly changed by the 
 change of topic. After creating a kind of thunderstorm, 
 in which peal after peal was heard, while darkness covered 
 the scene around, all at once he would change the subject, 
 expatiate upon the Divine love, the presence of God there to 
 bless and to save ; and then, exhorting the people to believe 
 and look for liberty, peace, and assurance, produced a 
 summer landscape after the storm, in which the " Sun of 
 righteousness arose with healing in His wings," filling all 
 hearts with confidence and joy. 
 
 But all this was perfectly evangelical. He did not pro- 
 claim a love devoid of a Saviour. His statements of the 
 atonement seem to have been in exact keeping with his 
 proclamations of the grace of God : they were free, unem- 
 barrassed, broad, and full. To make this obvious and clear
 
 XXXU. INTRODUCTORY ESSAY. 
 
 was his study. The fact is one thing, and the perception of 
 it another. It is difficult to make men in total ignorance of 
 the principles on which the death of our Lord took place, 
 see its nature and value, and especially its connexion with 
 their personal acceptance and salvation. Mr. Smith strove 
 to do this, and with great success. It may be assumed as 
 certain, that ministers of his class will exhibit the cross 
 much more effectually than others, even of a higher mental 
 grade. The one often hides the cross in the logic, meta- 
 physics, philosophy, and ornaments of his exhibition ; the 
 other throws out the picture in bold relief. His object is to 
 enable men to " behold the Lamb of God," " Jesus Christ 
 as crucified among them," as "suffering, the Just for the 
 unjust, to bring them to God;" as "being made a curse 
 for them, as it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth 
 on a tree." To give, so to speak, embodiment and reality 
 to His " agony and bloody sweat, His cross and passion;" to 
 give tone and language to " His bitter cries and tears ;" to 
 give vividness and meaning to His exclamation, "It is 
 finished ! " to set forth the fulness and perfection of His merit 
 and righteousness ; and then to bring home the whole by 
 persuading the sinner that all this was undertaken and accom- 
 plished for him, seems the desirable point in "preaching 
 Christ and Him crucified." From the " Memoirs " it is clear 
 that this was done with eminent effect by Mr. Smith. His 
 manner was well suited to this subject. He seems to have 
 been one of those men who possess the power to clothe the 
 most Divine and spiritual subjects in material forms. These 
 men deal in sacred hieroglyphics ; they image forth the 
 truth ; their doctrines are pictures. In these cases every 
 idea, however abstruse, is sumninded by a sort of mental 
 materiality, like as the soul enshrined in the body gives 
 expression to its emotions by the countenance and the senses. 
 This is not unauthorized. Our Lord Himself clothed many 
 of his most holy and spiritual doctrines in the garb of para- 
 bolical teaching ; and the prophets hardly ever delivered 
 their message without surrounding it with all the imagery 
 which earth and heaven can furnish. Signs, symbols, 
 and the gorgeous garniture of nature, are employed as 
 the vehicle of the truth. Nothing could well exceed the 
 pathos attending the exhibition of the Saviour by this 
 excellent man. His own faith and feelings, as is always 
 the case, heightened the effect. Something more than a 
 capacity to give strong views, to paint, to embody, to strike
 
 INTEODT7CTOBT ESSAY. XXX111 
 
 the senses, is necessary, in setting forth the death of our 
 Lord. No man can be in a state to speak properly on such 
 a theme as the love of Christ, hut in a spirit of love ; no 
 language hut that which is heated with a fire always 
 glowing in the heart, can he adequate to such a subject as 
 the crucifixion ; no recommendation of the Saviour to others 
 can do justice to Him, in the least degree, except it spring 
 from the union which a lively faith alone can produce ; and 
 no message from God to man can touch, and move, and 
 persuade the human heart, unless the messenger himself 
 feels his own identity with his Master's glory, is one with 
 his Lord, is a sharer in His cross by participation, and 
 enters sympathetically into all the agonies and triumphs of 
 redemption. All this was experienced by our friend. The 
 Saviour he proclaimed to others he enjoyed himself; and 
 His "preciousness" gave an indescribable power to his 
 proclamation of the crucified Jesus. 
 
 With a faith so influential in the Author of the Gospel, 
 he could have no doubt in the Divine and sovereign effi- 
 ciency of the Gospel itself. There is a great difference 
 between a mere professional enunciation of the truth of God, 
 and its delivery in this spirit. The exercise of this faith is 
 called in the " Memoirs " " looking for effects," fruit, results, 
 great issues. "With these expectations this good husbandman 
 sowed the " seed of the kingdom." He calculated upon its 
 growth ; he believed it would produce appropriate and 
 abundant fruit. But how was this faith developed ? It had 
 two modes of manifestation, one towards God, and one 
 towards man. His faith towards God in the matter under 
 consideration exhibited itself in wrestling prayer. What 
 could call forth those remarkable outpourings of soul in 
 agonizing supplication, sometimes continued during the 
 greater part of the night, and always in deep prostration, 
 often upon his face on the floor, repeatedly mentioned? 
 Evidently a strong and realizing belief in the divinity of the 
 Gospel which he preached, as well as a sense of dependence 
 upon God to render it successful by the blessing of His 
 Holy Spirit. Hence his faith in the message he delivered 
 had nothing of the spirit of the opus operatum principle. 
 He did not expect the word to operate as a charm, as the 
 Papist and the Puseyite expect the sacraments to produce 
 their effects. His belief in the message which he delivered 
 was a belief in it as a Divine and sovereign remedy for the 
 evils of man's state ; he prtached it as such ; he made the
 
 XXXIV INTEODTJCTOET ESSAY. 
 
 offer in full confidence ; he felt himself as the deputed and 
 anointed servant of God, and that He, by His Holy Spirit, 
 would render it saving. 
 
 Everything good and true is simulated. Because such men 
 as John Smith believed in the efficacy of the Gospel with the 
 concurrence of the Spirit's influence, sought in prayer and 
 diligent labours ; then expected great results, numerous con- 
 versions, and happily realized them ; we say, because these 
 sentiments appear to prevail in the work of such eminent 
 men, some seem to entertain the notion that there is such a 
 thing as believing for success absolutely ; that is, that the 
 preacher may calculate on great effects, may challenge them, 
 make them sure, if he only have faith. Let him believe that 
 he shall convert a score or a hundred sinners in a service, 
 and it shall be done. This is very much akin to the absurd 
 and dangerous sentiment, " Only believe that you are saved, 
 and you are saved." 
 
 This supposes the Gospel to be a moral, not a Divine 
 instrument ; indicates that its agencies and means are held 
 in the hand of man, and not in the hand of God : it implies 
 that faith in the preacher is a talismanic power, by which 
 any number of souls on which its fascinations may fix must 
 be brought under the charm. The Gospel may possibly be 
 so used. Human sympathies are very extraordinary. A 
 skilful enthusiast may undoubtedly beget a spurious faith 
 in others. He may reckon up his numbers, and set himself 
 to affect, by his appliances, the objects selected. Bringing 
 his machinery to bear upon the moral sentiments of those 
 whom he addresses, he may, by dint of repetition, persuade 
 them that they believe and are converted, when all the while 
 the only effect is the influence of one mind upon another. 
 How it is possible for any minister so to believe for others, 
 as to render his mission efficacious to the production of effects 
 to a defined extent, or indeed to any extent, it is difficult to 
 Bay. It seems, if he can do this, that this sort of faith can 
 put into the Gospel message a power which its Divine Author 
 does not choose to put into it. The principle obviously 
 contains in it the idea of force, of a sovereign and con- 
 trolling power. This is not the way in which the Almighty 
 deals with man. He does not compel his acceptance of 
 salvation ; which must be the case if he is saved on the faith 
 of another, and not on his own. Properly speaking, it is 
 impossible for one man to believe for another ; and con- 
 sequently impossible for a minister to believe for his
 
 INTEODTJCTOEY ESSAY. XXXV 
 
 congregation. It is true that any Christian may fix his 
 rc'trards upon another, an unconverted relation or neigh- 
 bour, and, making this person the object of prayer, bring 
 his case before God ; he may, moreover, warn, instruct, 
 persuade siich person ; and, amongst other good offices, do 
 his best to place before him the object of faith, the Lord 
 Jesus Christ. He may even go beyond this, and entertain 
 a persuasion and belief that God is leading him in all this, 
 and that the object of attention will be saved. But this is 
 very different to believing for him ; and it is equally alien to 
 the sentiment that he ghau be saved, and then that he is saved. 
 
 A good minister of the Lord Jesus may in this way 
 exercise faith in regard to his charge. He may believe 
 that God has sent him, and that the feelings of tenderness, 
 solicitude, and confidence produced in his own mind have 
 all a bearing on his success ; he may make the souls of his 
 people the especial object of his faith and prayer before 
 God ; and he may also exhort, persuade, instruct, in the 
 confident belief that many of them will be saved. But this 
 is a very different thing to an unreflecting, heedless, or 
 confident and really enthusiastic expectation, on the ground 
 of a sort of arithmetical, mechanical faith, that by so many 
 sermons so many souls will be converted, say a score, or 
 fifty, by every throw of the net. This is a sort of faith in 
 the Gospel which we confess we cannot understand, and it 
 rests on a principle entirely unwarranted by the word of 
 God. Real faith in preaching must mean faith in the 
 message, as containing all which it professes to contain, 
 capable of giving all which it professes to give, of doing all 
 which it professes -to do. Faith on this principle is faith in 
 the agencies of conversion and salvation, not vicarious, 
 not the belief that five hundred men will be saved in a 
 given period, but that the Gospel is in itself competent to 
 save all the world in the same period. 
 
 Preaching the Gospel in faith may, it is true, be con- 
 sidered in another aspect ; namely, that of not only consi- 
 dering it in general, as containing a sovereign remedy for 
 all the sins and evils of the world, but the skilful application 
 of these remedies. In the best sense of the expression, this 
 is preaching the Gospel in faith. We have many analogies, 
 many modes of illustration. There can be no doubt but the 
 several provisions of the Gospel contain specific and certain 
 remedies for all the diseases and moral maladies of mankind. 
 Let men be induced to accept these remedies, and the effect
 
 XXXVI INTIIODUCIOSY ESSAY. 
 
 is certain, as infallible, indeed, as the most exact results of 
 mechanical force, of atmospheric influences upon their appro- 
 priate subjects, or the sunshine of heaven upon the visual 
 organs. This is putting the case very strongly : but it is 
 seen that the Gospel proposes to bring about certain results, 
 the whole of which are often expressed by the term con- 
 version ; and the conversion of a sinner, in our current 
 language, means his becoming a true Christian. This is 
 what the Gospel proposes. Now the point is the skilful, 
 believing use of the word of God, so as to bring about this 
 desirable end. When a minister of religion meets with a 
 soul, or goes to a congregation, in a state of ignorance of 
 the way of salvation and the blessings of religion, and then 
 applies himself, in the use of lessons of instruction, to 
 remove this ignorance ; is he not preaching, prophesying, 
 or employing the Gospel in faith, when he is in fact labour- 
 ing for the spiritual illumination of these benighted souls ? 
 This may be skilfully or unskilfully performed ; yet, properly 
 speaking, there must be faith, or it would not be done at 
 all. In case this teacher of Christianity say to his auditors, 
 "Now, if you embrace this truth, it will make you 'wise 
 unto salvation ; ' you will know God, whom to know is 
 eternal life ; you will perceive in Christ a Saviour, ' able 
 to save to the uttermost ; ' you will become acquainted 
 with experimental religion in all its fulness of blessing ; 
 you will understand the true nature of all moral and 
 spiritual duties ; you will be taught the way to heaven 
 certainly and infallibly : now embrace this truth, and pray 
 that the Holy Spirit may help your infirmities," does not 
 such a teacher of religion preach the Gospel in faith ? 
 There will be a great difference in the manner of doing it, 
 one possessing one gift, and another another ; but the differ- 
 ence will not be a difference of faith, but of mental capacity, 
 or, more properly, of spiritual discernment. A quiet and 
 gentle preacher may exhibit his message as truly in faith 
 as a Boanerges ; but he may not do it as strongly, as 
 clearly, as impressively. There is a mighty difference in 
 teaching the same truth ; but he who believes in the efficacy 
 of the truth to give saving light to the soul, unquestionably 
 does it in faith. So, when a minister addresses sinners on 
 the question of their pardon, offering them Christ, he cer- 
 tainly preaches the Gospel in faith. "We hear him say to 
 this class of persons, " If you will believe in Jesus Christ, 
 you will be saved; your souls will be justified; you will
 
 INTRODUCTORY ESSAY. XXXVU 
 
 receive the adoption of grace ; you will enjoy peace with 
 God ; you will be set free from guilt ; and will become the 
 subjects of Divine joy ; and your misery and misgivings will 
 all depart under the blissful assurance of acceptance by the 
 witness of the Spirit:" does not such a person as this 
 preach the Gospel in faith ? Again, there will be a great 
 difference. One will be able to set forth Christ crucified, 
 and the blessing of salvation in Him, more clearly and more 
 forcibly than another ; but the less skilful preacher will 
 deliver his message in faith if he employs his best powers 
 in the full persuasion that the truth he delivers will, if 
 embraced, lead to this result. Moreover, one will be much 
 more powerful than another, inasmuch as one will possess a 
 much more vivid and persuasive mode of address than the 
 other. But he who delivers the word of God as the in- 
 strument of leading men to Christ, and through Christ to 
 pardon, must deliver it in faith. Again : suppose a preacher, 
 in the course of his ministry, to teach his congregation that 
 man is " born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incor- 
 ruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for 
 ever ; " that God " sanctifies man by the truth ;" and that 
 " His word is truth ; "then, addressing them in plain and 
 earnest entreaties, says, " If you will follow the guidance of 
 this word to the fountain of regeneration ' open for sin and 
 uncleanness,' you will lose your pollutions, your carnal 
 nature, your enmity against God, your corruption and 
 depravity ; you will receive anew life, Divine love, spiritual 
 affections, and all the characteristics of holiness and piety :" 
 would not the enunciation of such a doctrine, with such 
 expectations, be preaching in faith ? 
 
 This is, unquestionably, the most simple and rational view 
 to be taken of a great and interesting subject. Hence the 
 question of success is often not a question of faith, but of 
 skilful use made of an instrument in which all parties may 
 have an equal confidence, but not the power to use alike. 
 The best and most successful preachers of the Gospel are so 
 by reason of their clear conceptions of its nature and its 
 purposes, together with a capacity the gift of God to set 
 it forth in a perspicuous and forcible manner. 
 
 The Holy Spirit comes in also here, it may be believed, 
 with unwonted power, because He sanctions the truth, gives 
 it vitality, and carries it to the heart. It is to be presumed 
 that this Divine unction will be much more powerfully given 
 in connexion with the pure Gospel, than with a mixed and 
 d
 
 XXXVlil INTRODUCTORY ESSAY. 
 
 adulterated system. So it is found. "Whether the Holy 
 Ghost is in the man delivering this truth simply and fully, 
 or whether He connects Himself with the message, it is 
 impossible to say ; but the fact is certain, namely, that the 
 most successful ministry is that which states the pure 
 Gospel most broadly and fully. It is the seed sown into 
 the earth which the rains and sun render fruitful, not the- 
 seed and some other material in which it may be encrusted. 
 Indeed, in such circumstances, it would have to make its 
 way through the encrustations, however thick and numerous, 
 before it could appear above-ground, and expand into fer- 
 tility and beauty. In like manner, it is the simple seed of 
 the word of God which is rendered productive. This word 
 may be enfolded in the drapery of human manufacture, but 
 it is only when it disentangles itself that it is saving. It is 
 not the beauties of the rhetorician and the truth of God 
 conjointly that the Spirit renders vital ; it is the truth in 
 despite of the garlands, when it is successful at all. The 
 Spirit of God has given the Divine wisdom, grace, love, and 
 all Christian blessings, voice, language, and visibility. 
 The Spirit inspired the word ; and consequently that word 
 contains the breadth and fulness of all the counsels of God 
 towards mankind. Is it any wonder, then, that the same 
 glorious Spirit should again live, breathe, and speak in the 
 same truth ? 
 
 John Smith believed, in reference to success in his work, 
 that it was by connecting himself with God, by putting 
 himself, so to speak, into the hands of the Holy Spirit, to be 
 emploved by Him in searching the heart of the sinner, an(J 
 in leading the penitent to Christ, that fruit must be secured. 
 
 But we said his faith in the matter of success had another 
 aspect, namely, a peculiar bearing towards man. We mean, 
 that he took pains with man. He did not expect his con- 
 version as a passive agent, as a stone. He was evidently 
 awake to every indication of good. He watched for the 
 return of poor sinners to God with intense anxiety, and 
 dealt with them accordingly. The mighty peals of thunder 
 we read about as being uttered by him, were uttered in the 
 ears of the careless and indifferent, not the awakened. 
 Towards the penitent he seems to have been extremely 
 tender, and solicitous to bring their convictions to a good 
 issue. He carefully instructed them in the way of approach 
 to God ; he so sympathized with them, it is said, as to inter 
 into their state, and express thair sorrows, and no one
 
 IXTKODTTCTORT ESSAY. XXXIX 
 
 knows how much and how fully he might actually feel 
 them ; he prayed for and with them with persevering impor- 
 tunity, encouraging them to look for a present salvation ; 
 and, moreover, he seems never to have given up one of these 
 penitent sinners, following him by night and by day, and 
 encouraging others to do the same, till he found peace with 
 God. 
 
 This was the sort of faith exercised by this excellent man 
 in respect to his work. We have no antinomiaa element 
 intermixed with it ; we perceive no enthusiasm, if enthu- 
 siasm is expecting the end without the means ; we see no 
 dishonour done to any part of the Christian economy by the 
 adoption of one principle to the neglect of others of equal 
 value and importance ; we have no proof of the substitution 
 of means in the place of the operations of the Holy Ghost, 
 or, on the other hand, of the expectation of His influences 
 without the use of scriptural means ; and no supposition 
 that bombast, rant, or a honeyed and luscious spiritual senti- 
 mentality would effect their conversion. As far as can be 
 seen, his faith in regard to success was a legitimate prin- 
 ciple, grounding itself on the promise of Christ, on the 
 divinity and power of the Gospel, and on the fact of a 
 concurrent spiritual energy being present with the truth. 
 In regarding himself* as an instrument, he did not expect a 
 blessing to attend his mission otherwise than in answer to 
 fervent and constant praver. His faith was great, it took a 
 wide range, it saw no impossibilities, it anticipated great 
 results ; but it was eminently laborious and practical. Those 
 who are prepared to pray and work in the spirit, and to the 
 extent, of John Smith, may look for similar results; but 
 those who are not willing, or have not the ability to sow 
 the same seed, need not expect to reap an equally abundant 
 harvest. 
 
 This faith, as might be expected, produced in the case of 
 this eminently good man corresponding feelings and emotions. 
 On the whole these were joyous and happy, though it is 
 evident that on some occasions opposite impressions were the 
 result. These occasional feelings of pain and grief were not 
 respecting himself, but the state of religion and the con- 
 dition of the ungodly world around him. With his intense 
 anxiety as to the danger of sin, and the certainty of punish- 
 ment following its gailt, he could not rest in quiet repose. 
 His ardent mind anticipated punishment which the careless 
 never dreamed of respecting themselves. He, in some sense, 
 <l 2
 
 XI INTEODT7CTOKY ESSAY. 
 
 bore the burden which they ought to have borne. This 
 sometimes amounted to agony, which could only find relief 
 in prayer. These private and importunate pleadings witli 
 God for sinners must often have been most overpowering; 
 and only in committing their case into the hands of their 
 Father and his Father, his mind regained its joyous 
 serenity. No one can tell the extent to which the thought- 
 less world is indebted to such men. They are eminently 
 " the salt of the earth." But they are more; They sustain, 
 in their degree, the position of Moses, when by his impor- 
 tunity he so often " stayed the plague," and averted from 
 Israel judgments which would otherwise have befallen them. 
 A man of faith and prayer sustains a vicarious character. 
 He, to a certain extent, is accepted for others ; as God 
 promised that He would save the threatened cities, in answer 
 to the pleadings of Abraham, in case He found "ten 
 righteous persons" among the populations. 
 
 The value of such men to churches is beyond all con- 
 ception. Their spirit, example, and labours constitute a tine 
 model for less elevated, energetic, and decided ministers ; 
 and often lead them on in a career of usefulness which their 
 own independent strength would never have achieved. But 
 their influence among men does not indicate the whole ; 
 it is not half the truth. They have influence with God ; to 
 what extent, it is impossible to know. But one thing is 
 obvious, their absence invariably leads to decay. The 
 Divine Being does not either admit the prayers or employ 
 the services of men of another spirit, to the same extent. 
 Their presence is, on the contrary, always attended by less 
 or more of prosperity. What is agony to them is salvation 
 to others. The broken heart, the weeping eyes, the 
 prayer of sorrow, the pleadings of faith, not only find an 
 entrance into the courts above, but have a mighty influence 
 there. The piety which renders it possible for God to 
 connect Himself with a church is the cause of both its con- 
 servation and its progress. This is found in the devotions 
 of its ministers and people. It is to this spirit that God 
 looks ; with these minds He dwells ; and through the channel 
 of their prayers and faith He pours forth the streams of 
 spiritual influence. An eminently holy and believing 
 minister stands for more than one in the church to which he 
 belongs. God is with him ; and his soul, his voice, his 
 message, being sanctioned and blessed by God, place him 
 in a perfectly different attitude ; and he is like one of the
 
 nfTEODUCTORY ESSAY. xli 
 
 prophets, diffusing life and religion amongst men who 
 would otherwise remain dead in sin. Jonah ' ' lied from the 
 face of the Lord," and Daniel "fell on his face on the 
 ground," when each had received a solemn and important 
 message from the Lord. The prophecy overpowered them. 
 Is it any wonder, then, that a man of intense feelings should 
 now bend under a weight which caused inspired prophets 
 to groan beneath the burden of their duty ? 
 
 But John Smith's state was ordinarily that of ecstatic joy 
 and happiness. We are not sure but his constitutional 
 peculiarities had something to do with this. His nature 
 was ardent and his passions strong ; and it is always found 
 that, when strong religious convictions seize such minds, 
 tumultuous and vivid emotions are produced. The balancing 
 power being the judgment, it follows that, if the judgment 
 is overborne, then real enthusiasm is the result ; whereas, 
 in case it retains its dominion, the joy and the ecstasy are 
 found in agreement with the highest spiritual wisdom. The 
 usual sign of the absence of this balance of the judgment is 
 the adoption of various kinds of fancies in the place of truth ; 
 some great doctrinal eccentricities, absurd religious mono- 
 mania, or a dreamy mysticism. The mind of John Smith 
 exhibited no such tendencies, unless it is held that all 
 profound religious feeling does so. But is not this feeling a 
 genuine fruit of faith ? Is it possible that the blessings of 
 the Gospel can be really enjoyed without deep emotions ? 
 Taking the inspired descriptions as the rule, it may be 
 well doubted whether any one can enjoy these blessings 
 without their legitimate accompaniments. Can Christ be in 
 the heart, " the hope of glory," without a happiness agreeing 
 with the value and importance of redemption? Is it 
 possible for all "the fulness of God" to be experienced 
 without solemn, reverential, and adoring joy ? 
 
 But it may be thought that we have evidence that our 
 departed friend carried his feelings too far, in the fact that 
 he so soon wore himself out. That he became a martyr to 
 his emotions and labours conjointly, may be readily admitted. 
 This may be deplored, and is, indeed, to be considered a 
 great loss to the church on earth. He may have been 
 culpable in this, but such culpability is no sign of fanaticism. 
 It may have amounted to an imprudent disregard of his 
 own health and life, which all men are bound to cherish ; 
 but it proves nothing bevond. It must be recollected that 
 nothing is so easy as to forget all thoughts of these things 
 d 3
 
 Xlii rNTEODUCTOEY ESSAY. 
 
 in the excitement of public preaching. When the soul is 
 entirely swallowed up in the exercise, considerations of 
 consequences are impossible. With the best intentions, and 
 every sort of resolution, we find, in fact, that in ardent 
 natures moderation in public duties is beyond their power. 
 This was the case in the instance under consideration. 
 Whatever good resolutions Mr. Smith might have formed in 
 private, his steed would, in spite of all precautions, run 
 away with him in public, His belief in God as present ; 
 his actual realization of the influences of the Holy Spirit, 
 which he undoubtedly received ; the impressive nature of 
 his message, a message of life or death to the souls of men ; 
 the numbers and excited state of the congregations to which 
 he preached ; the cries of penitents, and the joy of emanci- 
 pated believers ; all these things made it impossible for 
 him to pause, or to keep in mind the demands of health. 
 Hence his feelings bore him away altogether, and he died a 
 martyr in the midst of his years. 
 
 But while the sacrifice was being consumed, the very fire 
 which effected the destruction of the body, being the fire of 
 love, would in itself produce the feeling of happiness. It 
 was this, indeed, which led to the holocaust, the offering to 
 God. Whatever is done or suffered from the promptings of 
 Divine love must be attended by happy feelings. This was, 
 probably, the true cause of the violent exertions which 
 brought in their train afflictions and a premature grave. A 
 less happy man would have possessed less ardour, and this 
 moderate tone of mind would have led to more quiet and 
 deliberate exertions. Great sensibility and passion are found, 
 in all cases, to be inimical to health. An intense, active, 
 and ardent mind, like high pressure on a machine, is certain 
 to wear out the physical structure. And yet it is univer- 
 sally observed that persons of this temperament enjoy life 
 much more than cold and phlegmatic natures. It is so in 
 religion. A metaphysical Christian, a dull recluse, a 
 cold calculator of what is prudent, judicious, and tends to 
 produce present comfort, and even the meditative man, 
 will not do himself much harm by his feelings. But then 
 it may be doubted whether such persons have much enjoy- 
 ment. Their character and their religion seem to act upon 
 each other ; their tone of mind subduing even the grace of 
 God, as enjoyed in the heart, within the limits of a series of 
 moral maxims ; and then these moral maxims, in their turn, 
 rendering life an existence of cold propriety. Not so with
 
 IITTRODtJCTOBY ESSAY. xliii 
 
 such a man as John Smith. His religion was a glowing 
 fire, burning in a congenial nature ; and his happiness con- 
 sumed him. We regret his early departure, hut admire its 
 cause. And, although his life was brief, he enjoyed more, 
 he achieved more, he reflected the power of Divine grace 
 more, and did more for the glory of God, than many who 
 live to the utmost limits of the grant of " threescore years 
 and ten." 
 
 Let us now look at this good man as actually in his work. 
 A cursory review of his life must convince every one that 
 the object he proposed in every place was the revival and 
 extension of the cause of Goa. His ideal of Christianity 
 was purely evangelic and spiritual. He seems not to have 
 spent a thought on anything ecclesiastical. These things 
 lay quite beyond or below his conception. He troubled not 
 himself about any temporal matters, leaving them entirely 
 in the hands of others. But, on entering upon new ground, 
 he is seen instantly taking a religious survey ; reconnoitring 
 the territory to determine how to plant his artillery, and 
 assault the citadels of the enemy. We scarcely ever find 
 anything said by himself in the "Memoirs" about secondary 
 subjects. The spiritual condition of the people ; the numbers, 
 attention, deportment, and regard for the truth, of the 
 congregations ; the character of the leaders and official 
 persons, together with their willingness and capacity to help 
 him in his work ; whether the members were living in a 
 state of justification or of sanctification ; the question of 
 domestic piety, and the converted state, or otherwise, of the 
 young people of the families of his charge ; these and 
 similar subjects were the objects of investigation and care. 
 Then, these preliminaries being settled, we find him sallying 
 forth upon the world ; taking pains to arrest the attention 
 of the careless, preaching in new places, or in the open air ; 
 and, like a faithful evangelist, endeavouring to turn the 
 attention of the public to the things of God. 
 
 Is not this the proper and legitimate object of the min- 
 istry ? We read nothing respecting secular things in the 
 Acts, except that, when the apostles and evangelists found 
 themselves encumbered with their administration, they, at 
 once, sought to relieve themselves by the appointment of 
 deacons, whilst they "gave themselves to the word of God 
 and prayer." In Mr. Smith's state of mind it was impos- 
 sible that he should give himself to any other pursuits than 
 those which belonged to the higher departments of the
 
 INTEODTJCTORr ESSAY. 
 
 ministry. How could he " entangle himself with the secular 
 affairs" of even the church, whilst he lived in the purely 
 spiritual region which he evidently sought and occupied ? 
 Indeed it may be safely affirmed that he had no capacity for 
 secular things, since the sole cultivation of the spiritual 
 mind, the heavenly affections, and those collateral views 
 and feelings which arise out of this state, produce an entire 
 distaste for mere business : and what is this distaste, but an 
 incapacity, if not essential, yet superinduced ? 
 
 It may not be in the order of providence for all ministers 
 to live in the abstract, the spiritual, and the divine, in such 
 manner as to produce the distaste in question. One of the 
 Lord's servants will have his calling in one department, 
 and another in a different sphere of usefulness ; and the 
 danger is lest men of peculiar taste and gifts should be 
 induced either to despise or find fault with the opposite. 
 This, it is to be feared, is sometimes the case, and is peculiar 
 to neither. The purely spiritual man may be tempted to 
 consider those who give themselves to ecclesiastical and 
 business subjects, as worldly in their spirits ; whilst, in 
 truth, they are as really following their own vocation as he 
 is doing so himself. And it is equally so in the case of the 
 other class, the class of business-men. They may possibly 
 become so absorbed in their peculiar line, as to be able to 
 look upon nothing as essentially advancing the cause of God 
 unless it adds something directly to the strength of the 
 interests they serve. It is a pity that every one may not 
 be free to labour in his own department without offence or 
 hindrance. How can all do the same thing ? Imagine the 
 whole population to turn their genius and industry to one 
 department; what would become of all the rest? what 
 would be the state of the interests of the abandoned depart- 
 ments, whether of manufactures, or any other line of 
 industry ? Confusion, desolation, and ruin must be the 
 consequence ; and the entire disruption of society would 
 follow as infallibly as if an earthquake broke up the existing 
 state of the world. It must be the same in the Christian 
 church. Let every minister be supposed to possess the same 
 gift, the same kind and amount of talent, give himself to 
 the same pursuits and labours, cultivate just the same field, 
 and, in all respects, do exactly the same work ; what would 
 be the consequence ? Evidently, all which lay beyond the 
 limits of this one department of usefulness must remain in 
 utter barrenness and neglect. But this is not all. Collisions
 
 IXTnODCCTOHY ESSAY. xlv 
 
 must occur. The heavenly bodies keep out of each other's 
 way by not moving in the same orbits ; and this again is 
 secured by the gravitating forces at work, as well as the 
 difference of bulk in these several luminaries. The same 
 principle obtains in all the works of God, whether found in 
 nature or in the spiritual kingdom. "We have oneness with 
 variety. The earth is covered with an infinite diversity of 
 forms and colours ; the animal and winged tribes are of 
 every possible species ; amongst living men the diversities 
 of physical and mental structure are endless ; and in social 
 life the grades and pursuits of different classes are infinitely 
 multitudinous. If in any of these cases God had only formed 
 one class, this would have altered everything. Only suppose 
 the human race to be of one size, formed in the same mould, 
 in possession of just equal mental power, and then to adopt 
 one business, one mode of life, and to do everything with the 
 same set of tools ; we should in such a state of things have 
 harmony with a witness ! By the present arrangements of 
 Providence, there is room and scope for every one, by reason 
 of the variety of business to be done, and the numerous 
 wants of human life ; but in the other supposed case, all 
 walking in the same path, the crowd must tread upon each 
 other's heels, or otherwise pass along the road in rank and 
 file, with the regularity of a regiment of soldiers, each man 
 keeping step and moving with the precision of an automaton. 
 It must be so in the living church. Let five hundred or 
 a thousand ministers be just alike, move one after another 
 in their several spheres of labour, do the same thing, and 
 in the same manner; preach, pray, and administer the 
 ordinances of God with the nicest possible precision ; use 
 the same tones, the same style, the same action, the same 
 dull or impassioned eloquence ; and then with the exactness 
 of clockwork perform all the pastoral functions, what 
 beautiful uniformity would be the result of all this ! Imagine 
 all these gentlemen to-be of the metaphysical stamp, and to 
 create a metaphysical church. What sort of a church 
 would this be ? We fear a somewhat dull confederation. 
 Suppose the thousand ministers in question to be of the 
 logical, orthodox genus, introducing well-proved common- 
 places into each sermon ; finely-arranged propositions follow- 
 ing each other, like the pillars of a Grecian temple, with 
 here and there a piece of fresco or some other ornament put 
 upon them. What kind of a living body would the church 
 become under this teaching? The picture may be seen in a
 
 rNTRODTJCTOBY ESSAY. 
 
 country church on a Sunday afternoon. The squire, his 
 lady, his liveried menials ; the farmers, their wives, sons, 
 daughters ; the village blacksmith, shopkeepers, labourers, 
 urchins all sleeping, snoring together. This, one would 
 think, might satisfy the most fastidious uniformity-man. 
 But suppose these thousand preachers all to be of the ranter 
 class, and follow each other everywhere with the same shout, 
 vehemence, and declamation ; how would the church fare 
 in this case? The inference is that all the people would be 
 ranters ; that is, the same excitement would be going on 
 without intermission or abatement from year to year, and 
 everywhere. Could this last ? could a church-state be 
 founded upon mere ranterism ? A hurricane is a very 
 useful thing in nature, and hence occasionally the strong 
 winds and drenching rains of the tempest are sent by the 
 provident Governor of the world ; but could the grass, the 
 harvest, the flower-garden, thrive and prosper in a perpetual 
 hurricane ? Let any one answer, The absurdity of fashion- 
 ing any ministry in the world on one model is just as 
 obvious as any of the above imaginary cases, and, moreover, 
 must utterly fail, 
 
 " Liberty of prophesying " is what is absolutely essential 
 to the well-being of the church, as well as the progress of 
 the Gospel in the world. The pulpit must be the throne of 
 freedom; the lips of the preacher must be unsealed; the 
 soul must be allowed to put off all formal fetters ; the whole 
 range of evangelical truth must be open to the choice of the 
 prophet of God ; the impulses of the heart in its highest 
 and most impassioned emotions must be allowed ; and then 
 such elocution as nature, or rather the messages of God, 
 may dictate, must be cultivated; all this, we say, must 
 exist, or there can be no healthy state of Christianity in the 
 world. And this is in accordance with the spirit of the 
 Gospel commission, as given by our Lord, and developed by 
 the practice of the first evangelists. Did our blessed 
 Saviour, with the commission entrusted to His apostles, also 
 give restrictive rules as to its proclamation ? Did St. Paul 
 carefully study to conform his speech and manner to the 
 speech and maWer of St. Peter ? Did " the disciple whom 
 Jesus loved " punctiliously adhere, either in his ministry or 
 writings, to the canons of some apostolic conclave ? Did the 
 evangelists, prior to their sallying forth on their mission either 
 to the Jew or the Gentile, consult with each other, or some 
 superior tribunal, as to the manner in which they should
 
 INTttODTJCTOBY ESSAY. xlvii 
 
 deliver their message ? Who does not see the absurdity of all 
 such notions ? and yet to suppose this, would not be more 
 stupidly ridiculous than the idea of subjecting the ministry 
 in our own times to a dull uniformity. 
 
 Mature is always beautiful in its own simplicity, but 
 deformed when coloured by extraneous material ; the 
 mental faculties are only strong when free, and, if massive 
 and vigorous by their innate power, they are necessarily 
 enfeebled when put into chains ; the heart can only heave 
 with mighty emotions when every load is removed, and it 
 possesses room for expansion; the depths of the soul can 
 only send forth its torrents of feeling when the stone, as in 
 the case of Jacob's well, is rolled away ; and the pathos, 
 the fire, the poetry of eloquence can never be attained but 
 in the perfectly unfettered state of the speaker. But all 
 this merely relates to what is human in the ministry. 
 We have something much more solemn and important to 
 consider, the Divine. 
 
 All ministers profess to hold their commission from God. 
 They "trust that they are moved to take this office upon 
 them by the Holy Ghost." " A dispensation of the Gospel," 
 they consider, is entrusted to them bv the Head of the 
 church. The doctrines they are bound to preach, like the 
 call to the office, they moreover hold to be Divine. The 
 spirit in which this message is to be delivered, they are 
 taught to believe, must be a pure, elevated, sanctified 
 spirit, given from heaven. With all this is connected deep 
 responsibility, responsibility to God. Who that rightly 
 apprehends all this, can "confer with flesh and blood/' 
 whether his own fiesh and blood, or that of any one else ? 
 Inasmuch as he has received God's message, to God he must 
 give his account. Must not this feeling have something to do 
 with the spirit and manner in whichaman does his work in the 
 vineyard of his great Master ? Can he think much of the 
 opinions of men, when he is fully and adequately impressed 
 with the divinity of his call, with his accountability to God ? 
 Can he subordinate his message to public taste, or allow it to 
 be modified by any human standard ? He who said to all his 
 servants, " Occupy till I come," called every one to account 
 for the use he had made of the talents he had received. 
 
 Then, upon this principle of responsibility, there must be 
 freedom for every minister to deliver his Lord's truth in the 
 manner designed by his Lord Himself. Those who interfere 
 in suoh a case as this, are interfering in matters much higher 
 than with the minister's own personal freedom : they are
 
 XlVlil IJJTHODTJCTOIIY ESSA7. 
 
 clearly interposing betwixt a message of God and its delivery, 
 tliat is, in the manner intended. It is a grave thing to 
 arrest a man in his career, supposing his career to be in 
 accordance with the will of God ; to be, in fact, the delivery 
 of His own solemn word, by His own Spirit, and, con- 
 sequently, in a connexion to aft'ect the salvation and iinal 
 state of multitudes of immortal souls. 
 
 But there is no danger, it may be surmised by some, of 
 any of these obstructions being placed in the path of any 
 zealous and devoted minister. Not, it may be, under the 
 name of an interdict for or on account of discharging his 
 duties in a particular manner, or belonging to a particular 
 class. But there are, in organized bodies, many ways of 
 doing the same thing. The masters of ecclesiastical and 
 canonical rule professedly do not proscribe men on the 
 ground of their zeal, their evangelical toils, their im- 
 passioned preaching, their labours in seeking the conversion 
 of mankind, their revivalism. These men are too wise in 
 their generation to do this. It is disorder only which they 
 are intent upon suppressing. Rule must be observed ; and 
 therefore if an angel from heaven came to preach the 
 Gospel, if he did it not canonically, he must be made to 
 desist. This is the plea. It was this on which our Saviour 
 was rejected and crucified, the apostles thrust out of the 
 temple and imprisoned, the best men in their day cast out 
 of the " holy catholic church," and obliged to become 
 sectaries. This has all along been the pretence of the 
 Papacy, in all its edicts, proscriptions, and anathemas ; 
 the plea on which John Wesley was driven from the 
 churches of the nation : it was only a non-observance of 
 rule which led to all this ; these gentlemen, the lords of the 
 Church, only supported rule in every instance. Had they 
 not a right to enforce their own canons ? Could they 
 be culpable in doing so ? Was it not the duty of every one 
 to adhere to law ? 
 
 Well ; let us try this in the case of John Wesley. The 
 dogma is that he was bound to avoid all disorder, and obey 
 the canons of the Church as interpreted by the bishops. 
 What, then, would have become of field-preaching, of the 
 employment of laymen in the ministry of the word, of the 
 erection and use of unconsecrated preaching-places, of the 
 adoption of the class, the lovefeast, the prayer-meeting, 
 (at which, in the presence of the Wesleys, we often find as 
 much disorder as ever obtained at any of John Smith's 
 prayer-meetings,) the establishment of Circuits, Conference,
 
 nfTEODCCTORY ESSAY. 
 
 and all the rest of the economy of Methodism ? Really, 
 attempts to enforce order, rule, and uniformity, at the 
 expanse of free, lively, energetic action in the revival of the 
 work of God, when attempted, come very early in Method- 
 ism, and with an ill grace. 
 
 The denial either of the necessity or the right to make 
 extraordinary exertions to revive the work of God, would be 
 to impugn the principle on which our father in the Gospel 
 began and carried on his own operations. All he did. 
 though in the order of God, antagonized the canonical 
 system of his own church. Methodism was, at that early 
 period, altogether beyond the ecclesiastical demarkations of 
 the Establishment. Its spirit was free and independent ; 
 its means, altogether of an extra-ecclesiastical character; 
 its action in the world, uncanonical ; its public and private 
 meetings presented a devotional fervour and uproar entirely 
 alien to the sober notions of precise and orderly Christians ; 
 and the effects on the auditors of the ministry, and espe- 
 cially of the Wesleys, were considered as exhibitions of 
 fanaticism. What then ? Did such opinions and complaints 
 arrest the progress of these devoted men ? Not for a moment. 
 They rightly considered that their commission was of a 
 higher order than to allow them to lay it aside because 
 their work was distasteful to the world, and opposed to the 
 human power, whether in the form of written law or living 
 authority, which opposed their progress. Were they not 
 right in this ? Must not a minister " obey God rather than 
 man ? " No church-organization can have the power from 
 God to cripple the exertions of men extraordinarily sent or 
 endowed by His own blessed Spirit. But it may be ima- 
 pined there can be no such tiling as these extraordinary 
 calls, inspirations, and elections to duty, where a regular 
 ministry is established among us. This is just the old plea. 
 What need can there be for any irregular labour, it was 
 said, and it is now said, since the Reformation is established, 
 and every parish is supplied with a competent and rightly- 
 accreditecl minister ? In reply, it may be safely affirmed 
 that no merely regular ministry can meet the necessities 
 of the world, or the demands of the Son of God upon His 
 church, even supposing it to be a true ministry. This 
 regular ministry, existing alone, and without extra means, 
 has always been one cause of the stagnant state of religion 
 in the church, as well as the sad and sinful state of the 
 world. We need not speculate on a matter so obvious. 01
 
 1 INTRODUCTORY ESSAY. 
 
 what use are the services of our churches and chapels to the 
 tens of thousands who never come near them ? What light 
 can radiate from our regular pulpits upon the seenes of 
 darkness, vice, and misery lying in the lanes, alleys, and 
 dens of our crowded cities, when in fact it no more ap- 
 proaches them, than the light of heaven the dark caverns of 
 the earth ? Nothing, it is certain, can now meet the wants 
 and dangers of these classes, any more than in former times, 
 but extraordinary evangelical labours. 
 
 It may be retorted, True, but this is not the question. 
 The true question is as to the need of anything extraordinary 
 in the church, in the midst of regular congregations, 
 amongst our own people and hearers. The idea is, that regu- 
 lar ministrations are sufficient. That they ought to be suf- 
 ficient, may be true. That those who are not saved by these 
 ministrations are deeply culpable, may be equally admitted. 
 But this does not alter a matter of fact. Are they so saved ? 
 Every one acquainted with the state of religion amongst us 
 must know, and knowing it deeply deplore, the undeniable 
 fact, that vast numbers who attend these services are not so 
 saved. Moreover, it is equally undeniable that numerous 
 classes who, from some cause or other, never yielded their 
 hearts to God, or entered into Christian liberty, in connexion 
 with the ordinary ministry under which they have long sat, 
 have been brought into this state of blessing under the labours 
 of some it may be thought eccentric messenger of God. 
 
 Few would take upon themselves the responsibility of 
 saying that, in the present state of things, no one can receive 
 an extraordinary call, be endowed with any particular gifts, 
 or be sent of God on a message to revive the churches. And 
 yet all this is implied in the denials set up against the labours 
 of some men. With what consistency this can be done is 
 difficult to divine, whilst at the same time it is held that 
 every true minister receives his anointing and his commission 
 from above. What of the headship of Christ, of the kingly 
 reign of the Son of God in His own church, if He never 
 exercises these functions practically in assigning His servants 
 their-work ? What of the calls, the inspirations, the gifts of 
 the Holy Spirit, theoretically allowed in the designation of 
 every true minister, if nothing definite, nothing extra, is 
 ever implied in all this ? Does this call operate with the 
 exactness of mechanical laws ? Does it only amount to some 
 Divine impulse upon the feelings, or assistance given to the 
 natural powers of the mind ? Is not the Spirit of God
 
 INTEODUCTOBY ESSAY. li 
 
 God ? Is not God an infinitely intelligent Agent ? And can 
 it be the work of an intelligent Agent merely to give the 
 natural faculties a bias in a particular direction? Must 
 not instruction, illumination, suggestion, direction, if the 
 reader please, inspiration, though not prophetic, be included 
 in the idea of this Divine vocation and anointing ? Must 
 not infinite intelligence be supposed, also, to look at times, 
 seasons, wants, and provide for them ? Then where is the 
 inconsistency in believing that some men perhaps all, if 
 they followed it receive a specific call, together with gifts 
 corresponding with this vocation ? What can it avail to hold 
 an orthodox sentiment, such as the Spirit's office in the 
 designation of a man to the ministry, if all the sequences 
 of the doctrine are at the same time denied. 
 
 Certainly, John Wesley admitted the possibility of such a 
 call to special service as we are now considering. Indeed, 
 he considers all his preachers to be men of this class, and 
 Methodism itself to be a work of this nature. With his 
 well-known sentiments respecting orders, and the call of the 
 visible church, he coupled the notion that God from time to 
 time raised up men in the manner referred to, and sent them 
 forth into His harvest. All his lay-itinerants were held by 
 him to be extraordinary agents. But, besides the preachers 
 who were brought under his discipline, we find constantly 
 in his work other even more irregular agents employed, and 
 not only employed but encouraged. We mention two in the 
 place of many, Captain Webb and Mrs. Fletcher. From 
 the beginning, in addition to the preachers sent out, we thus 
 see that, even in connexion with these, other and more 
 irregular persons were Allowed, nay, sought out and thrust 
 into the field, to do all the labour they could for their 
 heavenly Master. This was right. As every man is ac- 
 countable to God, so every man ought to have space and 
 room to exercise his talents and gifts as his Lord, directs. 
 What is spurious is soon detected. It is no difficult thing 
 to discover any real case of fanaticism. This ought to be 
 stopped when seen ; but it is a dangerous thing to stigmatize 
 real, genuine, ardent piety as such, merely because it rises 
 above the common level, and disturbs the repose of the 
 lovers of order. 
 
 John Smith belonged to an evangelic, a prophetic class. 
 
 His work was among the addenda to the common routine. 
 
 He did common service, but he attempted and accomplished 
 
 extraordinary as well. Not an ordinary mortal of the ininis- 
 
 e 2
 
 lii INTRODUCTORY ESSAY. 
 
 try could have seen him in his vocation without being 
 convinced that he was very unlike himself. He might be 
 confounded, perplexed, or perhaps for a time led into a train 
 of doubt whether the man on whom he was looking was right 
 in his movements ; but there could be no doubt in his mind 
 as to the dissimilarity between himself and John Smith. 
 We are not saying that this looker-on must be an untrue, 
 an unreal minister, or that there were any defects in his 
 character or modes of action : we only say that he was very 
 different to the other. 
 
 But why should he entertain any scruples, or in any way 
 be perplexed in case a resemblance existed ? And it must 
 be allowed, that, though unlike John Smith, this person 
 might be as really called of God as himself ; and, moreover, 
 in his own sphere be as really doing the work of God, and 
 doing it as well. But if this minister, dismissing his doubts 
 as to the peculiarities of Mr. Smith, had next determined to 
 do the same thing ; could he have succeeded ? Certainly he 
 could not. This shows that his work bore the marks of some 
 kind of peculiarity. It could not be imitated ; it was then, 
 as now, the function of a class. We are afraid of simulation ; 
 men attempting to raise a revival by the adoption of the modes 
 of operation of men of a real; genuine revivalist spirit. John 
 Smith possessed this spirit in its Divine characteristics. No 
 one ever doubted this. And the simplicity, honesty, perspi- 
 cacity of his character commended him to everybody's affec- 
 tions. All acknowledged the peculiar calling of this true man 
 this man of God ; and none seem to have been offended with 
 him. Every observer admitted his claims to something extra- 
 ordinary ; and the only instance of demur arose out of the 
 confusion produced by the agitation of the troubled waters, 
 by the storms he raised, and the outcries of affrighted souls. 
 
 We may, moreover, say that the ministry of John Smith 
 was not only spiritual it was " in the Spirit." This is un- 
 doubtedly one of the peculiar features of the evangelical 
 ministry. What is Christianity ? It is not merely a written 
 covenant or law ; the establishment of an economical system ; 
 a provision of means for the perpetuation of God's worship ; 
 the appointment of ministers to preach the Gospel ; the 
 ordination of sacraments; it is all this, but much more. 
 Christianity is, in truth, a dispensation of the Spirit. This 
 mighty, this Divine Agent lives in the system. Nothing is 
 Christian in His absence. All this is indicated by the advent 
 of the Holy Ghost on the day of Pentecost. That gi'cut
 
 ESSAY. liii 
 
 transaction is not of the nature of a solitary visitation 
 vouchsafed to the infant church for the time being. It was 
 the era, the beginning, of a new spiritual dispensation ; and 
 the gift of the Holy Ghost on that auspicious day was the 
 measure of His living power. The term may not be exactly 
 accurate, but the advent of the Holy Ghost on the day of 
 Pentecost may be considered of the nature of an initiatory 
 induction into His high and unalterable ofiice in the Christian 
 economy. It was an inauguration, a descent of this glorious 
 Being into the new economy for the purpose of carrying out 
 its great and saving purposes to the end of time. This has 
 been effected once, just as our Lord Jesus has been incarnated 
 and crucified once. We expect no new incarnation oi' the 
 Son of God ; no repetition of His crucifixion. The enlarge- 
 ment of His kingdom and increase of His followers will not 
 take place by any new manifestation of Christ in the flesh, 
 but by the increase and multiplication of believers in His 
 name. This is sufficient. A perfect sacrifice can neither be 
 repeated, nor can any additional circumstances connected 
 with its presentation to God render it more acceptable. 
 What could be effected by a second coming of Christ 
 which has not been effected by the first ? It is the same 
 respecting the Holy Ghost. There will be no other gift, 
 descent, or coming of the Spirit. Neither need there be any 
 such repetition. He as much belongs to the Christian dis- 
 pensation as Christ. No one can conceive of Christianity 
 without the Saviour; His Godhead, His atonement, His 
 priestly office, His precious blood and merit, His rich grace, 
 are all essential to the idea of Christianity. No more can 
 any one conceive of Christianity without the Holy Ghost. 
 Regeneration is as much a part of true religion as pardon, 
 but there can be no regeneration without the Spirit. His pre- 
 sence, His power, His illumination, His life-giving energy, 
 are all as essential to the sinner's regeneration as the blood 
 of Christ to his justification. The matter of fact is, that the 
 blessed Trinity is necessary to Christianitv ; its entire theory 
 supposes the presence and the action of the three Persons in 
 the Godhead, and no true conception can be formed of this 
 Divine system without the apprehension of this great truth. 
 We sometimes find parties speaking of the Holy Spirit as 
 if He were given anew to the world every time any remark- 
 able power or blessing is vouchsafed. This is perfectly 
 erroneous. All that can be truly said on this point is, that 
 in the cases referred to the Spirit is seen in His appropriate 
 c 3
 
 liv INTEODTJCTOUT ESSAY. 
 
 work ; but this is not accomplished in the way of a new 
 descent, He is always present, but because the conditions 
 of His operation, grace, and blessing are complied with. 
 There is no more difficulty in a person, at any time, receiving 
 the Holy Spirit in all that is appropriate to His offices, 
 than there is in receiving Christ in His merit. The cases 
 are exactly analogous. What prevents any one enjoying 
 the Saviour ? Certainly not any want of love or willingness 
 in Christ; but some moral impediment, all included in 
 unbelief. When Christ is actually embraced and made 
 known, it is not that He is nearer than before ; that He is 
 more disposed to save ; that He has done anything addi- 
 tional in point of merit : He has not again shed His blood 
 anew. The fact is, that the sinner believes in Him ; and 
 believing, he is saved. It is so with regard to receiving the 
 Holy Ghost, whether by one or many. If He is not experi- 
 mentally enjoyed in His renewing influences in the heart, it 
 is not because He is absent from the dispensation ; and, as 
 the dispensation surrounds and touches every man, it is 
 consequently not because He is at a distance from, or indis- 
 posed to bless, the individual. The cause is entirely moral ; 
 it exists in the person himself: and, when the Spirit enters 
 the soul, it is through the avenues of penitent faith. 
 
 Then, inasmuch as the Holy Ghost is essential to the 
 Christian dispensation, this dispensation is perfect and 
 omnipresent. Moreover, as this dispensation is the one 
 given by God to the world, that is, to ourselves, it follows 
 that the Holy Spirit is always in Christianity, always with 
 us. The "outpouring of the Spirit," of which we hear so 
 much, and for which we so often pray, can only properly 
 mean the bestowment in experience of that which is so rich 
 and perfect in provision. The least attention to the teach- 
 ings of the word of God will show us that all blessings, and 
 this amongst the rest, are promised on conditions. The hin- 
 drances to the attainment of these blessings consequently lie 
 altogether in the non-fulfilment of the Divine word. The 
 whole case is indicated in that one declaration of our Lord : 
 "In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood 
 and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, 
 and drink. He that believeth on Me, as the Scripture hath 
 said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But 
 this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on 
 Him should receive : for the Holy Ghost was not yet given ; 
 because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)"
 
 INTRODUCTORY ESSAY. Iv 
 
 It follows from all this that the ministry of the Gospel is 
 much more than preaching the word : it "is the ministry of 
 the Spirit. This is placed in a strong light by St. Paul. 
 In speaking of his function itself, he says, " Who also hath 
 made us able ministers of the new testament ; not of the 
 letter, but of the Spirit: for the letter killeth, but the 
 Spirit giveth life." Then, contrasting the new with the old 
 dispensation, he says, "How shall not the. ministration of 
 the Spirit be rather glorious ? " And in referring to the 
 effects of the Gospel thus understood, he adds, " But we all, 
 with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, 
 are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even 
 as by the Spirit of the Lord." 
 
 It is not necessary to understand the dispensation of the 
 Spirit to mean His operations and influences in independent 
 sovereignty, separate from the other great provisions and 
 agencies of the Christian economy. The matter of fact is, 
 that an indissoluble union exists in all the arrangements of 
 this economy. One Person of the Godhead never works 
 while the other Persons repose in sublime inactivity. If so 
 low and earthly an illusion may be used in reference to a 
 subject so heavenly and sublime, it may be said, that every 
 wheel in the machine of redemption moves at the same time, 
 and in perfect concert. T..e Father's grace, the Son's merit, 
 the Spirit's influence, are all bestowed in perfect harmony. 
 In the order of grace, we may conceive of one being before 
 the other ; but in the order of time they are given together. 
 No one can possibly receive the blessings appropriate to one 
 Person, but he must receive them all. Faith is the instru- 
 ment of this. Jesus in His atonement is usually in the word 
 of God exhibited as the direct object of faith ; but indirectly, 
 when men believe in Christ, they believe in the Trinity ; 
 when they obtain an interest in the redemption of the Son, 
 they obtain an equal interest in the love of the Father, and 
 in the witness, in point of fact, in all the plenitude and 
 fulness, of the Holy Spirit. 
 
 It is evident from this that a true minister is not merely 
 a preacher of the word of the Gospel ; he ministers in a 
 dispensation, the dispensation being that of the Spirit. The 
 Spirit is ordinarily communicated through the word, or in 
 concurrence with its doctrines and truths ; so that in pro- 
 claiming these truths, he will at the same time be a minister 
 of the Spirit, inasmuch as this sacred and Divine influence 
 is connected with his message. In revivals of religion there
 
 Ivi INTRODUCTORY ESSAT. 
 
 are often extraordinary displays of the Spirit's power. This 
 is undeniable. The issue proves the nature of the agency. 
 But why, if the Holy Ghost is constantly present in the 
 dispensation, as we suppose, are not these overwhelming 
 showers of saving grace always vouchsafed ? Simply, as we 
 apprehend, for the want of faith. Hence in these seasons of 
 power it is seen that the souls of the people are invariably 
 greatly stirred within them ; prayer is perse veringly and 
 fervently offered up to God ; every heart is intent on obtain- 
 ing blessings ; and, above all, expectation and faith are in 
 lively exercise. Here we see the moral preparation, the 
 fulfilment of the condition. Nothing else seems wanting at 
 any time in order to enjoy similar visitations. 
 
 But others, that is, persons who come from idle curiosity, 
 sometimes even from worse motives, are struck and arrested. 
 How is this ? It is imagined that they cannot have faith. 
 This is not so certain. It is possible that the scene around 
 them, the message of the preacher, the prayers of the people, 
 the testimony of the saved, may unite to produce an instant 
 faith, though there has been no long preparation. Besides, 
 it is generally found that the seeds of Divine truth have 
 been before sown in the hearts of these people. Many have 
 been religiously educated ; they are the children of pious 
 parents ; they have been trained in our Sunday-schools ; 
 they have heard and neglected the Gospel ; and now the 
 latent truth flashes conviction and is warmed into vitality. 
 The first impressions are those of fear ; the first convictions 
 are convictions of sin ; the first gush of feeling is that of 
 sorrow ; and the first act is that of prayer ; liberty and 
 peace come afterwards. 
 
 The power of sympathy may do something in all this. 
 But why should not the Spirit of God work through the 
 sympathies of His people ? The soul speaks by the voice, 
 the feelings, and passions ; and consequently, if the soul 
 is imbued with the Spirit, these sympathies are but the 
 expressions of His influence. This is just as credible as 
 that the same Spirit should speak to an audience through 
 the pathos and affections of a preacher ? The language of 
 love is the same. The holy, tender, affectionate, importunate 
 sympathies of a number of good people, speaking by look, 
 gesture, tears, prayers, and importunate exhortations, may, 
 for aught that can be shown to the contrary, be the Spirit's 
 voice, because the emotions are produced by His gracious 
 anointing. In His absence the sympathetic feeling would not
 
 IXTEODTJCluHT ESSAY. Ivii 
 
 exist, so that its actual development is only the instrumental 
 expression and eft'ect of His power in the human mind. 
 
 But this creates a sort of spiritual atmosphere which is 
 felt by those who enter it. They perceive it sensibly ; it 
 touches and moves them ; they are melted and softened ; 
 and, "falling down on their face, they acknowledge that God 
 is amongst the people of a truth." This is thought 'to be 
 spurious. It may, like anything'else in religion,'be spurious ; 
 but it is not necessarily so : it is not so because it is brought 
 about by the power of sacred sympathy. If it is true 
 which we believe that the Spirit of God speaks through 
 good and holy men to the thoughtless and unbelieving, it 
 is just as likely that He will speak through their sympathies 
 as in any other way. Indeed, it seems certain that even 
 ministers, though they may even preach the truth, do so 
 without much effect unless their wills, their affections, their 
 sympathies are moved by the Spirit of God within them. 
 In their case, it should appear that, when the holy unction 
 richly rests upon them, the effect is more to deepen their 
 feelings of commiseration, and open the fountains of 
 compassion in the heart, than to inspire their tongues with 
 an improved eloquence, except it be the eloquence of pathos. 
 
 In this way John Smith was a minister of the Spirit. 
 The Gospel which he preached was " not in word only, but 
 in power, in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance. He 
 looked upon his mission as of this character. He ardently 
 and constantly sought Divine influence by prayer ; he lived 
 by faith in the Son of God ; and he cultivated those habits 
 of self-denial and purity which seem to be necessary to the 
 indwelling of this heavenly Guest. He considered himself 
 as but an instrument in the hands of God. He held "the 
 truth as it is in Jesus," and preached it without adulteration. 
 He honoured the Spirit by expecting His power, and, yielding 
 his heart to His teaching, received what he sought. He went 
 forth in the plenitude of this blessing, anticipating fruit to 
 the glory ana honour of his Divine Master. Is it any wonder 
 that such a man should be owned of the great Head of the 
 church ? His was thus eminently a ministry in the Spirit 
 and by the Spirit ; and this holy and heavenly " Comforter" 
 made that ministry the channel of rich and saving influences, 
 to the edification of the churches and the conversion of 
 sinners wherever his lot was cast. 
 
 The eloquence of such a preacher must have been singu- 
 larly powerful. Very different, indeed, to that which passes
 
 Iviii INTEODUCTOBY ESSAY. 
 
 current as such. No jingle of words, of beautiful phrases, 
 of trim sentences, of ornate diction, of puerile illustrations 
 distinguished his preaching. He spoke as " a dying man 
 to dying men." His discourse being of God, of Christ, of 
 salvation, of heaven and hell, he could not play the part 
 of a fine orator. But he stood on a lofty pedestal. The 
 light of eternity flashed and shone around him. A high 
 and glorious purpose appeared in the solemnity of has 
 demeanour. Earnest and impassioned thoughtfulness was 
 expressed in every feature. Thunder or weeping pathos 
 was in his voice, and the message of God, as the " savour of 
 death unto death, or of life unto life," was borne from his 
 lips to the multitudes he addressed in every sermon. His 
 was the eloquence of the soul ; not of art, not of fastidious 
 taste. Nay, it was even more than this. It was the elo- 
 quence of a soul touched with all human sympathies ; with 
 the tenderness of Divine love ; with a strong and realizing 
 faith ; with unbounded charity to dying men ; with a 
 certain conviction that every one addressed was destined to 
 heaven or hell ; with vivid impressions of the nearness of 
 all this ; with the deep, the profound persuasion, that the 
 message he was delivering must issue in the heightened 
 glory of the Saviour in the salvation of his hearers, or else 
 in the fearful aggravation of their final doom. A man so 
 impressed, so arrayed in light, so speaking, is more than 
 eloquent, he is a sublime being. And his message looks 
 like one of those prophetic deliverances of Scripture which, 
 because of their importance and grandeur, leave us no spirit 
 to consider for a moment the language in which they are 
 couched. 
 
 The successes of this devout and powerful Preacher cor- 
 responded with the fervour of his spirit and the zeal of his 
 exertions. 
 
 We find him often speaking of his " plans," in respect to 
 his manner of acting ; but we have no details. As far as 
 can be seen, or is known, these plans consisted in the 
 organization of the most devout of the people for purposes 
 of prayer and united action. These men seem to have met 
 together to call upon God, often early in the morning, 
 and were always ready after the services in the evening to 
 conduct the prayer-meetings, and direct and encourage the 
 penitents in seeking the mercy of God. Whatever may be 
 thought respecting the effects of united prayer in heaven, it 
 is very certain that the moral effect on earth will be very
 
 INTRODUCTORY ESSAY. ILt 
 
 influential. There is a reaction on the parties themselves, 
 arising out of continued exercises of this nature. Men will 
 seek to accomplish, as instruments, the issues for which they 
 pray ; their zeal will be quickened, and labouring together 
 they will be led to feel their strength. But if the notion 
 before referred to has any foundation in fact, namely, that 
 men's souls quickened by the Holy Spirit become the 
 instruments of His influence, it will follow that blessings 
 obtained in answer to prayer, though personal, will be the 
 channel of blessing to others. 
 
 But these praying men would be a power on which Mr. 
 Smith would himself, in some sort, repose. He would know 
 that the whole matter did not rest on his own single and 
 unaided exertions ; that, whilst he was delivering his 
 message, his cohorts of brave soldiers were all upon the 
 alert, and, while they were active amongst the people, their 
 petitions were constantly ascending to God. But we must 
 not presume that these united prayers would be limited to 
 moral effects. Nothing is more certain than that God 
 mercifully hears the prayers of His people, whether ascend- 
 ing from the solitary heart or in concert. Blessings were 
 given in answer to these supplications, no one can tell to 
 what extent ; for who can limit the Holy One of Israel ? 
 
 It is certain, moreover, that no adVentitious circum- 
 stances in any way aided in the movements which attended 
 the exertions of our good friend. Some portions of the 
 Methodist people would have naturally joined in his plans, 
 and fallen at once into the current of the spiritual floods 
 which he everywhere succeeded in raising. But it so 
 happened that all, or nearly all, his ministerial appointments 
 appeared to be just the contrary of this. There could be 
 no great tendency in such places as Brighton, Windsor, 
 Frome, or even Lincoln, to revivalism ; and yet in each of 
 these places we see similar results. John Smith's work in 
 the dissipated watering-place of the metropolis would be 
 a strange contrast to its gaiety ; and the fervour of his 
 devotions, the energy of his pulpit-exercises, the wailing of 
 his penitents, and the joy of his converts, would be even a 
 greater contrast still to the Court of George the Fourth. 
 Yet in these places we have just the same results, as in the 
 warmer regions of Yorkshire. Is not this a proof of the 
 genuineness of the work ? Had he gone into Cornwall, or 
 to Leeds, or Sheffield, everybody would have expected a 
 great commotion. But in beirg planted in the cold and icy
 
 Ix INTRODUCTORY ESSAY. 
 
 regions in question, fe<v would anticipate any such, results. 
 And it is likely tliat most persons, even of his own class, 
 would have faltered, have been discouraged, and either 
 contented themselves with ordinary results, or else sought a 
 removal as quickly as possible. But with heroic resolution 
 he kept to his post ; never complained that the place was 
 uncongenial not suited to his purpose, that there was no 
 aptitude for his modes of action amongst the people, and 
 little to be expected. Nothing of this sort. He makes no 
 complaints. His faith was not stimulated by circum- 
 stances, and he allowed of no insuperable obstacles in the 
 way of success in any region. 
 
 These triumphs in themselves were remarkable. They 
 were both general and specific. General, inasmuch as 
 everything received a new impulse. His presence and 
 ministry were like the genial influences of spring when the 
 sun ana the rains, by their joint power, touch all the springs 
 of life, and produce a general fertility. Congregations were 
 increased, often doubled, trebled ; and became thoughtful, 
 attentive, earnest, and devout. Lethargic societies were 
 aroused, stimulated ; and the social and private means of 
 grace were frequented with punctuality and diligence. 
 Sunday-schools were increased in numbers, parents be- 
 coming attentive to the interests of their children, and their 
 little ones themselves partaking of the general spirit. 
 Charity followed in the train of piety, and funds for all 
 religious, benevolent, and Missionary purposes were aug- 
 mented. John Smith's presence in any new sphere gave 
 life and tone to every agency, and put every appliance in. 
 vigorous activity. 
 
 But these successes were more than general. They 
 embraced everything which the Gospel gives form to, and 
 makes specific. The pardon of sin is one of these blessings ; 
 and it is not too much to say that, in the course of this 
 good man's ministry, many hundreds, if not thousands, of 
 guilty men found by his instrumentality "redemption in 
 the blood of Christ, the forgiveness of sins." Sanctification, 
 perfect love, Christian holiness is one of these definite 
 blessings of the Gospel ; and we see that great numbers of 
 believers, chiefly by his teaching, example, and prayers, 
 professed to attain and live in the enjoyment of this grace. 
 Duties and services offered to God and His church are 
 amongst the explicit obligations of piety. A faith producing 
 obedience and good works is evidently the faith of God's
 
 INTEODTJCTOEY ESSAY. Lxi 
 
 elect ; and the ministry and other exertions of Mr. Smith, 
 no- doubt, drew hundreds in the way of God's command- 
 ments, pointed out to them the path of peace and duty, 
 called forth talents which would otherwise have remained 
 buried beneath a load of ignorance and sin, and led to 
 exercises and pursuits which have brought a large revenue 
 of glory to God. It may, indeed, be affirmed, that all the 
 ends of the Gospel were secured on an extended scale by 
 these labours, in the perfecting of the saints and conversion 
 of sinners. These are the legitimate effects of the Gospel ; 
 these are the imperishable fruits of an evangelical, a 
 spiritual ministry ; and these will reward the toils of God's 
 most faithful and honoured servants when the glory of 
 other things has passed away. The blaze of the orator's 
 popularity is extinguished in death, but the effects of a 
 ministry which saves and polishes souls for heaven are 
 never lost ; they live in deathless joys through eternity ; 
 and it is not too much to believe that our dear friend is now 
 ecstatically listening to the triumphal song of great numbers 
 who have passed into the paradise above through his instru- 
 mentality. 
 
 In closing our observations, it seems scarcely possible 
 to shut the book without a passing, a melancholy, remark 
 on the biographer of John Smith. This lovely young 
 minister soon followed his friend to the same final home. 
 It was the writer's happiness to spend one year with Richard 
 Treffry. He was then a youth of ardent spirits. His soul 
 was poetry ; his thoughts, feelings, passions, sentiments, 
 were all attuned to the music of nature and religion. 
 Though young, his mind was rich in philosophy, and 
 sublime and enlightened views on all great subjects. He 
 had cultivated the muses, divinity, and various knowledge ; 
 and his fine intellect was chastened and polished by the 
 discipline of religion and the grace ot God. He had a keen 
 perception of all that was beautiful and sublime, whether 
 in speech or in the visible world. His soul swelled with 
 even chivalrous notions of everything honourable, dignified, 
 and noble. In his religious character he was free from all 
 the affectation of singularities, was bland, affable, courteous, 
 joyous. This noble youth lived in a world of lofty thought, 
 as all do who live in an entire, a complete, and not a 
 narrow and sectarian Christianity; was conversant with 
 ancient and modern literature ; studied with fine effect the
 
 Ixti INTRODUCTORY ESSAY. 
 
 most profound of our theologians ; and was fitted to take 
 rank with the scholars and polished spirits of the times. 
 How mysterious are the ways of God ! Let us, however, 
 not murmur, since he himself directed to be engraven on 
 his tombstone, in the churchyard of Penzanee, 
 
 "Is IT WELL WITH THEE ? Is IT WELL WITH THY HUS- 
 BAND ? Is IT WELL WITH THE CHILD ? AND SHE ANSWERED, 
 IT IS WELL." 
 
 These brothers are now again united. Heaven has re- 
 ceived them to its illustrious and glorified society. They 
 were lovely in their life, one in spirit, in faith, in enter- 
 prise, in usefulness ; and death has brought them again 
 together, to be separated no more. Religion has its con- 
 summation as well as its toils, its trials, and its blessings. 
 Happy are those who have gained this consummation ! By 
 the inscrutable wisdom of God, the best are called first. As 
 life advances, the world becomes increasingly barren. 
 Many whom we love leave us behind. But we are hasten- 
 ing to the same destiny, and the hope of again meeting 
 our departed friends, amongst other high expectations, 
 renders the prospect of separation from the present a joyous 
 anticipation. " To depart and be with Christ is far better " 
 than anything here. But, for many of the departed, to 
 remain seems to us "more needful" to the church. Such 
 is not the will of God. His decrees are just. His call is 
 sovereign ; the glorification of His saints is always a mercy. 
 The best blessing is always the last. The crowning grace 
 is the final one. "We follow these two young ministers 
 with our regrets, not for themselves, but for those they have 
 left behind. Yet they ran in a short space a noble race. 
 They have left imperishable monuments of their excellency. 
 These remain amongst us to excite our gratitude, to stimu- 
 late our zeal, and to encourage our devotedness. Well will 
 it be for us, if we so read these " Memoirs" as to imbibe the 
 spirit and walk in the footsteps of these eminently holy, 
 useful, and distinguished men of God.
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 HE who ventures to diverge from the beaten track of 
 his predecessors, must make up his mind to be the subject 
 of conflicting opinions. Few who are practically original, 
 are so fortunate as to meet with universal approbation ; 
 and still fewer so unhappy as to have none to advocate 
 and abet their plans. This partisanship on secular 
 questions, while maintained in a spirit of candour and 
 moderation, is not likely to do injury. Indeed, it often 
 serves to evolve collateral truths of even greater import- 
 ance than the questions at issue ; and the judgment of 
 mankind, though it be long before it assumes the character 
 of unanimity, is at length sound and satisfactory. It is 
 confirmed by one generation after another, and ultimately 
 its authority is placed beyond all question. But when the 
 subject in dispute involves the interest of the souls of men, 
 the honour and prosperity of the church, and the glory 
 of God, difference of sentiment, especially among in- 
 fluential Christians, is a momentous evil ; and the more 
 practical the question, the greater will be the mischief 
 of allowing it to remain undetermined. In matters of 
 science, repetitions and varieties of experiment are 
 pleasing and serviceable. The vapour which the chemist 
 consumes to-day without any satisfactory result, he can 
 re-produce to-morrow, by a process with which he is 
 perfectly familiar ; but the spirit which enters eternity
 
 4 . PBEFACE. 
 
 is irrecoverably doomed. In the decision of the questions 
 which affect inan's ctornal destiny, the urgency of the case 
 admits of no delay. We stand on the margin of our fate, 
 and we must ACT. " A man who gets into the habit of 
 inquiring about proprieties, and expediencies, and occa- 
 sions, often spends his life without doing anything to 
 purpose. The state of the world is such, and so much 
 depends on action, that everything seems to say loudly 
 to every man, ' Do something,' 'Do it,' 'Do it" 
 Whatever, therefore, prevents resolution, promptitude, 
 and diligence, be its aspect of expediency what it may, 
 is sin* " While Rome deliberates, Saguntum perishes." 
 
 Such considerations give to the following pages an 
 importance, to w/hjch, as the history of a single individual, 
 they could not pretend. They have been compiled with 
 the humble hope, that the development and the advocacy 
 of the principles which they present, may somewhat tend, 
 not only to remove differences of opinion respecting their 
 subject, but also to stimulate to a higher degree of useful- 
 ness those who are capable of serving the church of God. 
 The admirers of Mr. Smith's character, it is hoped, will 
 detect in the following Memoirs no indisposition to do 
 justice to his great and singular virtues ; while, on the 
 other hand, the impugner of his views, the author trusts, 
 will not have to complain of wilful indiscrimination, or of 
 the absence of candour. He has not the presumption to 
 imagine that his sketch will meet with the unqualified 
 approbation of both classes of readers. It will be enough 
 if neither charge him with disingenuousness,or with being 
 wanting in sincere endeavour to promote the truth. 
 
 Of the literary character of the work, it may not be 
 improper to add a fe\y words. As soon as its writer 
 understood that there was no probability of any other
 
 PKEFACE. 5 
 
 person undertaking to perpetuate the memory of one 
 whom he so dearly valued, he readily complied with the 
 wish of Mr. Smith's friends, that he should become his 
 biographer. To multitudes, he knew, that even a veiy 
 indifferent delineation of his subject, when no better was 
 to be procured, would be welcome, and might be service- 
 able. The state of his own health, under other circum- 
 stances, would have rendered him very reluctant to 
 bind himself to such an employment; and indeed to 
 this cause may be attributed a measure of the defective- 
 ness of the present work, as well as of the delay in its 
 publication. He has often prosecuted it with a trem- 
 bling hand, a fevered cheek, and a depressed spirit ; and 
 an hour or two in the course of the day has been as 
 long a time as his weakness would allow him to devote 
 to it. As fast as the manuscript has been completed, it 
 has been put into the hands of the printer; and the 
 author has not had the opportunity or ability to give 
 any great attention to the proofs as they issued from 
 the press. 
 
 The available materials for the composition of the 
 following pages were not ample. Mr. Smith left but 
 few papers which could assist the undertaking : of these 
 the largest possible use has been made. The author is 
 further indebted to the communications, not only of those 
 friends of Mr. S. whose names occur hereafter, but also 
 to several others, whose views of his character, and 
 narratives of his successes, have been, for the most part, 
 embodied in the work. To have given at large the state- 
 ments of each, would have induced much repetition, and 
 have swelled the volume to more than double its present 
 size. To his valuable correspondents the author grate- 
 fully ascribes whatever degree of interest the materiel
 
 6 PBEFACE. 
 
 of his work may be thought to possess : their assistance 
 has been very welcome, and is most sincerely acknow- 
 ledged. It ought also to be added, that he has submitted 
 the manuscript to the inspection of some very dear friends, 
 whose suggestions have, in a few instances, served to give 
 a comparative regularity and force to its generally feeble 
 and unequal style. With all the advantages which he 
 could command, however, the picture falls so far short of 
 the reality, and the result of his efforts is so much below 
 the idea which warmed the writer's imagination when he 
 commenced, that it is with deep and painful diffidence 
 he presents it to the Christian public. Yet he thanks 
 God that he has lived to complete his task : and it is 
 his consolation that, however speedily and entirely his 
 labours may be engulfed in oblivion, Truth and Virtue, 
 the interests of which he has endeavoured to subserve, 
 are imperishable and eternal. 
 
 It is only necessary to add, that the entire profits 
 of this work will be devoted to the use of Mr. Smith's 
 family. 
 
 P.ENZANCE, September, 1832. 
 
 Two or three foot-notes are added in the present 
 edition. These will be easily distinguished by the 
 observant reader. 
 
 14, City-Road, London, Jan., 1858.
 
 CONTENTS, 
 
 I. 
 
 CUD WORTH SHEFFIELD BARNSLEY. 1794 1812. Mr. 
 Smith's birth, parentage, moral advantages, and early religious 
 impressions Irregularities of his childhood His situations 
 successively at Sheffield and Barnsley, and his vicious habits 
 Indications of character His conversion Encouragement to 
 pious parents. PAGES 13 18. 
 
 II. 
 
 BARNSLEY. 1812 1813. The character of his Christianity 
 through life partly referrible to the circumstances immediately 
 preceding and accompanying his conversion His delight in 
 the word of God deep devotion concern for sinners and 
 diligence in mental cultivation His subsequent eminence the 
 result of early decision He is placed at Mr. Sigston's academy. 
 PAGES 1823. 
 
 m. 
 
 LEEDS. 1813 1814. Christianity encourages intellectual culti- 
 vation An objection answered Mr. Smith's disadvantages 
 He contracts an intimacy with the late Rev. D. Stoner 
 Contrast between these two distinguished men The tempta- 
 tions incident on a new situation Extracts from Mr. Smith's 
 correspondence His literary progress He begins to preach 
 Anecdote of Mr. Stoner The failure of Mr. Smith's first 
 attempt. PAGES 2329.
 
 8 COHTENTS. 
 
 IV. 
 
 LEEDS (HILTON. 1814 1816. His reluctance to engage in 
 the Christian ministry accounted for, by considerations of its 
 importance He is proposed as a probationary local preacher 
 by Mr. W. Nelson Notice of the death of Mr. N. His trial- 
 sermon approved Extracts He is prevented from becoming 
 a missionary by the state of his health His character while 
 at Leeds Eemoves to Oulton His engagements Extract 
 The advancement of his character under some disadvantages 
 He is appointed to the York circuit. PAGES 30 36. 
 
 V. 
 
 YOEK. 1816 1817. The duty and blessedness of a continual 
 recognition of Divine Providence illustrated in the example of 
 Mr. Smith His character at the time of his appdintment to 
 York The advantages which he there enjoyed, particularly 
 in the friendship of the late Rev. John Nelson The results of 
 his intercourse with this venerable minister on his personal 
 piety the elevation of his ministerial character the direction 
 of his studies to human nature and the style of his preaching 
 The testimony of the Kev. W. H. Clarkson, and another of 
 his friends, on this last subject Extracts from his corre- 
 spondence and private memoranda The exercises of his mind on 
 the work of the ministry His dissatisfaction with his designa- 
 tion to the office of a preacher The advantageous results of 
 these exercises He is laid aside by a slight illness, and the con- 
 sequences on his own tranquillity. Extracts. PAGES 3753. 
 
 VI. 
 
 BAENAED-CASTLE. 1817-1818. The state of the Barnard- 
 Castle circuit Extract from a letter of Mr. Nelson Extracts 
 from Mr. Smith's correspondence and papers His want of 
 caution respecting his health Extracts The application of 
 certain passages of Scripture to his mind, with its results 
 Extracts He is again afflicted Extracts His intercourse with
 
 CONTENTS. 9 
 
 the Rev. "W. Bramwell at Leeds, and his removal from Barnard- 
 Castle. PAGES 5366. 
 
 VIL 
 
 BRIGHTON. 1818 1819. His decision of character Extract 
 The subjects of his ministry in the early part of hia residence 
 at Brighton Extracts The testimony of the Rev. F. Calder 
 as to hia attachment to the word of God, and its influence on 
 his ministry Prospects of good His ministerial energy 
 The earnestness of his desire for the salvation of sinners 
 Extracts Anecdote illustrative of his self-distrust Private 
 memorandum on a similar subject His sentiments on Christian 
 consolation Extract Remarks on sympathy, and its exhibition 
 in his oounsels and practices, with the observations of Messrs. 
 Calder and Clarkson Extract His labours at the District- 
 Meeting of 1819 The testimony of men of piety and discern- 
 ment to his worth His qualifications for pastoral duties, with 
 examples of his success Extract A visit to Chichester-~ 
 Extract. PAGES 6688. 
 
 VUI. 
 
 BRIGHTON CONTINUED. 1819 1820. Extract His spirituality 
 exemplified in his correspondence with his parents Extract 
 illustrative of Christian perfection Increase of religious feeling 
 in the circuit Conversion of a young lady Extracts Anecdotes 
 His admission into full connexion, marriage, and appointment 
 to "Windsor. PAGES 8996. 
 
 IX. 
 
 WINDSOR. 1820 1821. The state of the Windsor circuit- 
 Mr. Smith's difficulties and determinations Extract Sabbath- 
 breaking Prayer-meetings, and the raising up of active men 
 through their influence Labours in the Hammersmith circuit 
 Anecdote, in a note His interest in, and success among the
 
 10 CONTENTS. 
 
 military, with an extract and anecdote Extracts The cha- 
 racter of his faith He visits the Brighton circuit His sin- 
 gularities vindicated from the charge of enthusiasm The 
 scriptural soundness of his views. PAGES 97 113. 
 
 X. 
 
 WINDSOE CONTINUED. 1821 1822. The fruits of Mr. Smith's 
 labours in Windsor and Hammersmith circuits Extracts A 
 visit to Canterbury His reply to expostulations on his impru- 
 dent exertions Successes in London Conversion of an inn- 
 keeper of Hampstead of a poor woman at a prayer-meeting 
 Extract Mr. Smith's tender jealousy for the honour of God 
 He visits High "Wycombe His views of the Divine compassion 
 Equilibrium of his mind. PAGES 113123. 
 
 XI. 
 
 FEOME. 18221825. The first-fruits of his exertions in Frome 
 Answers to prayer Extracts He visits Bath Catholic spirit 
 of a gentleman in that place Conversion of poachers The 
 elevation of his piety He is afflicted Extracts He visits 
 Yorkshire Extract Family religion Character of Mr. Smith's 
 prayers Anecdotes Success in London. PAGES 123 133. 
 
 XII. 
 
 NOTTINGHAM. 1825 1826. Impression produced by Mr. Smith's 
 first public engagements in Nottingham His pity and 
 exertions for sinners Extracts Conversion of a family in 
 Derbyshire His visit to a sinner dying in despair "Wood, 
 the murderer Several instances of good at New Basford 
 Account of a meeting in London, in a note Mr. S. expels a 
 number of mischievous spectators from a prayer-meeting. 
 PAGES 133142.
 
 CONTESTS. 11 
 
 xm. 
 
 NOTTINGHAM-BEESTON. 1826 1829. Remarks on Mr. 
 Smith's character in general, with illustrative facts The 
 simplicity and encouraging aspect of his faith His humility, 
 liberality, and tenderness His manners Parlour-preaching 
 His luminous insight into the invisible world Opposition of 
 the powers of darkness His intercourse with the blessed 
 Trinity Administration of baptism The style of his devotions 
 Delivery of the Lord's prayer His intellectual character 
 Preaching Concentration of mind Elocution Anecdote 
 His sentiments on revivals stated and vindicated Extracts 
 Anecdote He visits Newark A lovefeast Examples of his 
 courage and tact in the reproof of sin Accounts of several 
 conversions Extract Incident supplied by Mr. H. Beeson 
 Mr.'S. becomes a Supernumerary, and goes to reside at Beeston 
 Extracts The conversion of a backslider, and some others 
 Mr. S. is appointed for the Lincoln circuit The close of his 
 labours in Nottingham, with remarks on their success. PAGES 
 142176. 
 
 XIV. 
 
 LINCOLN. 1829 1831. The commencement of his ministry at 
 Lincoln Extract His success illustrated in several narratives 
 He visits Nottingham a memorandum written on the occasion 
 Extract His influence on neighbouring circuits A visit to 
 Newark An interview between the author and Mr. S. The 
 testimony of one of his hearers as to the style of his preaching, 
 and the character of its effects An instance of spiritual discern 
 ment Several conversions narrated Mr. Smith's constitution 
 gives way under the pressure of severe labour The Conference 
 of 1830 Extract Revival at Cudworth Slight improvement 
 in his health Extract He preaches at Leeds Is laid aside 
 His feelings on subjects connected with Christian missions Hia 
 last sermon. PAGES 177196.
 
 12 CONTENTS. 
 
 XV. 
 
 LINCOLN SHEFFIELD, &c. 1831. Mr. Smith's affliction An 
 attempt to account for some of the varieties of feeling in the last 
 hours of good men The state of Mr. Smith's experience in 
 general His uneasiness respecting the Lincoln circuit The 
 nature and progress of his disease Extract He is seized with 
 inflammation A degree of improvement in his health Extract 
 His journey to Brighton, with extracts from his letters while 
 there The imprudence of his exertions A third extract His 
 return to Lincoln Interview with the Rev. H. S. Hopwood at 
 Nottingham Removal to Sheffield, and thence to Cudworth 
 Conversation with the Rev. A. Strachan Extract The tran- 
 quillity of his mind Confirmation of his principles supplied by 
 his present experience Other interviews with Mr. Strachan 
 Extracts from his last letters to Mrs. S. Delirium Memoran- 
 dum of his feeKngs His conflicts and triumph He returns to 
 Sheffield Conversation with Mr. H. Beeson The early death 
 of useful ministers sometimes referrible to the idolizing attach- 
 ment of the church Mr. Smith's fortitude in the approach of 
 death His hope of recognising the saints in heaven Several of 
 his sayings noted His death and interment Funeral discourses 
 Hints to revivalists Mr. Smith's steady eminence attributable 
 to diligence in closet-duties, and particularly to his attachment 
 to the Scriptures CONCLUSION. PAGES 196 226.
 
 MEMOIRS. 
 
 i. 
 
 CUDWORTH SHEFFIELD BARNSLEY. 
 17941812. 
 
 JOHIT SMITH was born at Cudworth, near Barnsley, 
 in the West Riding of Yorkshire, January 12th, 1794. 
 His parents, who both survived him, became savingly 
 acquainted with evangelical truth, and united themselves 
 to the Methodist Society about the time of his birth. His 
 father for many years sustained the important offices 
 of leader and local preacher, to the advantage of the 
 church and the honour of God ; and his mother, in the 
 quietness and seclusion of humble life, long adorned 
 her profession, and exerted that holy influence which 
 belongs exclusively to maternal piety. From his earliest 
 infancy, therefore, the subject of these memoirs was placed 
 under the directions and restraints of domestic religion, 
 and he was carefully instructed in the verities of God's 
 most holy word. Nor is there any doubt but that he 
 was privileged by the visitations of the Divine Spirit at 
 a very tender age. When between eight and nine years 
 old, he was powerfully affected by concern for his soul, 
 under a sermon by a local preacher of the Wakefield 
 circuit, from Psalm cxliv. 15, "Happy is that people 
 whose God is the Lord." His serious impressions, how- 
 ever, were but occasional and transitory. 
 
 In his infancy, he exhibited an ardent and headstrong 
 spirit. The earliest recollection with which his father 
 
 "7
 
 14 MEMOIRS OP THB 
 
 has supplied me, is of an act of singularly wanton and 
 precocious mischievousness, the results of which, had it 
 not been for a merciful Providence, might have been of 
 the most serious kind. Generally, in his childhood, he 
 had not the fear of God before his eyes. His sports were 
 characteristically bold, boisterous, and wicked. He was 
 even accustomed to attend the prayer-meetings held in 
 his native village, to collect materials for the mirth of his 
 ungodly companions ; and, endowed as he naturally was 
 with extraordinary powers of mimicry, he afterwards 
 amused them by striking and ridiculous imitations of the 
 peculiarities which he had observed in the pious persons 
 who conducted those means of grace. 
 
 During the time that he remained at home, he was, of 
 course, prevented from the full indulgence of his depraved 
 propensities; but when about fourteen years of age, being 
 placed as an apprentice with a grocer at Sheffield, and of 
 consequence more free from control, he became decidedly 
 wicked. He conducted himself generally in so irregular 
 a manner, that, after two years, his master, unable any 
 longer to endure his bad conduct, sent him back to his 
 parents. He then obtained a situation at Barnsley, in 
 the same line of business. Here he even gave up attend- 
 ance at a place of worship, and thus broke the last link 
 which seemed to connect him with the principles and 
 example of his pious parents. He associated himself, 
 without restraint, with other ungodly young men, and 
 had his natural corruption increased, and his habits of evil 
 confirmed, by their example and counsels. He imitated 
 their profane language, and learned to blaspheme the God 
 of his father. As far as his means permitted, he became a 
 gambler, and contracted a strong passion for wrestling, 
 and other athletic exercises, especially for pugilistic con- 
 tests. He often travelled considerable distances to attend 
 prize-fights, and actually put himself under the tuition 
 and training of scientific boxers ; and his muscular frame 
 and lion heart well fitted him for pre-eminence in such 
 vain and wicked exercises. It is needless to say anything
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 15 
 
 of the deeply debasing society into which these pursuits 
 continually led him. It was congenial with his corrupt 
 affections ; and, perhaps, than this, no stronger evidence 
 can be found of his perfect estrangement from God and 
 virtue. In short, he was an adept and an enthusiast in 
 vice, and he gloried in the awful distinction which an 
 athletic body and a desperate mind enabled him to 
 maintain among his sinful associates. 
 
 Even in this course of sin, however, might be easily 
 discerned indications of the same natural character 
 which afterwards, under the sanctifying influences of the 
 Holy Spirit, contributed to render him so distinguished a 
 Christian and minister. Here was the energy which, in 
 good or evil, allowed him to be satisfied with nothing like 
 a medium of feeling or exertion. Here was the strong 
 concentrated passion, urging him on by its hurricane 
 power to the utter abandonment of religion, which, in a 
 brighter era of his life, became the impulse of generous 
 sacrifice, self-devotion, and labour. If he now spurned 
 reproof, rejected all care of reputation, and hardened 
 himself against every suggestion of peril on account of 
 sin, he was equally daring and independent when " the 
 excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus " became the 
 object of his emulation. The popularity which, by his 
 highly social qualities, he acquired among the vain and 
 worldly persons by whom he was at this time surrounded, 
 was succeeded, in a more honourable period of his his- 
 tory, by the warm Christian attachment of all who had 
 the privilege of his intimacy. It is a melancholy fact, 
 also, that he was a sinner of influence : and there were 
 some of his companions in vanity who, according to 
 human probability, were prevented from the choice of a 
 religious life, only by the fascinations of his society. 
 How fully, as a Christian and a Christian minister, he 
 exerted a similar power over those with whom he asso- 
 ciated, the succeeding pages will tend to show. 
 
 The extreme profligacy of some who have had a reli- 
 gious education is no evidence of their having forgotten 
 1.2
 
 16 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 the pious instructions of their childhood. In fact, para- 
 doxical as the assertion may appear, their resolute aban- 
 donment of themselves to vicious practices is, in not a 
 few cases, a proof of the depth and permanence of their 
 previous impressions. Next to making him virtuous, the 
 best effect of admonition on a sinner is to render him un- 
 happy. Dissipation is an indication of a mind ill at ease. 
 The natural posture of happiness is calmness and repose ; 
 and, where men are fully stupefied by the influence of sin, 
 the love of reputation, and many similar principles of 
 counteraction, will frequently tend to make them moderate 
 in their pursuit of forbidden pleasure. On the other hand, 
 where there still remains a considerable degree of moral 
 sensibility, the spirit seeks, in the perpetual hurry of 
 business or of vice, to still the voice of conscience, and to 
 overcome the strivings of God's Spirit. This, of course, 
 will be the more apparent in persons of such great power 
 of feeling as was possessed by the subject of these memoirs. 
 Meantime his parents' patience, counsel, prayers, and 
 tears were not forgotten before the Lord. In the spring 
 of 1812, it pleased God to visit Cudworth with a gracious 
 rain of His Holy Spirit. Several persons were awakened 
 and converted, and, among others, a cousin of John Smith. 
 On Sunday, April 5th, of that year, John, with one of his 
 companions, came over from Barnsley to Cudworth. He 
 there saw what had been done for others, and his mind 
 was much affected. In the course of the day his pious 
 mother conversed with him at large on his miserable 
 condition ; and, when he was about to return, she said to 
 him, " You are wandering about in search of happiness, 
 but you will never find it till you turn to God." Her 
 conversation produced so powerful an effect on him, that 
 he abruptly left her, lest she should remark his emotion. 
 He and his companion had not proceeded far on their 
 journey home, before Smith suddenly stopped, and, with a 
 deep groan, and a gesture expressive of strong determina- 
 tion, exclaimed, ' ' I am resolved to lead a new life. ' ' A s soon 
 as he had uttered this resolution, he felt a measure of satis-
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 17 
 
 faction to which he had before been an entire stranger; and 
 he immediately proposed to return, and attend the prayer- 
 meeting which was that evening to be held at Cudworth. 
 When he arrived at the chapel, the meeting had begun. 
 He entered, however, and almost instantly the agitation 
 of his mind became uncontrollable. He cried aloud, 
 and besought the friends to pray for him. The meeting 
 concluded, but he obtained no relief. Several others, 
 who were in distress, accompanied him to his father's 
 house, where another meeting was commenced. Mr. 
 Smith, the elder, had been in the Circuit fulfilling his 
 appointment as a local preacher. His feelings may be 
 imagined when, on entering his dwelling, the first objects 
 which presented themselves were two of his children, in 
 deep agony of soul, who, with strong cries, were pouring 
 out their hearts before God. One of them was the pro- 
 digal, upon whom he had expended so many tears and 
 prayers, and for whom he had undergone such deep 
 anxiety. God heard the prayers of the distressed youth 
 that night, and brought him into glorious liberty, filling 
 his heart with peace and joy in believing. The next dny 
 he was again brought into bondage, by giving way for 
 a moment to the hastiness of his temper, and for a while 
 he walked in great darkness and disquiet. He was, 
 however, by the advice and intercession of some Chris- 
 tian friends, encouraged again to trust in the atonement 
 of Christ, and the comfort of the Holy Spirit once more 
 returned to his soul. Prom that time, there is reason 
 to believe, to the day of his death, he walked uninter- 
 ruptedly in the light of God's countenance. 
 
 Perhaps these pages may fall into the hands of some 
 pious parent, who has to mourn over the irreligion of 
 a dear child. To such the conversion of John Smith 
 ought to be a source of the highest encouragement. Ko 
 condition, surety, can be marked by a more obvious 
 alienation from the spirit and practice of Christianity, 
 than that in which the mercy of God found him. In 
 his case, there is the strongest illustration of the honour 
 B 3
 
 18 MEMOIES OP THE 
 
 which the Almighty will put upon the labours of godly 
 parents. The Holy Spirit is the Giver of pious aud 
 compunctious recollections. Christ expressly promised 
 that the Comforter should recall to the minds of the dis- 
 ciples whatsoever He had declared to them during His 
 personal ministry. (John xiv. 26.) The instructions of 
 pious parents are treasured up in the secret cells of 
 memory, hidden, it is true, for a time, and perhaps sup- 
 posed to be forgotten. But the time will come, when the 
 energy of the blessed Spirit will quicken them, and they 
 shall stand forth, in the sudden broad light of heaven, 
 endued with accumulated power, to astonish and con- 
 found the heart of the careless and ungodly child. It 
 may be in the hour of sickness, or in some other time of 
 darkness; it may be when shame and want shall have 
 driven away the companions of his dissipation. He may 
 be far from the influence of Christian instructors, or 
 Christian example. He may have hardened his heart, 
 and stiffened his neck, and given himself over to the 
 companionship of the infidel and scoffer : but there is no 
 condition so remote from piety, as not to be within the 
 reach of the mercy of God ; and He has promised His 
 Spirit to the seed of Jacob, and His blessing to the 
 offspring of His servants. (Isaiah xliv. 3.) 
 
 II. 
 
 BARNSLEY. 18121813. 
 
 IN seeking to account for the various forms which 
 Christianity assumes in different individuals, much light 
 may usually be gained by considering the condition of 
 each before his conversion to God, and the more remark- 
 able circumstances attendant upon that gracious change. 
 The events preceding and immediately concurrent with 
 this great transition, in the experience of the subject of 
 this sketch, without doubt, served to give, to a consider-
 
 KEV. JOHN SMITH. 19 
 
 able degree, a colour to the opinions and feelings of his 
 subsequent Christian course. It is not unlikely that the 
 enlarged view which he was, at all times, enabled to 
 realize of the fulness and extent of Divine mercy, was 
 originally presented to his mind by a reference to the 
 extreme degradation of his unregenerate state ; and the 
 freeness and urgency of his invitations to sinners, however 
 vile, might have partly arisen from a peculiarly lively 
 sense of the greatness of the grace of Christ, exhibited in 
 his own case. Of him it might emphatically be said, as 
 of the woman who had been a sinner, and for the same 
 reason, that he "loved much." The foregoing facts 
 enable us also to account for his strong attachment to 
 prayer-meetings, and for the high estimation in which he 
 held them as means of grace. Nor was it the least 
 important feature of the converting operation of God's 
 Spirit in his soul, that it was at once powerful and rapid. 
 This was, no doubt, one reason for the force and fre- 
 quency with which, in after-life, he insisted on the 
 excellency of God's " quick way " of saving men. 
 
 One of the first and most striking evidences of the 
 divine change which had taken place in his heart, was 
 an insatiable appetite for the word of God. His long- 
 neglected Bible was now resorted to, as a source of the 
 highest delight. On the day after he obtained the evi- 
 dence of the favour of God, he read about thirty chapters. 
 He kept the sacred volume upon the counter of the shop 
 in which he was a servant, and at every opportunity flew 
 to it with the most ardent desire and relish. He naturally 
 possessed a very quick and retentive memory, and at this 
 time he learned several of the Xew Testament epistles. 
 The practice of committing to memory large portions of 
 the Scriptures he continued in after-years, and found it 
 productive of great comfort and advantage. His earnest 
 love of God's book remained with him during the whole 
 of his life, and his acquaintance with it was remarkably 
 extensive and perfect. 
 
 He also became distinguished for his habitual devotion. 
 This was in his case peculiarly necessary. "When his
 
 20 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 former sensualizing and degrading course of life is con- 
 sidered, and the steadfast alienation of his mind from 
 God, as well as the natural strength of his passions, it 
 is not too much to affirm, that he required an extraordi- 
 nary measure of inward religion. Persons of constitutional 
 equanimity, and generally moral conduct, cannot calcu- 
 late on the temptations and difficulties which await a babe 
 in Christ, of the character of John Smith. The measure of 
 grace which suffices to maintain them in a regular course 
 of consistent, and it may be even eminent, goodness, would 
 have been totally inadequate to a successful encounter 
 with the obstacles which crowded his path. The constant 
 sense of his peril appears to have been exceedingly vivid 
 on his mind. He lived, therefore, in jealous watchfulness, 
 and spent a large portion of his leisure hours in intercourse 
 with heaven. In retired fields, in woods, and other places 
 of concealment, he was accustomed to wrestle with God, 
 till he was copiously baptized by the Spirit. His very 
 intimate friend, the Rev. William Henry Clarkson, 
 states, that " one day, soon after his conversion, being 
 under peculiar temptation, he retired into a cavern, where 
 he continued for a considerable time in prayer, till he 
 felt such an overshadowing of the Divine presence as 
 quite overwhelmed him ; and he has been heard to say," 
 adds Mr. C., " that had he not often had such visits from 
 the Lord, he never should have been able io persevere 
 in the Christian warfare." 
 
 Another of the qualities which distinguished his subse- 
 quent life, and which now began to manifest itself, was his 
 concern for the condition of sinners. Upon his conver- 
 sion, he had renounced the spirit and occupations of his 
 former associates ; but he did not allow them to hear of 
 the change in his views and feelings merely through the 
 medium of a third party. He took every opportunity of 
 visiting and conversing with them on the concerns of their 
 souls. He artlessly detailed what God had done for him; 
 he reproved their vices, entreated them to abandon their 
 sinful course of life, and assured them of the readiness of 
 the Saviour to receive them. His affectionate expostu-
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 21 
 
 lations were not without success. Two of his former 
 companions he had the happiness of bringing under the 
 influence of Divine grace, and of seeing united to the 
 church of Christ ; the first-fruits of a mighty harvest. 
 
 Having become sensible also of the value of mental 
 cultivation, and of his responsibility for the exercise of his 
 intellectual powers, he referred with great regret to the 
 time which had been so entirely lost to improvement of 
 this kind. Under the influence of his new principles, and 
 with his characteristic buoyancy of hope, he diligently 
 applied himself to study, particularly to the study of the 
 English language, and he succeeded in inducing several 
 other young persons, in the neighbourhood of Barnsley, 
 to devote their leisure hours, which had before been spent 
 in vanity or sin, to the acquisition of useful knowledge. 
 
 It is not uncommon for young Christians to imagine 
 that there are certain excellencies and habits which, in 
 all their degrees, belong exclusively to a highly matured 
 state of piety ; and hence they do not labour to attain 
 those mental and moral qualities which are perfectly 
 within the reach of present faith and diligence. They 
 appear to suppose, that religion is a series of novelties, 
 and that, in the regular sequence of cause and effect, they 
 shall partake of them severally and consecutively; that, 
 in short, the elements of exalted piety are, to a certain 
 extent, widely different from those of a less mature spi- 
 ritual condition. They, therefore, rest contented, though 
 consciously destitute of many qualities which the word of 
 God commends, and which the experience of other Chris- 
 tians exhibits ; and they live in the vain hope of hereafter 
 retrieving opportunities which they at present neglect, 
 and of obtaining that good to which they do not at present 
 aspire. But where is the Christian who has ever been 
 eminent by the operation or under the influence of such 
 opinions? The most robust man possesses no greater 
 number of bodily members than the infant just born ; and 
 from this scriptural analogy, as well as from the testimony 
 of experience, we may conclude that, in general, he only
 
 22 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 can expect to attain any exalted condition of piety or 
 usefulness, who labours to possess all the essential ele- 
 ments of perfection in his spiritual infancy. 
 
 There was no characteristic of the most striking and 
 successful part of Mr. Smith's life, the germ of which 
 may not be readily discovered at this time. Of course, 
 he obtained more perspicuous and exalted views of the 
 truth ; his faith was more powerful ; his affections were 
 more spiritualized, refined, and intense ; he entered more 
 fully into the designs of God, and enjoyed more intimate 
 access to Him, at a maturer period of his Christian career : 
 but he was even now marked by Christian courage, zeal, 
 activity, and benevolence; by love of God's word, delight 
 in prayer, simplicity of faith, deep concern for the souls 
 of men, and ardent desire for mental improvement ; and 
 these were the identical features of his character which 
 afterwards made his path so bright, and which now shed 
 BO pure and untroubled a lustre over his memory. 
 
 It amounts, therefore, to almost a moral certainty, that 
 had his views of the rudiments of piety been less compre- 
 hensive or less practical, had he contented himself, in 
 this stage of his Christian life, with walking merely on 
 the verge of experience, had he postponed his efforts 
 after an entire Christianity to some remote and indefinite 
 period, had he not, in fine, made religion in its integrity 
 the alpha and omega of his desires and pursuits, he would 
 never have obtained the eminence in the church which 
 multitudes afterwards delighted to witness, acknowledge, 
 and admire. The current mistakes on this subject, no 
 one more fully discerned, or more deeply lamented, than 
 Mr. Smith. To the compiler of these memoirs he 
 often said, "We begin to live too late:" a melancholy 
 truth, equally applicable to those who are laying up 
 stores for futurity, which are now either useless or 
 unemployed, and to those who neglect present opportu- 
 nities, and dream of some virtue in the lapse of time, 
 which shall complete the array of excellencies, for the 
 perfection of which they are not now solicitous.
 
 EEV. JOHN BJIITH. 23 
 
 As Mr. Smith had learned to esteem the employment 
 and cultivation of his mind a religious duty, so, as his 
 piety increased, his desire for this species of improve- 
 ment became more remarkable. He was now, in several 
 respects, a character so interesting as to attract the notice 
 of some pious persons of considerable intelligence, who 
 probably discerned in him the indications of future ser- 
 vice to the church and the world. Having particularly 
 observed his diligence in the acquisition of knowledge, 
 they recommended that he should be removed to a situ- 
 ation more favourable to mental improvement than that 
 which he then occupied. He was accordingly, in May, 
 1813, placed under the care of Mr. James Sigston, of 
 Leeds, being at that time in the twentieth year of his 
 age. 
 
 HI. 
 
 LEEDS. 18131814. 
 
 THE views entertained by the subject of these memoirs, 
 on the duty of intellectual cultivation, are particularly 
 worthy the attention of all who admired his zeal, and who 
 emulate his example. Ignorance and mental imbecility, 
 though sometimes associated with Christianity, are no 
 auxiliaries to it. The religion of the New Testament, 
 though it has frequently found a race of men in a state of 
 intellectual prostration, has never left them in that con- 
 dition. On the contrary, those nations for whose elevation 
 in this particular many unsuccessful attempts have been 
 made by ordinary means, have been gradually raised by 
 the influence of scriptural piety to a commanding situa- 
 tion in the ranks of science and philosophy ; and it is not 
 too much to affirm, that the world at large has been 
 incomparably more indebted to religion for all that exalts 
 man as a thinking being, than to all other causes com- 
 bined. It has given characters, grammar, and literature 
 to the most ferocious savages. It has converted the 
 wandering barbarian into a peaceable citizen, a mechanic,
 
 24 MEMOIRS OP TUB 
 
 a philosopher. The purest forms of jurisprudence, and 
 the noblest systems of political government, it has estab- 
 lished and fostered ; and it has not only extricated man 
 from the deepest vice, but it has exalted him from the 
 most obtuse stupidity into the world of reason, contem- 
 plation, and poetry. 
 
 The most excellent talent which the all- wise God has 
 bestowed upon us, next to the capacity for loving and 
 enjoying Himself, is the ability to contemplate, and, to a 
 certain limit, to understand His character, both in His word 
 and in His works; and for the use of this talent He holds 
 us responsible. The instructed Christian also has sources 
 of religious enjoyment, to which others are strangers. 
 He possesses the ability to recommend his faith to those 
 whose minds would repel the counsels of less cultivated 
 persons. His views of the Divine character are ample 
 and lucid, beyond what others can conceive. He has an 
 armour both offensive and defensive against infidelity, of 
 which others cannot avail themselves, and the elements 
 of a higher steadfastness of character than that of ordi- 
 nary Christians. 
 
 Nor is it any argument against intellectual cultivation, 
 that we rarely find it united with the simplicity of piety, 
 power of faith, and fervency of zeal. Were these the 
 characteristics of Christians in general, and were intel- 
 lectual men the only persons of low spiritual attainments, 
 there would be force and propriety in such an objection. 
 But, alas ! how little is there of these excellencies among 
 the mass of professors ! How complex and obscure are 
 their notions of God's plan of saving men ! How feeble 
 is their faith, and how cold their charity ! That the 
 majority of Christians of cultivated minds are defective 
 likewise, is therefore only in melancholy conformity to 
 the rest of the church. It is readily admitted that 
 unsanctified learning is a very great evil, and that the 
 proportion of grace required by each individual depends 
 partly on the number and power of the talents which he is 
 called to devote to the service of God. A half- instructed
 
 REV. ions SMITH. 25 
 
 man also has, without doubt, numerous temptations to 
 self-dependence ; but when the requisite and promised 
 influence of the Holy Spirit accompanies the lawful use 
 of study, Christianity assumes a higher and more influ- 
 ential character, and those who thus employ the talent 
 committed to their trust, become, in the "great house" 
 of God, not only " vessels of gold," intrinsically valuable, 
 but also " vessels of honour fit for the Master's use." 
 
 Some who may peruse these remarks are probably 
 placed in circumstances far more encouraging than he 
 whose character has suggested them. It was not till he 
 had nearly arrived at manhood that he discerned the 
 importance of mental culture and discipline. He had 
 formed no habits of application ; in fact, all his previous 
 pursuits had tended to sensualize, distract, and debase 
 him. He had lost the most valuable, because the most 
 impressible and the least occupied, part of his life. His 
 mind had ceased to exhibit the ductility of boyhood, and 
 this was the more important in his case, since he had 
 never possessed an easily modelled character. Under 
 these disadvantages, it is no matter of surprise that he 
 did not make that high degree of improvement which 
 others, in different circumstances, may without difficulty 
 realize ; and if, at any future period of his life, he was 
 deemed deficient in intellectual character and attainments, 
 it was not from the want of a substratum of good sound 
 sense, nor of a correct estimate of the value of human 
 learning. He has often lamented, to the writer of these 
 pages, what he esteemed his intellectual inferiority ; and, 
 from the statement of an early and intimate friend, it 
 appears, that, only a short time before his death, he 
 expressed his regret that he had not attained that degree 
 of mental improvement of which, had his circumstances 
 been different, be felt himself to have been capable. 
 That which would call forth such expressions from a man 
 of such ardent zeal, and such extensive usefulness, is not 
 surely a matter of small moment. Nay, more ; with his 
 practical \iews, it is certain that he not only considered 
 c
 
 26 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 the qualifications in question not likely to be detrimental 
 to his personal religion, or his service to the church, but 
 greatly prornotive both of the one and the other. 
 
 Mr. Smith's situation at Mr. Sigston's academy was 
 highly gratifying to himself; and it is not a little honour- 
 able to him, that he was pleased to be considered a 
 school-boy at such an age. He here had the opportunity 
 of attending the means of grace, in connexion with the 
 excellent society of Leeds. He was brought into associ- 
 ation with some singularly pious and useful characters, 
 and, among others, with the late eminent and deeply 
 lamented David Stoner. Mr. Stoner was at this time an 
 assistant in Mr. Sigston's academy ; and here a friendship 
 was commenced between them which, I doubt not, has 
 been renewed where there is no possibility of its inter- 
 ruption. To the subject of these pages such an intimacy 
 was of great service, in an intellectual and literary, as well 
 as in a higher sense. Many of his leisure hours were 
 spent with his excellent and judicious friend in diligent 
 research ; and there can be no doubt that this association 
 was deeply interesting and mutually helpful. Although 
 in some points of character strikingly dissimilar, there 
 were others in which they pleasantly resembled each 
 other. Mr. Stoner was of a reserved temper ; Mr. Smith 
 open as the day. The former was melancholic ; the latter 
 highly sanguine. The dark and depressing aspect of 
 subjects in general seemed to affect the one ; the bright 
 and cheering to impress the other. Mr. Stoner was the 
 more intellectually gifted man ; Mr. Smith the happier 
 Christian. The habits of their youth had been as 
 opposite as possible, and the result was what may be 
 readily anticipated. Both were gems of the first order, 
 but one of them had only just been extracted from the 
 mine. On the other hand, they were about the same 
 age had each been indebted to the influence of pious 
 parents possessed in many respects similarly stirring 
 views of Divine truth had the same untiring zeal 
 were eminently owned of God and, as the most ruelan-
 
 EEV. JOH5 SMITH. 27 
 
 choly part of the parallel, were both cut off in the prime 
 of life, while their glory was fresh in them. 
 
 In the letter to his parents announcing his arrival at 
 Leeds, bearing date July 15th, 1813, Mr. Smith states 
 that he had been the subject of powerful temptations. 
 This could scarcely be a matter of surprise, except to 
 those who are ignorant of Satan's devices. Upon enter- 
 ing into a situation so novel, being associated with many 
 strangers, and occupied in a way in some respects un- 
 usual, it would have been wonderful had the case been 
 different. Every new form of society into which we are 
 introduced, calls for the exertion of those graces of the 
 Holy Spirit which before have perhaps been the least 
 cultivated, and these exercises are permitted in order to 
 bring into full action the power of the entire Christian 
 man. As, however, the subject of these memoirs had 
 entered upon his new situation in the spirit of simple 
 dependence upon God, so was he enabled to triumph over 
 his spiritual foes. After having stated his temptations, 
 his mind, by a natural and pleasing transition, adverts to 
 the joy of his Christian hope, and the abundance of his 
 consolations ; and, in the conclusion of his letter, he says, 
 " In a short time the warfare of life will be over. A few 
 more conflicts, and we shall be in glory. I feel at present 
 truly happy in my God. Tears of gratitude flow from my 
 eyes for His loving-kindness towards me. Pray that God 
 may help me ; for I wish to spend and be spent for Him." 
 
 In a letter, dated September 4th of the same year, he 
 describes his faith as depending too much on the state of 
 his feelings, an error to which all young Christians, and 
 particularly persons like himself, of great constitutional 
 vivacity, are peculiarly liable. His testimony of his 
 Christian experience is, however, on the whole very 
 satisfactory. The following is an extract : " My soul is 
 panting after that mind which was in Christ : in conse- 
 quence, I meet with many oppositions from Satan ; but 
 the Lord is present with me, and supports me constantly 
 under every difficulty. Though I believe that in Christ 
 c 2
 
 28 JIKMOIRS OF THE 
 
 ' all fulness dwells,' I do not sufficiently look to Him 
 for help and salvation. When I am tempted, I am fre- 
 quently cast down for a short time ; my faith diminishes, 
 and I have not that confidence in God as when every- 
 thing goes on, or seems to go on, well with me. But 
 when I come simply to the Lord, make my case known 
 to Him, acknowledge my weakness, plead the merit of the 
 atonement, and believe on His name, He delivers me from 
 temptation, lifts upon me the light of His countenance, 
 and causes me to rejoice in Him as my salvation. I can 
 come to Him through Jesus Christ, and call Him my 
 Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with my spirit 
 that I am a child of God." 
 
 In the latter part of this letter he speaks of having 
 commenced the study of Latin. In this language I 
 believe he made no considerable proficiency. In after- 
 years he had a wish to make himself acquainted with 
 Greek and Hebrew : but he found that his other occu- 
 pations would not allow him sufficient time to gratify this 
 desire. He, however, succeeded in attaining a perfect 
 acquaintance with his own language ; and a gentleman 
 of classical education, who enjoyed his intimacy at a sub- 
 sequent period, remarked, that of all men whom he had 
 ever known, Mr. Smith possessed' the most accurate and 
 extensive syntactical knowledge. He had also a high 
 relish for the best English writers, both in theology and 
 general literature. His taste for poetry was chaste and 
 classical, and he had a feeling of its beauties far superior 
 to that of many more perfectly cultivated minds. 
 
 For several months after the above date there is nothing 
 in Mr. Smith's correspondence so striking as to demand 
 insertion here. It will be sufficient to say, that, in 
 general, it affords interesting evidence of his Christian 
 progress, of great artlessness and sincerity, and of increas- 
 ing devotedness to God. In the mean time he diligently 
 prosecuted his studies, and was deemed qualified to act 
 occasionally as a teacher in the school. After the Mid- 
 Bummer vacation of 1814, he became a regular assistant;
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 29 
 
 but before this he had begun to preach. The great and 
 responsible occupation of the ministry he undertook with 
 much fear and hesitation. The first time it had been 
 arranged for him to address a congregation, he could not 
 Bummon sufficient resolution to fulfil his engagement. At 
 the advice and entreaty of some of his friends, he a second 
 time promised to make the attempt ; but it is probable 
 .that, had it not been for the remonstrance of his friend 
 Mr. Stoner, he would not even then have ventured. " As 
 the time approached, he yielded again to timidity, and 
 retired to the teachers' room, intending not to make his 
 appearance at the place appointed. Mr. Stoner was in 
 the room. ' I thought,' said he to Mr. Smith, 'that you 
 had agreed to preach to-night.' ' Yes,' said the other, 
 with much hesitation and embarrassment ; ' but I must 
 give it up.' ' What ! ' rejoined Mr. Stoner, with severe 
 and powerful emphasis, ' do you mean then to ruin 
 yourself? ' This pointed question, resting a compliance 
 with acknowledged duty on a regard to personal safety, 
 produced the desired result."* 
 
 The place at which Mr. Smith commenced his public 
 labours was a school-room in Park-lane, where Mr. 
 Stoner himself, some time before, had preached his first 
 sermon. His text was Proverbs xviii. 24 : " There is a 
 Friend that sticketh closer than a brother." The em- 
 barrassment which he felt upon this occasion was most 
 painful both to himself and his hearers. After having 
 proceeded with great difficulty for some short time, he 
 was compelled to tell the congregation that he could not 
 address them any longer, and he sat down in a state of 
 distress, such as may be anticipated from so humbling an 
 issue of a first attempt. His want of suitable expressions 
 seemed to be the cause of his failure in this instance ; 
 and indeed, for several years afterwards, he was not 
 unfrequently straitened in his pulpit labours from the 
 same circumstance. 
 
 * Stoner's Memoirs, c. iii. 
 C3
 
 SO MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 IV. 
 
 LEEDS OULTON. 18141816. 
 
 ALTHOUGH Mr. Smith has left no record of those exer- 
 cises of mind which preceded his entrance into the 
 ministry, yet from documents of a later date, as well as 
 from the character which he at this time sustained, there 
 is no difficulty in accounting for the reluctance with which 
 he undertook it. His habits of natural feeling will not 
 allow the supposition that his hesitation proceeded from 
 the absence of mere animal courage. The ardour of his 
 piety equally forbids the idea that he wanted the necessary 
 concern for the souls of men. But his mind was deeply 
 impressed by a sense of the seriousness of the undertaking, 
 and his humble views of himself naturally led him to 
 shrink from it. Nor will this be matter of surprise to 
 any enlightened man. The office of the Christian min- 
 ister is connected with the highest honour, interest, and 
 peril. It is the institution of God Himself, for the con- 
 veyance and proclamation of the most important message 
 that ever stirred the energies, or woke the attention, of 
 apostate man. This message has to be expounded, illus- 
 trated, vindicated, and enforced. It is capable of an. 
 infinite variety of aspects, without losing its identity, and 
 is thus to be adapted to the incalculable diversity of human 
 character, intellect, and destitution. Nay, the honour of 
 being " workers together with God " is of itself so great, 
 that it is no wonder that they who attentively contem- 
 plate it should be overwhelmed by its ponderousness. 
 
 The Christian Minister is the herald of judgment, 
 severe and irrevocable ; execution, omnipotent and 
 resistless; eternity, mysterious and terrible! For a 
 single sinner isolated from the human family, without 
 influence either of good or evil to be lost, is an event, 
 to shadow forth the horror of which, it would not suffice 
 " for the sun to veil his face, and the moon her brightness, 
 or to cover the ocean with mourning or the heaven with
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 31 
 
 sackcloth." Nor, " were all nature to become animated 
 and vocal, would it be possible for her to utter a groan 
 too deep, or a cry too piercing, to furnish an adequate 
 idea of the magnitude and extent of such a catastrophe."* 
 But no sinner can be so separated from his fellows : he 
 is one in an extended series, the moral character of the 
 succession of which he may eternally determine ; and the 
 most insignificant of men may thus cast into the balance 
 the poise which shall bring down the destinies of multi- 
 tudes of deathless spirits. Such are the interests which 
 depend upon a Christian minister. The consequences of 
 fidelity or neglect for ever extend themselves over gene- 
 rations yet unborn. The founding of empires, or the 
 overthrow of dynasties, is lighter than the " airiest gos- 
 samer," compared with the amount of good or ill which 
 he is capable of achieving. It is marvellous, therefore, not 
 that some holy men enter upon the ministerial office with 
 great reluctance, but that any should be able to endure 
 the consciousness of a responsibility so tremendous. 
 
 The ill success of Mr. Smith's first attempt to deliver a 
 sermon tended, of course, to increase his indisposition to 
 the work of the ministry, and it was probably some time 
 before he made a second. It was not till the Christmas 
 quarterly meeting following, that he was proposed to be 
 taken on the plan as a probationary local preacher. His 
 name was introduced at the local preachers' meeting by 
 Mr. William Nelson, who had been his fellow-assistant 
 at Mr. Sigston's, and who was at the time gradually sink- 
 ing under the power of a disease which ultimately proved 
 fatal. Mr. Smith, who was spending the vacation with 
 his parents, received the intelligence of his having been 
 appointed to preach a trial-sermon, in a letter from his 
 dying friend, whose case had just then been declared 
 hopeless by his medical attendants. Mr. N., in the con- 
 clusion of his communication, says, "It is settled that 
 you are to take my plan. I hope to lire to see you 
 return, but that is only known to God." This entrance 
 Robert Hall.
 
 32 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 upon the more regular work of a local preacher must have 
 been very affecting to Mr. Smith. A solemn bequest was 
 thus committed to his trust ; and, if the spirits of thoss 
 who die in the Lord are allowed to trace the steps of their 
 survivors, the fidelity of the subject of these memoirs 
 must have given a spring- tide of gladness to the heart of 
 him whom he was thus impressively called to succeed. 
 
 In the first letter sent by Mr. S. to his parents after 
 the vacation, dated February 21st, 1815, he gives an 
 account of the death of Mr. Nelson, with whom in the 
 interval he had had much profitable intercourse. "I 
 was with him," says Mr. S., " a short time before he 
 died : he seemed at that time to experience a good deal 
 of pain. When I parted from him, I said, ' I hope the 
 Lord supports you.' ' He does,' he said with great 
 energy : ' God only knows how long He intends me to 
 linger here in pain ; but I am quite resigned. The will 
 of the Lord be done!' He died," adds Mr. S., 
 " triumphing in the redeeming blood." 
 
 In the same letter, he alludes to his having preached 
 at both the large chapels in Leeds. In the former in- 
 stance, he preached his trial-sermon ; and though he 
 states that he was under the influence of much fear, yet 
 he adds a fervent expression of thankfulness for conscious 
 Divine assistance. This effort seems to have met with 
 the approbation of those who were present, and, among 
 others, of the late Rev. Walter Griffith, then the super- 
 intendent of the Leeds circuit, who, being unable to fulfil 
 his appointment at Hunslet, the following Sunday, sent 
 Mr. Smith in his place. 
 
 In the latter part of the communication to which re- 
 ference has just been made, Mr. S. offers a few sentences 
 of judicious and pointed counsel to a young friend, on the 
 subject of his studies, which serve to show the deep 
 interest which he felt in the intellectual improvement of 
 those over whom he had influence ; and, with great kind- 
 ness and modesty, he proffers whatever assistance he 
 might in future be able to afford. Of his own experience
 
 RLV. JOHN SMITH. 33 
 
 he says, " I thank God for His goodness to me. He still 
 keeps my feet in the narrow path, and I trust will to the 
 end. He often causes me to rejoice in the hope of future 
 glory, and I am hungering and thirsting after a larger 
 earnest of it. I want to be entirely the Lord's. I think 
 I am in the way of Providence. I have but little time, but 
 I would improve it to great advantage. Lord, help me." 
 
 The following is an extract from a letter, dated May 
 24th, 1815 : " I thought I would defer writing for a few 
 days, that I might give you a little information respecting 
 the watch-night which was held last Monday. In the 
 afternoon we had a local preachers' meeting, at which I 
 was highly gratified and greatly benefited. At seven 
 o'clock, Mr. Dawson preached from John vi. 63 : ' It is 
 the spirit that quickeneth ; the fles-h profiteth nothing.' 
 God was with him, and accompanied his word to the hearts 
 of the congregation, and we had a refreshing season from 
 the presence of the Lord. Mr. D. considered the church 
 as the body, Christ as the head, and the Holy Ghost as 
 the animating principle. He observed, that the opera- 
 tions of the Spirit might be seen in the ministers, ordi- 
 nances, and members of the church ; ministers, in their 
 qualifications for the ministry, their call to the ministry, 
 the principal subjects, and the success of their ministry, &c. 
 After the sermon, two excellent exhortations were given, 
 and five persons exercised in prayer. Blessed be God, 
 I think I never felt more determined by grace to lire 
 for God. for wisdom ! for power from on high ! 
 According to your request, I have sent you a plan. You 
 will perceive that I am still appointed to hold an import- 
 ant office. ' Who is sufficient for these things ? ' May 
 I ever hang dependent upon God ! Amen." 
 
 Mr. Smith's religious friends now considered him as 
 called to a wider sphere of usefulness, and it was proposed 
 that he should enter the itinerant work. In these views 
 he appeare to have acquiesced without any very consider- 
 able hesitation. Upon the death of Mr. Ault, one of the 
 first Wesleyan missionaries to Cevlon, he was deemed a
 
 34 MEMOIBS OF THE 
 
 suitable person to supply the vacancy. He was applied 
 to accordingly, and evinced the utmost readiness to 
 comply with the request, provided his parents coiild be 
 induced to accede to it. No insuperable difficulty pre- 
 sented itself from this quarter, but the idea was abandoned 
 in consequence of the questionable state of his health. 
 Some short time before he had had the measles. This 
 disorder had left a cough and other unpleasant symptoms, 
 and a medical gentleman of the highest character, upon 
 being consulted, gave it as his opinion, that a tropical 
 climate would, under these circumstances, be unsuitable 
 to Mr. Smith's constitution. 
 
 During the whole of the time in which Mr. S. remained 
 at Leeds, by those not intimately acquainted with him, 
 " he was merely" to employ the words of an attached 
 friend "noticed as an amiable, pious youth, whose 
 manners we re distinguished by peculiar frankness, accom- 
 panied by the signs of an affectionate heart, and blandness 
 of disposition." The following is the testimony of Mr. 
 Sigston, whose opportunities for observing him were of 
 course frequent and ample. " From the commencement 
 he manifested an ardent desire to improve his mind, and 
 especially with reference to the study of divinity. His 
 general deportment was very exemplary, and he will long 
 live in the recollection of several who then became inti- 
 mately acquainted with him. There was one trait in his 
 character which every Christian minister would do well 
 to imitate, I mean his constant endeavour to promote 
 the salvation of sinners. For this he studied, prayed, 
 and preached, and I have often heard him agonize for 
 souls. In this particular, I would humbly pray that his 
 mantle may fall upon those whom he has left behind." 
 
 In the beginning of the year 1816, Mr. Smith engaged 
 himself as an assistant in a seminary at Oulton, in the 
 "VVakefield circuit. As soon as he entered upon thia 
 situation, he interested himself deeply in the spiritual, 
 as well as intellectual, improvement of his pupils. He 
 frequently took occasion to talk to them on religious sub'
 
 REV. JOHN S1IITH. 35 
 
 fects, both in private and when together. Several were 
 much impressed by his affectionate counsels, and one or 
 two began to meet in class. In a letter to his parents, 
 dated February 20th, 1816, he thus speaks of his en- 
 gagements and prospects: " My situation is remarkably 
 pleasant : the duties it imposes on me I find no difficulty 
 to perform. God has dealt kindly with me. ' The lines 
 have fallen unto me in pleasant places, and I have a 
 goodly heritage. ' I have frequent opportunities of meet- 
 ing with His people, and He has met with me, and blessed 
 me. Blessed be God, I trust He has begun a good work 
 in the minds of some of the boys. "When I speak to 
 them about the salvation of their souls, some of them 
 frequently begin to weep, and many of them say they 
 never had such feelings before. I have a strong con- 
 fidence that R. G. is powerfully influenced by Him who 
 hath said, ' None shall pluck them out of My hand.' He 
 has met in class twice, and is still determined by the grace 
 of God to go forward. Blessed God, Thou lovest young 
 disciples : may he be kept by Thy mighty power ' through 
 faith to eternal salvation.' I feel my heart is engaged 
 in the service of God. He has a right to ALL." 
 
 The situation of Mr. S. at Oulton, however, was, in 
 several respects, less favourable to improvement than that 
 which he filled at Leeds. His opportunities for associating 
 with pious people, and especially those of cultivated minds, 
 were much less frequent; nor did he enjoy an equal 
 measure of bodily health. Still his thirst for knowledge 
 was insatiable, and, as far as his circumstances admitted, 
 he assiduously occupied himself with reading and study. 
 He had the satisfaction of maintaining an epistolary cor- 
 respondence with his friend Mr. Stoner, who was now an 
 itinerant preacher in the Holmfirth circuit. He also be- 
 came increasingly acceptable as a local preacher. Those 
 of his pupils who had manifested religious desires, con- 
 tinued to afford gratifying evidence of their sincerity and 
 resolution; and, above all, his own spirit was more abund- 
 antly enriched with blessing from on high. " lleligion,"
 
 36 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 he remarks, in his correspondence at this period, " demands 
 my first attention. It has my first attention. I hope 
 while I live I shall be employed for God and the best 
 interests of my fellow-creatures. Pray that the Lord 
 would direct me into the way in which He would have me 
 walk in this respect." His mind was not yet quite made 
 up as to his duty to the heathen world, though, with 
 unaffected modesty, he states it as his opinion that the 
 wish of the Missionary Committee to employ him would 
 immediately cease, if they only knew him better. He 
 concludes his remarks on this subject with the devout 
 ejaculation, " To Thy glory may Hive, Lord my God !" 
 
 In the course of this year he became quickened to 
 seek the full power of the cleansing blood of Christ, and 
 the utter extirpation of the carnal mind. In a letter to 
 Cudworth, bearing date October 5th, 1816, he says, 
 " My heart is given to God. I am seeking and longing 
 for all the mind which was in Jesus Christ. Blessed be 
 God, I am encouraged by His gracious promises to perse- 
 vere in seeking full salvation. I long to experience this 
 purity of heart. For this I pray, read, study, watch, and 
 trust. It is Thy work, blessed God ! let me enjoy it. la 
 your prayers do not forget him who blesses God for such 
 parents, and who daily prays for you." 
 
 In the year 1815-16 there was a gracious revival of 
 the work of God in the city and circuit of York. At the 
 Conference of 1816 there were three hundred and fifty 
 members in society more than twelve months previously. 
 It was found necessary to erect an additional chapel, 
 and, in the autumn of this year, the commodious place 
 of worship in Skeldergate was opened. The labours of 
 another preacher were in consequence required; and 
 application being made to the proper quarter, Mr. Smith 
 was appointed to assist the Rev. Messrs. Lessey, sen., 
 John Nelson, and Stones, who were already occupied in 
 this interesting field of Christian exertion.
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 37 
 
 V. 
 
 YORK. 18161817. 
 
 THE life of every man has its epochs ; and perhaps in 
 no class of facts is the providence of God more strikingly 
 illustrated than in the arrangement of those events which, 
 either singly or in connexion with a series, give the 
 colour to the characters and conditions of men, in this life 
 and beyond the grave. Nothing can be less important in 
 itself, nothing, according to human judgment, likely to 
 be more insignificant in its results, than the incidents 
 which thus often direct the course, or impel the tide of the 
 most momentous of human interests. It follows, that no 
 event, however apparently trivial, should be disregarded ; 
 it forms one link in a mysterious chain, the connexions of 
 which we may not at present discern, but which never- 
 theless, in its succession, will be connected with our best 
 hope and our highest desire. No adventure, therefore, is 
 so small as not to demand Divine direction. God is to be 
 acknowledged in ALL our ways ; and it may be that in 
 those very particulars which we foolishly deem too insig- 
 nificant to require His sanction, He will bring our boasted 
 wisdom to nought, and even allow the " serpent " to sting 
 us, while we " lean on the wall " of our own house. (Amos 
 v. 19.) History is rich in illustration of this subject. The 
 festivities of Babylon proved fatal to Alexander, after 
 he had escaped the dangers of a hundred fights. Caesar 
 overcame the barbarians and Pompey, and in the midst 
 of his honours was slaughtered in the senate-house. The 
 delay of a few hours detained in Britain a discontented 
 Puritan, who, in the reign of Charles I., was about to 
 exile himself to New England. That man was Oliver 
 Cromwell. Bruce, the traveller, unhurt by the thousand 
 perils of the sea and the wilderness, was killed by a slip 
 of the foot on his own staircase. 
 
 But, while to the man of presumptuous mind there is 
 often latent danger where he least suspects it, to a spirit
 
 38 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 of humble and conscientious trust in God and reference to 
 His will, Divine direction and Divine defence are indubita- 
 bly ensured. While the one stumbles in the broad day, the 
 other walks secure in the thickest darkness ; and while 
 the one is overthrown by the most insignificant agencies, 
 the other passes unhurt through the whirlwind and the 
 earthquake. It has never been the happiness of the com- 
 piler of these pages to meet with an individual who so 
 fully embodied these views, as his eminent and lamented 
 friend. He introduced God into all things ; sought His 
 direction on the meanest as well as on the most important 
 subjects ; and, although his life does not exhibit any of 
 those remarkable coincidences which we dignify by the 
 title of "peculiar providences," yet, to one who attentively 
 surveys it, there will be no difficulty in tracing the con- 
 tinued leadings of the Divine hand like a stream of 
 silvery light flowing through sunshine and gloom in all 
 its periods. 
 
 4-n interesting illustration of this feature of his character 
 is found in the following statement, communicated by a 
 person who knew him familiarly. " I remember," says 
 this friend, "his noticing some step which he had taken, 
 in itself right, but in which he had not first of all ascer- 
 tained the will of God, as the chief error of his religious 
 life, the effect of which he traced through his subsequent 
 experience. Well as I knew him before, nothing ever 
 marked so strongly to my mind the unreprovable and 
 earnest character of the whole of his Christian course, as 
 his thus singling out an omission which, in the ex- 
 perience of Christians generally, would, I fear, have 
 excited little notice, and certainly been soon forgotten." 
 We have already referred to the great epoch of Mr. 
 Smith's life as a man, his conversion to God. His 
 appointment to the York circuit was the most important 
 event in the course of his ministry, an event in which it 
 would be scepticism not to recognise the finger of God. 
 Hitherto we have contemplated him only as comparatively 
 an ordinary character and an ordinary Christian : we have
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 39 
 
 now to observe him assuming a higher ground, and 
 coming under the influence of those principles which 
 were so remarkable and conspicuous in the succeeding 
 periods of his life. When he came to York, he was in 
 no respect esteemed a distinguished man. His talents 
 were generally considered below mediocrity ; in fact, he 
 was not thought qualified for the ministerial duties of a 
 circuit possessing so considerable a share of intelligence. 
 Nor was he extraordinarily zealous ; and his preaching 
 possessed nothing of that forcible and stimulating cha- 
 racter which afterwards rendered it singular. In addition 
 to this, he laboured under extraordinary diffidence ; and 
 Mr. Stones states, that when it was his turn to preach in 
 the city on a week-evening, he could never summon 
 sufficient resolution to mount the pulpit, if one of his 
 colleagues was likely to be present; and, in such cases, the 
 preacher who was disengaged usually had to occupy his 
 place. 
 
 Still he had an active mind, and was diligent in pro- 
 moting prayer-meetings, visiting the sick, &c. What 
 was of still greater moment, he was artless and sincere, 
 a man of one motive and one desire; and he had capabilities 
 for great energy which only waited to be called into 
 action, and directed aright. Had the most diligent and 
 acute investigation been employed in reference to his 
 situation at the commencement of the itinerant life, he 
 could not have been placed where, according to human 
 judgment, he would have enjoyed the advantages which 
 surrounded him at York. This circuit has been for many 
 years, in some respects, peculiarly interesting. There is 
 a simplicity, a fervour, a forbearance, and a tenderness in 
 the character of the people, which render its recollections 
 very dear to many who have laboured among them. At 
 the time to which our narration refers, there was an 
 unusual degree of religious feeling, expectation, and desire 
 in the neighbourhood ; and these circumstances were 
 highly conducive to a valuable impression on the charac- 
 ter of Mr. Smith, at this critical period of his ministerial 
 2
 
 40 MEM DIES OP THE 
 
 history. York is also inseparably associated with the 
 memory of several eminent saints, of whom the Lord will 
 record, when He " write th up the people," that they were 
 "born there." Under the influence of one of these, 
 Mr. S. came in a peculiar degree, I mean the late 
 Mr. Richard Burdsall, a man whose name in that part 
 of Yorkshire is as ointment poured forth. 
 
 But that which particularly tended to form the cha- 
 racter, both personal and ministerial, of the subject of 
 these memoirs, was his association with the late Rev. 
 John Nelson. This distinguished Christian and successful 
 minister discerned in Mr. S. the elements of an energetic 
 and useful agent for Christ ; and, though they were then 
 without order, or method, or direction, he gave them an 
 impulse and arrangement, which, in the course of a short 
 time, issued in the formation of one of the most powerful 
 and beneficent characters that in recent times have arisen 
 among us. 
 
 There are many zealous preachers, with whom Mr. S. 
 might have been associated, who would have failed to 
 produce anything like a revolution of his views and 
 habits ; and had not Mr. Nelson's character possessed a 
 peculiar adaptation perhaps I might say, affinity to the 
 native elements of his own, the probability is, that even 
 he would not have succeeded in his attempt to mould a 
 mind so constitutionally daring and independent. It is 
 worthy of remark, also, that Mr. Smith's first impressions 
 were rather unfavourable, than otherwise, to the influence 
 which his revered friend afterwards exerted. Nor was it 
 till Mr. S. had heard him preach several times, and till 
 especially he had seen the working of Mr. Nelson's 
 principles, for he was even now in a degree a practical 
 man, that his prejudice entirely gave way. And then, 
 to render more deep the admiration of Mr. Nelson, which 
 originated in observations on his public ministrations, his 
 youthful colleague was struck with the nobleness,gene- 
 rosity, and tenderness of his nature, his exalted views of 
 the fulness and glory of the atonement, the energy of his
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 41 
 
 faith, the originality of his conceptions, and his extensive 
 and practical acquaintance with human nature. In short, 
 Mr. Nelson became his FBIIOND, and then there was no 
 difficulty in the case. The noblest natures are the most 
 fully capable of yielding to the power of Christian affec- 
 tion. Love lays his hand on the lion's mane, and compels 
 him to submit to the yoke. 
 
 The influence of Mr. Nelson, and the other Christian 
 friends who at this time contributed to model Mr. Smith's 
 personal Christianity and public exertions, appears to 
 have operated in two ways. He became a man of in- 
 creased fervour and assiduity in prayer. His diligence in 
 closet-duties, in the first place, arose, partly at least, from 
 ;' sense of constant and imminent danger. Devotion had 
 now become more fully his element. He engaged more 
 frequently, and more at length, in intercourse with God, 
 and usually had delightful access to the throne of grace. 
 Under the benign and quickening influence of these exer- 
 cises, his piety rapidly matured ; his hunger and thirst 
 after righteousness increased ; and he laboured diligently, 
 giving up his desires and energies to the pursuit of 
 entire holiness. According to the testimony of his early 
 and endeared friend, the Rev. W. H. Clarkson, with 
 whom he at this time became acquainted, it was in the 
 course of the nine months he spent at York, that he 
 entered into the enjoyment of perfect love. 
 
 God will alwa) r s honour a resemblance to Himself; and 
 it must be admitted that, in the absence of a considerable 
 measure of this resemblance, no man was ever extensively 
 useful. But it does not follow that a holy minister must 
 necessarily be a very successful one ; nor, in the case of the 
 subject of these pages, would that view of his service to the 
 church be the true one, which centred exclusively in his 
 personal devotedness to God. " This, indeed," as one of 
 his friends remarks, " is a truth, but it is not the whole 
 truth." The change which Mr. S. at this time underwent 
 was not confined to a higher attainment of the Divine 
 image j it extended itself to his views, his studies, and his 
 
 D3
 
 42 MEMOIES OP THE 
 
 style of preaching. The amplitude and energy of the 
 first will be developed in the course of our narrative. Of 
 the second, it may be sufficient to say that he now began 
 to study human nature as it is, rather than as it is deli- 
 neated in books. He discerned the necessity of knowing 
 man in his general character, his weakness, depravity, 
 and capabilities ; of acquainting himself especially with 
 the vulnerable points in the sinner's heart, and the varied 
 modes of address, and modifications of personal feeling, 
 by which he might probably lay hold on the most power- 
 ful human passions and prejudices. He set himself also 
 to consider the character and circumstances of each of the 
 congregations to whom he was called to minister, and 
 sought in his own heart the indications of the necessities, 
 and the key to the aifections, of others. He learned the 
 use of prayer, as a means of ascertaining the description 
 of truth which was adapted to the conditions of his several 
 collections of hearers. In short, he became a man of 
 bold and successful experiment on human nature, and 
 ceased to estimate all preaching, and indeed all ministerial 
 labour, except as it produced saving effects. 
 
 " Previously to his coming to York," says Mr. Clarkson, 
 'he appeared to have studied the artificial science of 
 sermonizing, rather than the divine art of winning souls 
 to Christ. In his intercourse with Mr. Nelson, he got 
 his mind fully enlightened as to the grand design of the 
 Christian ministry, and as to the manner in which it was 
 most likely to be accomplished." Another friend, whose 
 abilities and opportunities for ascertaining the measure 
 of his intellectual stature were of an unusual order, thus 
 speaks on the subject of the style of preaching which he 
 now assumed : " It was from no inability to construct a 
 regular and expanded discourse, according to the taste and 
 practice of the day, that he confined himself to the simple, 
 but fervid and impressive, style of preaching which he 
 adopted. At the commencement of his ministerial career 
 his sermons were more elaborate in their structure ; but, 
 although I forget the particular circumstances which, as
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 43 
 
 he told me, induced him to alter his plan, I know that 
 he was decided by a conviction that in so doing the great 
 end of preaching would be more fully accomplished. 
 The change, therefore, was one of principle ; and for the 
 sake of this, he was content to forego the reputation of 
 advantages which even the spiritual part of the church 
 are but too apt to magnify and deem indispensable, and 
 to acquiesce willingly in being thought destitute of talents 
 which he could not but be conscious were in his power. 
 I know no harder ' lesson that humility can teach,' or 
 self-denial submit to learn." 
 
 Of course all these changes, so material and permanent, 
 were not effected at once. It took much time, much 
 anxiety, much experiment, many tears, and a more 
 maturely instructed faith, fully to complete them. But 
 it was at this time that the revolution of character com- 
 menced, to the perfecting of which a number of causes 
 subsequently conspired. Among these may be reckoned, 
 as one of influence, what the friend, from whom I have 
 just quoted, supposes to have been the original cause of 
 the alteration in Mr. Smith's style of preaching. The 
 following is the result of that person's observation on the 
 subject, some years after the date under which we now 
 write. " A conviction where his own strength lay, in- 
 duced him, for the most part, to pretermit those homi- 
 letical forms which are deemed (perhaps too uniformly) 
 essential to a public discourse ; and the ardour of his 
 mind hurried him at once into the heart of his subject. 
 My own impression is, that, as his expectation of success 
 was in a peculiar degree from the aids and effusion of the 
 Spirit, the style of preaching he adopted left him more at 
 liberty, both to exercise such dependence, and to dwell 
 on, and realize to himself and others, those appropriate 
 truths through which alone he expected the Holy Spirit 
 to work upon their minds ; and that it was this considera- 
 tion principally which dictated the change." The former 
 part of these observations, however, must be understood 
 to apply, specifically, only to an early and comparatively
 
 44 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 immature stage of his ministerial history. In more 
 recent years, (as will appear in the sequel,) he added to 
 his other excellencies the recommendation of regularity 
 in the form and arrangement of his discourses. 
 
 The following are extracts from his correspondence 
 with his parents, and from a few private memoranda of 
 the state of his religious experience. The reader will 
 here find, as well the occasional indications of the 
 opinions to which reference has just been made, as 
 evidences of a pleasing measure of advancement in 
 knowledge and love. The first of these extracts is from 
 a letter announcing his arrival at York, and the com- 
 mencement of his labours there. It shows with how 
 low views of himself, with what determination to deal 
 rigidly with his own character, and with what pious 
 resolution, he entered on the great work of an itinerant 
 preacher. 
 
 To HIS PARENTS. " Nov. 18, 1816. Various have 
 been the exercises of my mind. I think my confidence 
 in the Lord is a little strengthened. I am more and 
 more convinced of the absolute necessity of being clear 
 respecting my own salvation ; and, blessed be God, I am 
 saying, ' Lord, I am Thine : save me ! ' The people are 
 very kind: I am only afraid that my coming among them 
 will prevent some other person from coming, who would 
 be more useful. , I feel, however, resolved to be diligent, 
 to lay myself out for usefulness in every possible way, 
 and to give myself into the hands of God. Never did I 
 need your prayers so much as I do at present." 
 
 To THE SAME. " Dec. 28, 1816. Since I wrote to 
 you, I have not been very well. I have had a very bad 
 cough ; it has disqualified me, in a great measure, for 
 reading and study. This has made me very uneasy : I 
 have spent some almost sleepless nights. I have thought, 
 if God had called, me to preach, He would have blessed 
 me with better bodily health. But, blessed be God, I 
 have been much encouraged with seeing and hearing 
 that the Lord condescends to work by me.. If it please
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 45 
 
 the Lord to use me, He has a right to me. He shall have 
 
 all; body, soul, time, talents, ALL I am reconciled 
 
 to God by the death of His Son : I am seeking to be con- 
 formed to the image of my Saviour : Christ is precious 
 to me at this moment. I do not cease to give thanks 
 for you, making mention of you in my prayers." 
 
 " Jan. 3, 1817. My mind this day has been unsettled. 
 I anticipate many difficulties in the work in which I am 
 engaged. ' Who is sufficient for these things ? ' / am 
 more fully convinced of the necessity of describing charac- 
 ter. What shall I do to know the hearts of men ? how 
 shall I know my own ? This I must know. Lord, 
 show it unto me ; for Thou alone art able. 
 
 "11. The Lord has been exceedingly kind to me 
 this day ; I have had some precious seasons in private. 
 Never did I feel more never, I think, so much of the 
 power of God, as at the prayer-meeting to-night. My 
 confidence in the Lord is stronger, but I want a clearer 
 manifestation of His sanctifying presence. for this 
 killing and quickening word ! Mr. Nelson prayed for 
 it to-night." 
 
 Here it is worthy of notice, that, in the experience of 
 Mr. S., not only in the case just quoted, but in multitudes 
 of other instances, a time of refreshing in public was 
 preceded by special visitations in secret. The connexion 
 between the two is understood, more or less, by all Chris- 
 tians; but upon his mind it was impressed at all times 
 with peculiar emphasis, and in the following pages it 
 will be found frequently alluded to, in different forma 
 of expression. 
 
 "Jan. 15. Yesterday and to-day I have experienced 
 much uneasiness of mind. I wish to please God, but I 
 fear I am not where I ought to be. It matters not what 
 I hear, or what I read : I have to do with God. It is a 
 personal concern. I shall quickly be gone : then where 
 or what shall I be ? eternity ! 
 
 "21. I have had this day a renewed sense of the 
 favour of God, and a foretaste of the rest from inbred
 
 46 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 sin. The blessing seemed to be very near. that I 
 may be enabled to lay hold of it to-night ! " 
 
 To HIS PAKENTS. " Jan. 23. The Lord is reviving 
 His work in my soul. I am longing for an increased 
 conformity to my Saviour. I want more feeling for 
 poor sinners. I must look to Him who had not where 
 to lay His head. I must view Him in the garden, behold 
 Him at Pilate's bar, see Him nailed to the cross, hear 
 Him say, 'Father, forgive them, for they know not 
 what they do,' and the heart-rending cry, ' My God, my 
 God, why hast Thou forsaken Me ? ' It is this that melts 
 the stony heart. God grant that we may be ever properly 
 influenced by it ! The Lord has lately brought many 
 souls to Himself in York. "We are expecting a signal 
 outpouring of His Holy Spirit. that a gracious 
 shower may very soon descend upon us ! I have heard 
 Mr. Nelson preach some such sermons as I never heard 
 before. I never see my littleness as a preacher under any 
 man so much as under Mr. IS". He has the unction; 
 this makes him great. He tells me that I must bless 
 God for barren times. Mr. John Burdsall was at York 
 last week, and from him I got some important directions 
 respecting study. He recommended a few books to me, 
 some of which I have procured. I am to write to him 
 in a short time, to let him know how I come on, &c. 
 
 "Feb. 12. My mind has been much composed and 
 stayed upon God for several days past. My confidence 
 in Him has been much increased. I feel conscious of my 
 inability for the great work in which I am engaged ; but 
 He has all the wisdom and power, and in Him I trust. 
 If He has called me to preach the "Gospel, He will 
 qualify me ; if not, He will, I trust, show me, and save 
 my soul. Blessed be God ! " 
 
 To HIS PARENTS. " Feb. 14. My soul is alive to 
 God. Of late the Lord has revived His work in my soul, 
 especially in private devotion. Never was I more fully 
 convinced of the absolute necessity of personal holiness of 
 heart and life. this being dead unto sin, and alive to God
 
 KEV. JOHN SMITIT. 47 
 
 through faith in Jesus Christ ! The work in which I am 
 engaged is the most important in the universe ; yet I feel 
 encouraged to put my trust in the Lord whose work it is, 
 and who has engaged to give grace according to my day. 
 
 " 26. Various, indeed, have heen my exercises of 
 mind during the last few days ; but, blessed be God, my 
 confidence in Him is stronger. this preaching ! I have 
 an increasing sense of my inability. Ma)" it drive me to 
 God, instead of sinking my mind into a dejected state ! 
 
 " March 2. I feel happy in God. I can trust in Christ 
 for my own salvation. But I am much concerned about 
 preaching. that the Lord would give me more satisfac- 
 tory evidence of my call to this important work ! I have, 
 for some time past, thought that I was thrust out too soon. 
 
 " 9. My soul is longing, yea, panting, after God; yet I 
 want more ardent desires. I long to see souls converted 
 to God. I want more sympathy. I drag my cold and 
 hard heart to Mount Calvary : if the bleeding Lamb 
 cannot warm and melt it, nothing can. I want more of 
 the dying love of Christ shed abroad in my heart. Lord, 
 help me ! If Thou canst use me, here I am at Thy dis- 
 posal. ' Sanctify me wholly, body, soul, and spirit, and 
 preserve me blameless to the coming of the Lord Jesus.' 
 
 " April 3. I am thankful that I am in my closet at 
 half-past nine o'clock. that I may be able to culti- 
 vate habits of regularity ! [In allusion to his exercises 
 of mind about preaching, he adds,] I think, surely, no 
 preacher was ever in my situation. Blessed be God, I 
 can cast my soul on the atoning sacrifice of Christ. 
 ' Jesus, to Thee my soul looks up.' " 
 
 To iris PARENTS. "April 8. the happiness to 
 know that my sins are put away by the sacrifice of Christ ! 
 Of this I have not the shadow of a doubt. I want more 
 of the Spirit : for this I pray, for this I read, for this I 
 believe, and I want to believe more. I must believe for 
 salvation; not be saved, and then believe. I have a 
 painful sense of my inability for the important work in
 
 48 MEMOIKS OF THE 
 
 which I am engaged ; but it is the work of God. He is 
 all-sufficient : if He has called me to it, He will help me ; 
 if not, He will send me home again, and He will save 
 me. I am in His hands, bless the Lord ! I never was 
 more sensible of the necessity of experiencing the truths 
 of the Gospel, in order to preach them successfully to 
 others. A conscious salvation is absolutely necessary." 
 
 The preceding extracts furrish a very inadequate idea 
 of the anguish undergone by Mr. S. in reference to the 
 ministerial work. This was only known to his own heart, 
 and to Him by whom the depths of man's severest feeling 
 are as perfectly understood as his lightest and most tran- 
 sient emotion. As an illustration of the extreme character 
 of this distress, it will suffice to say, that, with all the 
 consolation which his faith could command, and all the 
 support arising from confidence in God, which it does 
 not appear that he ever lost, even in the time of his 
 greatest conflict, he was nevertheless so overwhelmed by 
 the exercises of his mind, that, as he afterwards confessed, 
 life itself was burdensome, and he wished himself a tree, 
 or any thing but a being endowed with sensation. On 
 one occasion, as he told the writer of this sketch, having 
 heard a strain of very touching music, he longed to be 
 changed into some plaintive instrument, which might, 
 without reproof or restraint, continually breathe forth 
 its melancholy tones. 
 
 It is probable that Mr. Smith's views of the importance 
 of the Christian ministry were, in the first place, as pene- 
 trating as the measure of his piety would allow. Had they 
 been more impressive at an earlier period, he would 
 scarcely have been able at all to endure them; and, at all 
 hazards, he would most likely have refused to engage in 
 an occupation so responsible. Yet that he was from the 
 beginning convinced of his call to the work, seems suffi- 
 ciently obvious from his yielding to Mr. Stoner's remon- 
 strance on the subject,* which would have been without 
 significance or point, had not he to whom it was addressed 
 * Page 29, supra.
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 49 
 
 been conscious of the obligation of the case. But his 
 perceptions afterwards became so expanded and compre- 
 hensive, that he was in the highest degree dissatisfied with 
 his original views, and seriously doubted whether an 
 impression so feeble as that which he at first experienced 
 could be really a Divine designation to the ministerial 
 office. 
 
 It may rationally be questioned, whether any person of 
 Mr. Smith's temperament ever became in a high degree 
 a minister of the Spirit without some such exercises as 
 those to which he was so long and painfully subjected. 
 It is readily admitted that there are some diligent and 
 devoted ministers who have never known much, if any- 
 thing, of such misgivings of heart. They have never had 
 that poignant and distressing consciousness of their own 
 inadequacy ; that earnest and continued wish, if it were 
 possible, to withdraw themselves from a situation of so 
 much personal hazard, and connected with so high trust 
 and accountability. These, however, are for the most 
 part men of equable temper, to whose minds a state of 
 repose appears most congenial. But, on the other hand, 
 it seems necessary that persons of sanguine temperament, 
 of great ardour and buoyancy, should undergo a process 
 of a more permanently impressive order. When, there- 
 fore, they have made every effort towards ministerial 
 usefulness, when the powers of their minds have been 
 exerted to the greatest possible tension, they are, by a 
 sudden and prostratingburst of Divine light, given fully to 
 see how amazingly short they fall of what the ministerial 
 office requires, and how utterly vain, considered of them- 
 selves, are all their exertions. Such a revelation, to a 
 man of even and gentle temper, would cast him into 
 despair ; while, in the case of the others, nothing less will 
 save them from a degree of self-confidence, or from being 
 satisfied with a comparatively low measure of devotedness 
 and success. A powerful and consoling view of God's 
 sufficiency usually comes afterwards, and is accorded in 
 proportion to the patient diligence with which the former 
 exercises have been undergone, and the degree of
 
 50 MEJIOIES OP THE 
 
 self-renunciation which they have succeeded in pro- 
 ducing. 
 
 Independently also of the appropriateness of these 
 trials, as the means of preparing a minister of the Spirit, 
 sanctified mental conflict is of itself gr-eatly conducive to 
 ministerial usefulness. No man was ever distinguished, 
 except by successful engagement with difficulty. The 
 very terms which men employ to express their most 
 exalted notions of honour, usually involve the idea of 
 opposition. Where there is no contest there can be no 
 triumph. No Christian was ever eminent, who had not 
 many obstacles; no -Christian minister, who had not to 
 wrestle with powerful temptation. Temptation, according 
 to Martin Luther, is one of the ingredients which go to 
 make a minister; and so essential did he deem it to 
 the completeness of the character, that he associated it 
 with the high and unquestionable duties of study and 
 prayer. The fellowship of Christ's sufferings produces 
 conformity to His death ; the fellowship of Christ's glory, 
 in its fulness, is promised to him who overcomes ; and, as 
 well on earth as in heaven, the most splendid order of saints 
 are those " who have come out of great tribulation." * 
 
 * The reader will readily forgive the introduction of the following 
 simple yet striking illustration of this subject from the pen of au 
 eminent and singularly devoted French pastor: 
 
 "I have before me two stones, which are in imitation of precious 
 stones. They are both perfectly alike in colour ; they are of the 
 same water, clear, pure, and clean ; yet there is a marked difference 
 between them, as to their lustre and brilliancy. One has a dazzling 
 brightness, while the other is dull, so that the eye passes over it, 
 and derives no pleasure from the sight. What can be the reason of 
 such a difference ? It is this : the one is cut but in a few facets ; 
 the other has ten times as many. These facets are produced by a 
 violent operation ; it is requisite to cut, to smooth, and polish. Had 
 these stones been endued with life, so as to have been capable of 
 feeling what they underwent, the one which has received eighty 
 facets would have thought itself very unhappy, and would have 
 envied the fate of the other, which, having received but eight, had 
 undergone but a tenth part of its sufferings. Nevertheless, the 
 operation being over, it is done for ever; the difference between 
 the two stones always remains strongly marked ; that which has 
 suffered but little is entirely eclipsed by the other, which alone is 
 held in estimation and attracts attention." OBEULIN'S Memoirs. 
 pp. 123, 124.
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 51 
 
 Nor is it difficult to trace, even in the very scanty 
 description left by the subject of these memoirs of the 
 state of his Christian experience, the immediate and 
 practical results of the painful exercises to which we have 
 now been adverting. One of the most observable of these 
 is a strong desire for a more deep feeling of compassion 
 and sympathy, more of the tender yearning of his 
 blessed Master. As Christ suffered being tempted, that 
 He might be able to succour those who are tempted, so 
 did this faithful servant of Christ seek to obtain a higher 
 qualification for his work, by the influence of sanctified 
 mental suffering ; and he was thus enabled afterwards to 
 comfort others with the consolation which he himself had 
 received of the Lord. But the results of these trials, 
 which bore more immediately on his ministerial character, 
 were of still higher importance. The revelation which 
 he now obtained of the greatness and seriousness of the 
 office of a Christian preacher, appears never to have left 
 him. Henceforth he was a man of one object, and no 
 demand involved too great labour, no sacrifice was too 
 severe, no opposition too determined and complicated, to 
 deter him from diligently pursuing it. On the other 
 hand, no man could more deeply feel the futility of all 
 labour of itself, or seek more diligently for the aid of the 
 Holy Spirit, upon every religious work, how small soever 
 it might appear. To be a MINISTER OF THE SPIRIT was 
 his highest ambition, and his constant aim ; and how 
 fully he became such may be found recorded in multitudes 
 of living epistles seen and read of all men. 
 
 In the month of May he was, by a slight illness, laid 
 aside from his work for some short time. This affliction 
 was probably sanctified to the tranquillizing of his mind; 
 at least, after this, I find in his papers and correspondence 
 no indication of those continually distressing anxieties, 
 on the subject of the ministerial work, which previously 
 preyed upon his spirits; and, though his discouragement 
 was not entirely removed, yet, as the following extract 
 from a letter to his parents will testify, it was associated 
 E 2
 
 52 MEMOIBS OP THE 
 
 with greater calmness of feeling, and more established 
 resolution and hope. 
 
 "You*, May 29, 1817. Of late I have had many 
 visits from the Lord, especially in private. Mr. Bramwell 
 once said, ' If you wish for any great and lasting blessing, 
 expect it in private.' Many here speak very clearly on 
 entire sanctification ; and, I believe, give satisfactory 
 evidence that they are in possession of that blessing. "Who 
 is a people like unto this people ? The District-Meeting 
 commenced on Wednesday. I was rather afraid that the 
 list of books which I had read since I became a travelling 
 preacher would incur the censure of the meeting: how- 
 ever, it was quite the reverse. I hope to be more diligent 
 than ever. I still anticipate almost insurmountable diffi- 
 culties in preaching. I am ashamed of my sermons, but 
 I yet hope. This hope, how it encourages animates 
 strengthens ! Mr. Nelson is.as valuable to me as ever." 
 
 The following extract, dated August 20, 1817, will 
 furnish a still more clear and satisfactory view of the state 
 of his mind. It is from a letter addressed to the niece 
 of Mrs. Kelson, Miss Ellen Hamer, who afterwards 
 became his wife, and is now his mourning widow. 
 
 " 0, maintain holy familiarity between your soul and 
 God ! Make Him your friend and associate. Cast all 
 your care on Him ; He careth for you. I am glad that 
 you have such an encouraging view of the fulness of the 
 promises. Examine yourself by the word, your experience 
 by the promises, and your conduct by the requisitions. 
 My soul is alive to God, and I am longing to be more 
 conformed to the image of my Saviour. I am determined 
 by the grace of God to aim at souls : a minister of the 
 Gospel is sent to turn men from darkness to light, and 
 from the power of Satan to God. I feel myself a poor, 
 weak, unworthy, insignificant creature ; but if the Lord 
 please to employ me, He can make me useful. In Him 
 I trust, and they that trust in Him shall never be con- 
 founded." Then, in allusion to Miss H.'s engagement 
 at the time in a young ladies' boarding-school, he adds
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 53 
 
 the following concise and pithy directions : " As it 
 respects the business of the school, maintain your autho- 
 rity, be attentive, do your pupils ail the good you can, 
 be an original in teaching, use familiar illustrations, 
 make everything pleasing, and you will succeed." 
 
 VI. 
 
 BARXARD-CASTLE. 18171818. 
 
 AT the Conference of 1817, Mr. Smith was appointed 
 to the Barnard-Castle and Weardale circuit. His colleagues 
 were the Rev. Messrs. Rogerson, sen., and Elliott. He> 
 was now more fully thrown on his own resources, and he 
 had ample opportunity of ascertaining the value of his 
 new views and principles. His circuit was in many 
 respects favourable to the experiment. It was of con- 
 siderable extent, and the people were simple and lively. 
 They had little of that false delicacy which in other places 
 might have proved at this period a source of considerable 
 discouragement. In general, they appear to have valued 
 the zeal and labours of their new minister, and to have in 
 a degree co-operated in his plans. From the beginning 
 he was gratified with the field of usefulness in which he 
 had been placed. A finely diversified country also pre- 
 sented to him those sources of delight which, to an ob- 
 servant and devout mind, the loveliness of creation never 
 fails to open ; and on the whole he entered upon his work 
 with tranquillity of mind, and a religious resolution to 
 give himself wholly to the duties of his sacred vocation. 
 
 Although separated in person from his friend Mr. 
 Nelson, he still maintained an epistolary correspondence 
 with him. Mr. N.'s first letter is so pointed, so charac- 
 teristic, and so paternal, that I think none of my 
 readers will deem the insertion of an extract from it 
 irrelevant to our present subject. 
 
 " YORK, Nov. 7, 1817. Mr DEAR BROTHER, I received 
 your welcome epistle. I bless God for strengthening 
 E 3
 
 54 MEMOIE3 OF THE 
 
 your body and soul, and also giving you to see some fruit. 
 The Gospel of God our Saviour, preached in faith, will be 
 followed with signs more interesting than even taking up 
 serpents, or drinking deadly poison, and sustaining no 
 harm thereby. Always go sword in hand, and beg of 
 God the power of the Spirit, while you raise it to His 
 glory; that prejudice, with every opposition, may be cut 
 down. Eye your Captain; hear His voice; follow 
 closely; be deaf to the voice of the enemy. Now is your 
 time to play the man. Do not study until your head 
 aches. Lay your plans short but clear : look always for 
 Divine aid ; and after you have spread the net, close it 
 with great care, that you may there and then bring some 
 to shore. I lately heard a good sermon ; the net was 
 well spread, and at the close the righteous were encou- 
 raged and the wicked threatened ; but no attempt was 
 made to catch a fish. We had better catch a few fishes 
 with a little net, than dash with a great one, and let them 
 all slip under or by the side. Preach in the Holy Ghost, 
 and, before you dismiss your audience, offer them salvation 
 now. Remember first to convert, and then the good 
 fruit will follow : only, the rebel must lay down his 
 weapons, yea, all of them, or he will not succeed with 
 his Prince ; but they may be all dropped in a moment. 
 Never lose sight of present salvation, nor of God who is 
 to work it. Give Him all the glory. Should any attempt 
 to praise you, dart immediately to God, ' Lord, I am 
 Thine ; save me ! ' 
 
 " My soul is kept in peace and purity. I have some 
 good times in the new chapel. We are all peace : would 
 to God we had prosperity also. We had better be saved 
 in a storm than lost in a calm. God bless you : write 
 soon. I am," &c. 
 
 In a letter to his parents, dated September 3d, Mr. 
 Smith, after stating his safe arrival, proceeds: " The day 
 after, I set out for Weardale ; I went about twenty miles 
 to a place called High-house. I had a very pleasant 
 journey, and was much pleased with the romantic scenes 
 which presented themselves to my view. It is the finest
 
 BI.V. JOHN SMITH. 55 
 
 dale that ever I saw. I arrived safe, and met with a 
 hearty welcome. I preached on Saturday night, and 
 again on Sunday morning and afternoon. You would 
 have been astonished to have seen the congregation : 
 there are but a few houses about the chapel, and yet there 
 were well towards a thousand people. It is the largest 
 chapel in the circuit. The people of Weardale are rather 
 languid : the pressure of the times has had an unfavour- 
 able influence on their minds ; but they hope to rise. 
 They are celebrated for music up the dale ; many of the 
 women sing sweetly. I came to Barnard-Castle yesterday. 
 I went to see my colleagues, and we had prayer together. 
 I am much pleased with the circuit and people. My 
 health, I hope, will be established. My soul is alive, 
 blessed be God ! I feel myself as a little child, and I 
 have a child-like confidence. By the grace of God, I will 
 aim at souls. I know you pray for me, and God answers 
 you : pray on. Mr. Nelson prays for me ; God bless him." 
 
 About the same time, I find the following private 
 memorandum : " I feel deeply humbled under a sense 
 of my unfaithfulness ; still I am encouraged to put my 
 trust in God. By His grace, I will aim at converting 
 and saving souls. for more fellow-feeling ! I think 
 my views of the plan of salvation are clearer, but I want 
 more of the Spirit. My health is better than I ex- 
 pected. Yesterday and to-day, I have been unwell. 
 May the Lord pardon my imprudence, and help me to 
 act with caution in future ! " 
 
 Caution was, indeed, the more necessary at this time, 
 since his constitution was in a critical state ; and, in addi- 
 tion to much travelling, he not unfrequently had to preach 
 thrice on the Sabbath, and on every evening of the week 
 besides. It would have been a happy circumstance, had 
 his care of his health (the duty of which he was always 
 most ready to admit) extended itself fully to his public 
 labours. Unless, however, he entirely exhausted his 
 strength, and felt the immediate results of his extreme 
 exertion, in great debility; or, by some other token, 
 equally palpable, was made sensible of having acted
 
 56 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 imprudently; he does not appear to have heen aware that 
 he was at all injuring himself. The gradual undermining 
 of his constitution was the natural consequence ; and thus 
 to the church and the world were early lost the light and 
 guidance of a fair star from the moral hemisphere. At 
 the commencement of his labours at Barnard-Castle, 
 however, his health was generally very good. 
 
 Under the date of September 27th, he writes to his 
 parents : "I am as well as I ever have been since I 
 had the measles ; and I have had, I think, more signal 
 manifestations of the Divine presence since I came to 
 Barnard-Castle than I ever had. 0, unite with me in 
 blessing God for His continued and increasing goodness. 
 ' Bless the Lord, my soul : and all that is within me, 
 bless His holy name. Bless the Lord,0 my soul, and forget 
 not all His benefits !' I see there is nothing like entering 
 into God's design concerning us. He wishes to make us 
 perfectly holy, and to fill us with all His fulness. We 
 should aim at this ; not merely to get to heaven, but to 
 be as fit for heaven as we can be, and to have as much 
 of heaven as we can have while in this world. In order 
 to this, we must believe much. Let us give credit to God's 
 word, and realize the blessing in the promise. Let us 
 behold as in a glass the glory of the Lord, and be changed 
 into the same image from glory to glory as by the Spirit 
 of the Lord. Let us look on Him in Jesus Christ ; at His 
 love, till our hearts are set on fire ; at His purity, till we 
 are made pure. It is by holding intercourse with God 
 that we are transformed into His likeness. Let us come 
 with childlike simplicity and confidence. Let us plead 
 the blood ! plead the blood ! 
 
 " Blessed be God, it is good news. We are poor, 
 helpless, hell-deserving sinners, but Jesus hath died for 
 us for me. the sweetness of this ! for ME. This 
 makes me love God. It constrains me. Let us con- 
 stantly feel this : 
 
 ' for a heart to praise my God, 
 
 A heart from sin set free ! 
 A heart that always feels Thy blood 
 So freely spilt for me."
 
 RET. JOHN SMITH. 57 
 
 How insignificant the world seems when we have much of 
 God !" In another part of the same communication he 
 speaks of his happiness with his colleagues ; and, having 
 now had the opportunity of judging more fully on the 
 subject, he says, "I believe some part of the circuit will 
 be very severe in winter, but I hope it will agree with me. 
 At present the country is delightful, far more so than the 
 neighbourhood of York," &c. 
 
 To Miss H. " Sept. 30, 1817. I am glad that you 
 are longing for a full salvation : bring it to a point. I 
 urge your petition. He still says, ' I will sprinkle clean, 
 water upon you, and you shall be clean.' Has He not 
 power ? Yes : He is almighty to save. Is He not willing ? 
 Yes : for ' for this purpose the Son of Man was mani- 
 fested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.' 
 Does He not require us to be holy ? Yes : for without 
 holiness ' no man can see the Lord.' And He says, ' Be ye 
 holy, for I am holy.' 0, then, be sensible, you must be 
 holy ; acknowledge that you cannot make yourself holy, 
 and be assured that He is willing to make you holy ; and 
 I hope this will induce you to say, ' I will not let Thee 
 go, until Thou bless me.' " 
 
 His anxiety on the subject of preaching had not yet 
 entirely left him ; as will appear from the following 
 extract from his private papers, under the date of October 
 16: "I am humbled on account of my vileness, my 
 ignorance, and unfaithfulness. I am much concerned on 
 account of my inability for the awfully important work in 
 which I am engaged. If the Lord be not with me, I shall 
 sink. If He has called me to the work, He will stand 
 by me ; He will be my helper. Lord, help me to get 
 into and abide in Thy will. ' Good is the will of the Lord.'" 
 
 It sometimes consists with God's good pleasure, and 
 perhaps it is a special act of Divine sovereignty, to apply 
 with peculiar power to the minds of His people, while 
 engaged in devotion, some appropriate portion or portions 
 of Scripture. Those to whom such communications are 
 granted are frequently persons in circumstances of trial, 
 or in some other condition which demands more than ordi-
 
 58 MEMOIK8 OP IHE 
 
 nary direction and comfort. They only who have heard 
 the voice of -God, can form an idea of the stability and 
 repose which it communicates to the spirit. The subject 
 of these memoirs was at this time privileged by this 
 emphatic adaptation of Scripture truth to his condition. 
 In two several instances, while engaged in prayer, 
 passages of God's word were applied with Divine power 
 'to his mind. The one was Prov. iii. 6 : " In all thy ways 
 acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths." The 
 other, Matt. vi. 33 : " But seek ye first the kingdom of 
 God, and His righteousness ; and all these things shall be 
 added unto you." Their united influence on the one 
 hand soothed, and on the other stimulated, him. From this 
 period I cannot understand that he was ever disturbed on 
 the subject of his call to the ministry, and the following 
 extracts will readily be admitted as indicative of the 
 quickened state of his personal piety. The most interest- 
 ing feature of the first is the emphasis with which its 
 writer speaks on the subject of humility ; that virtue, 
 the perfection of which is, perhaps of all the virtues in 
 the Christian character, the least enjoyed, and the last 
 attained. 
 
 To HIS PARENTS. " Oct. 22, 1817. 0, what hum- 
 blings I have had of late ! My soul has been in the 
 dust before the Lord, and at the same time I have felt 
 the confidence of a little child. I love to be in this state. 
 In your class, press the necessity of purity of heart ; show 
 that it is received and retained by faith ; show it to be a 
 privilege. 0, what a happiness to be delivered from all 
 anger, peevishness, pride, malice, &c., and to be filled 
 with gentleness, patience, humility, love, &c. ! Let us 
 feast ourselves on Jesus. Let us contemplate Him, 
 our infant Saviour, in Bethlehem, and be humbled. 
 Let us listen to Him, 'Foxes have holes, and the 
 birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man 
 hath not where to lay His head,' and be humbled. Let 
 us look at Him washing His disciples' feet, and be 
 humbled . Let us walk with Him in the garden, view Him 
 prostrate on the ground, sweating great drops of blood,
 
 KEY. JOHN SMITH. 59 
 
 hear Him crying, ' If it be possible, let this cup pass from 
 Me,' and be humbled. Let us behold Him on the cross, 
 and be humbled : yet still let us be confident." And 
 this is evangelical humility ; since that alone can consist 
 with confidence. Nothing can be more anti-evangelical 
 than the doctrine which makes inbred sin necessary to the 
 production of humility. The lowliness of mind which 
 the Gospel commends is the lowliness of love, and not 
 the depression which results from the consciousness of 
 our own depravity. 
 
 In another part of the same lettor, Mr. Smith thus 
 speaks of the work of God : " The work of the Lord is 
 prospering, especially at Barnard -Castle. Glory be to 
 God ! a spirit of prayer is given. Last Tuesday week 
 four souls obtained liberty; on Sunday night, after 
 preaching, two or three ; and last night, one. There 
 seems to be a good work on the minds of many. that 
 God would pour out His Spirit upon us in an abundant 
 manner! There are several seeking purity of heart: this 
 gladdens me. I am expecting to see good days. You 
 are in a deplorable state at Cudworth : so many back- 
 sliders; so many who have been pricked to the heart, and 
 yet will not turn to the Lord. 0, do not cease to cry to 
 God! make an effort; do not be ashamed to be a fool 
 for Christ's sake. You will remain low if extraordinary 
 exertions are not made. Extraordinary effects are not 
 produced by ordinary means." 
 
 The soundness of these views will be appreciated by all 
 whohave made them selves conversant with the indications 
 of a prosperous and promising condition of the work of 
 God. One of Mr. Smith's principles was, that the world 
 is to be benefited through the agency of the church, and 
 that signal manifestations of Divine power in awaken- 
 ing and conversion are to be expected, through a 
 quickened state of piety among believers. ] n the fore- 
 going extract, he refers to the means, through the Divine 
 blessing, upon which we may rationally anticipate the 
 salvation of sinners, and the enlargement of the taber- 
 nacles of the faithful. These are, increased desires after
 
 60 MEMOIES OF THE 
 
 holiness, the spirit of prayer, and extraordinary effort 
 among the people of God. And if those who are most 
 holy are likely to be the most concerned for the salvation 
 of men, and to have most of the power of the Holy Ghost ; 
 if God will hear the voice of His elect, who cry day and 
 night to Him for the outpouring of the Spirit; and if they 
 who are most scripturally diligent and energetic must be 
 the most successful; it follows that the principle to which 
 we have just alluded, with the practical illustration which 
 accompanies it, is in the most perfect manner borne out 
 in Scripture and matter of fact. 
 
 The converse must be equally true, that, where no 
 sinners are converted, a church must be either defective 
 in its views, or low in its attainments. Where there is no 
 influence diffused without, the principle ofpiety is certainly 
 languid within ; where there is no shining, there is little 
 lurning, light ; where souls are not saved, Christians in 
 general must be imperfect in the character or degree of 
 their personal religion. The building up of believers on 
 their most holy faith was a principal object of Mr. Smith's 
 ministry ; but he never considered this species of labour 
 successful, except as its results were indicated in the con- 
 version of sinners. That edification he justly deemed of 
 a very low and questionable order which was not accom- 
 panied by a spirit of intercession for those who were 
 without God, by " the work of faith, and the labour of 
 love." He rationally argued, that where there were no 
 answers to prayer, the throne of grace could not be very 
 ardently importuned ; where there was no outpouring of 
 the Spirit, the promise of the Spirit could not be very 
 determinately pleaded ; where there was no exertion for 
 perishing men, there could not be much of the bowels of 
 Jesus Christ. And whether that Christian society can be 
 correctly esteemed in a high and advancing state of im- 
 provement where prayer is cold and cursory, where faith 
 is weak, and love is listless, it requires no great sagacity 
 to determine. 
 
 They will have a very partial and incorrect view of 
 Mr. Smith's ministry, who suppose that its benefits were
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 61 
 
 wholly confined to those who were awakened and con- 
 verted through its instrumentality. It is true that he 
 embraced every opportunity of attempting to rouse the 
 consciences of such as were hardened by the deceitfulness 
 of sin ; but he anticipated extensive success, even in this 
 respect, only as the faith and intercessions of God's people 
 were brought to accompany his efforts. His labours, he 
 knew, could be succeeded or frustrated by them alone. 
 Hence he strove primarily to obtain the quickening in- 
 fluences of the Spirit upon them : nor was he unsuccess- 
 ful. Had it been possible that his exertions for the 
 conversion of sinners should prove utterly unavailing ; 
 had he never succeeded in awaking the most transient 
 alarm in a stupefied conscience, or the smallest desire after 
 goodness in a depraved heart ; had he never plucked one 
 brand from the fire, nor ever pointed a penitent to the 
 blood of Christ ; still his memory would be blessed in 
 our Zion, for the many instances in which, through his 
 instrumentality, the Spirit Was " poured upon us from on 
 high, and the wilderness " became a " fruitful field," and 
 what was once esteemed a " fruitful field," in the com- 
 parison, was " counted for a forest." In short, the 
 retrospect of his labours furnishes the most satisfactory 
 sanction to his favourite opinion on this subject, that he 
 most certainly and perfectly edifies believers who is most 
 ardently and SSCUIPTUKALLY laborious for the conversion of 
 sinners. 
 
 Mr. Smith's experience continued to be, in general, 
 happy and prosperous. In one of his letters at this time, 
 he says, " 1 am sometimes oppressed with an overwhelm- 
 ing sense of the goodness of God. My cheeks are 
 moistened with tears of gratitude, and I can call God my 
 Father with such a Divine sweetness." In another, " You 
 may be sure that the enemy has been very busy with me: 
 but, blessed be God, I feel power to cast my helpless soul 
 on His mercy, through Jesus Christ." Again, " I have 
 a praying heart, and a child-like confidence, but I want 
 to be delivered from all distrust. I can feelingly say, 
 ' Christ died for me, and ever liveth to make intercession 
 F
 
 62 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 for me.' Yet I see I know but little, I enjoy but little, 
 compared with what I might know and enjoy: but I wish 
 to proceed ; my privileges will unfold, my prospects will 
 brighten. I expect to meet with difficulties, but my 
 Saviour says, ' Be of good cheer : I have overcome.' In 
 His strength I am strong. I have had some refreshing 
 seasons of late in private : these greatly encourage me." 
 
 In consequence of the prospect of good things in 
 Barnard-Castle, Mr. S. was betrayed, at the latter part 
 of the year, into exertions too great for his strength; and 
 the result was, that for several weeks he was very unwell, 
 and compelled entirely to relinquish his beloved employ- 
 ment. This affliction, under such circumstances, was 
 particularly trying to him ; but he says of it, in one of 
 his letters, " Upon the whole, I think I have learned 
 some important lessons ; it is good for me that I have 
 been afflicted." Of his labours and prospects at this time, 
 he remarks: "Blessed be God, I am encouraged, because 
 I do not altogether labour in vain. The people in Bar- 
 nard-Castle are rising, and increasing a little. I am 
 increasingly attached to them. that the Lord may 
 fully qualify me for my important work ! " At the begin- 
 ning of 1818 : "I feel a disposition to labour for souls. 
 The people, I mean the society, have got a grand impulse, 
 and I trust the work is going on. Ride on, my God ! 
 may every house be visited, and every heart feel Thy 
 power." A few weeks afterwards : " The people in 
 Barnard- Castle are alive to God, and the prospects in 
 some parts of the circuit are rather cheering. We want 
 a shower of heavenly blessing." 
 
 In the early part of the year 1818, a revival of the 
 work of God took place in his native village. On this 
 occasion, he writes to his father as follows : " I am glad 
 to hear of your prosperity at Cudworth. Only keep the 
 people in action, and you will get on. There is no 
 standing still. 0, let us come to God for great blessings : 
 He is willing to save the world. "VVe must make a noble 
 effort in the name of God, and we shall not labour in 
 vain. The Gospel, preached in faith, must do execution.
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 63 
 
 ' Cry aloud, spare not, sound an alarm in the holy moun- 
 tain.' Oner a present, free, and full salvation, and you 
 will see signs and wonders. Blessed be God, He is doing 
 great things for us at Barnard-Castle. On Sunday last, 
 four souls got into liberty; on Tuesday night, at the 
 prayer-meeting, seven more. Many, I believe, are 
 awakened ; and I expect the work will go on. My soul 
 is alive to God. I am longing for more of the life and 
 power of godliness. I wish to feel What I preach." 
 
 To THE SAME. "April 7, 1818. Blessed be God, 
 He is carrying on His work in my soul. Of late, I have 
 had some precious seasons, both in public and private. I 
 want more of the spirit of prayer. There is nothing like 
 getting filled with the Spirit before we go to the house of 
 God, and then pleading with God in the presence of His 
 people. The Lord is deepening His work in the hearts of 
 professors among us, and awakening and converting 
 sinners. Last Tuesday night, at the prayer-meeting, 
 there were six souls set at liberty. On Sunday night, I 
 preached a funeral sermon, from John ix. 4. At the 
 prayer-meeting afterwards, the Lord brought three into 
 liberty, and I believe many others were much affected. 
 ' This is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our 
 eyes.' " 
 
 To THE SAME. "April 27, 1818. God is still carry- 
 ing on His good work among us. I was much pleased 
 with a woman at Staindrop, who was converted as 
 clearly, and in as scriptural a way, as ever I knew any 
 one. I saw her the next day : she was still praising 
 God. I asked, ' How was it that you were made happy?' 
 She said, ' While you were showing Christ as a Saviour, 
 and telling us to believe on Him, I thought, I can believe, 
 I can believe ! Something said, I was to repent longer 
 yet ; but I said, I think I can believe I do believe ! IT 
 CAMK, and I believed that God had pardoned all my sins.' 
 On the Tuesday following, a woman came from the same 
 place to Cockfield : at the prayer-meeting, after preach- 
 ing, she was enabled to believe on Jesus Christ to the 
 saving of her soul, and she went home rejoicing in God. 
 F 2
 
 64 MEMOIES OF THE 
 
 0, let us go on in the name of the Lord, and expect 
 present effects ; yea, let us be restless for the salvation 
 of souls. We shall not labour in vain. What condescen- 
 sion in God to use such unworthy creatures in the 
 accomplishment of His designs ! The walls of Jericho 
 fell at the blowing of rams' horns. Of late I have had 
 many visits from the Lord. I can venture on Christ 
 for deliverance from sin ; but I want to be filled with 
 all the fulness of God, to have the mind of Christ in 
 me. 0, urge your members to purity of heart ! Much 
 will be done by a single act of faith in the blood of 
 Jesus." 
 
 To Miss HAMEK. " July 1 0, 1 8 1 8. Let us look atten- 
 tively into our hearts, look into the written word, and 
 look up to God for the light of the Spirit to shine upon 
 the heart and the word. Whatever we discover in us 
 contrary to the word, let us bring it before the Lord, (for 
 we cannot take it away ourselves,) and plead with Him 
 until we feel power to venture on Jesus for its destruction. 
 When God speaks to the inmost soul, ' Be clean,' all cor- 
 ruption and defilement shall depart, and purity shall be 
 diffused through the soul. Let us not be discouraged, 
 however frightful our hearts may appear, and however 
 feeble and helpless we may feel : Jesus' s blood is all- 
 cleansing ; Jesus' s grace is all-powerful. Jesus is ours by 
 faith. God offers Him to us. 0, let us lay hold of a 
 whole Saviour ! Let us force ourselves to the foot of the 
 cross, lift up our eyes, and look to Jesus, till our hearts 
 are pierced to the very bottom with His dying love. Let 
 us continue there till His love has melted us down, that 
 we may receive and retain the impress Divine. ' Be ye 
 perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is per- 
 fect.' ' Be ye holy, for I am holy.' ' For this purpose 
 was the Son of God manifested in the flesh, that He 
 might ' what ? subdue the works of the devil ? weaken 
 the power of sin in the heart ? No ; but ' that He might 
 destroy the works of the devil.' 0, then, let us say as 
 God says, ' Destruction complete destruction to sin ! ' 
 Faith, which is a continued and conscious act, will preserve
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 65 
 
 us pure. Let us cry day and night to God for this faith, 
 perfect faith. We shall meet with much opposition. The 
 world cannot do with this : the devil hates this : but few 
 professors will do with this : but the will of God ! the will 
 of God ! Make good use of your time ; live by rule ; 
 love Jesus with all your heart ; be solicitous to have 
 those committed to your care early converted to God. 
 I am," &c. 
 
 Mr. Smith this year attended the Conference which was 
 held at Leeds. A principal reason which induced him to 
 do so, was a wish to converse with, and receive instruc- 
 tions from, the venerable WILLIAM BRAMWELL. Of the 
 manners of this eminently useful minister, Mr. Smith's 
 prepossessions were rather unfavourable ; and he thought 
 it not improbable that his inquiries would be met with 
 something like austerity. At every expense, however, he 
 resolved, if possible, to gain the information which a man 
 of Mr. Bramwell's character would alone be able to com- 
 municate. Like the Athenian who said to his opponent 
 in council, " Strike, but hear me ; " so he, with his 
 characteristic disregard to everything but improvement, 
 was willing to be rebuked if he could but be instructed. 
 He had several opportunities of being in Mr. B.'s society. 
 On one occasion, if not oftener, he was accompanied by 
 Mr. Stoner, and in this interview the distinction bet ween 
 the two friends must have been sufficiently marked. 
 Mr. Smith asked a variety of questions on the subject 
 of Christian experience, and the best methods of carrying 
 on the work of God. He stated at large his own diffi- 
 culties and plans, proposing inquiries on each as it was 
 mentioned. Mr. Bramwell looked surprised, but replied 
 in a concise and generally in a satisfactory manner 
 Mr. Stoner in the meantime sat by, listening with pro- 
 found attention, and in unbroken silence ; and, as he 
 afterwards confessed to him, wondering at the readiness 
 with which his friend succeeded in drawing forth the 
 lights of an experience so deep and varied. In the 
 course of a few days after this conversation, the treasures 
 of Mr. Bram well's ardent and manly heart were for ever 
 
 F3
 
 66 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 sealed to all earthly inquiries by the hand of death ; 
 and it was an act worthy the close of so signally useful 
 a life, thus to cast his garment on one who already 
 emulated his spirit, and who subsequently, to so great a 
 degree, inherited his success. 
 
 The period which Mr. Smith spent at Barnard-Castle, 
 he at this time described to Mr. Clarkson as having been 
 the happiest year of his life. He had been rendered 
 very useful; his talents were more fully developing 
 themselves, and his character was becoming more per- 
 fectly formed. It would, therefore, have been agreeable 
 to all parties for him to be re-appointed to that 
 circuit. The only reason which prevented this arrange- 
 ment was the state of his health, which, by a situation 
 so northerly, and a climate occasionally so severe, had 
 in several cases already been injuriously affected. It was 
 thought, therefore, that the southern coast of England 
 was more adapted to his present circumstances ; and he 
 was accordingly appointed to the Brighton circuit, under 
 the superintendence of the Eev. F. Calder. 
 
 VII. 
 BKIGHTOJS. 18181819. 
 
 To a man of nervous mind and resolute decision, 
 nothing seems to give so great an increase of determi- 
 nation as the absence of all encouragement from without. 
 A feeble spirit will falter in such a situation ; but the 
 having to rely on his own resources, makes him who is 
 capable of elevation truly great. Where mighty interests 
 the interests of truth and eternity depend upon the 
 principles which such an one has espoused, or the plans 
 which he has adopted, his perseverance under discoui'age- 
 ment is the highest moral sublimity ; the truest and 
 most illustrious heroism. No test of strength of mind 
 is so severe, or so infallible. An obstinate man may be 
 rendered confirmedly pertinacious by contradiction ; but
 
 BEV. JOEN SMITH. 67 
 
 it is the attribute of nobleness and greatness alone, to 
 triumph over neglect, indifference, or neutrality. 
 
 The removal of Mr. Smith to the south of England 
 was, at this period of his life, the most happy arrange- 
 ment which could have been made for the establishment 
 of his principles, and the completion of his character. 
 The societies to which he was now introduced, it is true, 
 were able to discern and value ministerial zeal and 
 diligence. They possessed many members of great per- 
 sonal devotedness, whose piety was silently but powerfully 
 influential, and whose hearts longed for the prosperity 01 
 Zion. But the appearance among them of a man of Mr. 
 Smith's peculiar views, and singular modes of operation; 
 was in many respects a phenomenon. They had nc 
 previously formed standard of ministerial character by 
 which he could be measured ; there was no class under 
 which he could be ranged. They required time fully to 
 comprehend the man and his principles. They were 
 at first startled and confounded, and, of consequence, 
 unable to come to any correct or even sober judgment 
 concerning him. Meanwhile, he was of course without 
 any considerable co-operation on their part. He was 
 alone; a man " to be wondered at." It was now to be 
 tried whether he would sink into an ordinary character, 
 or whether he would become more established and 
 eminent than he could have been with the assistance 
 and encouragement which, in the northern parts of the 
 kingdom, he might at all times to a considerable extent 
 have secured. It was a crisis of fearful importance. Is 
 it too much to say, that the destinies of multitudes of 
 immortal men were suspended on its issue ? And if those 
 philanthropic spirits who serve "the heirs of salvation" 
 contemplate with the deepest concern the moral crisis of 
 the history of an individual, with what anxiety musl 
 they watch the turning-point in the character of a 
 minister, and especially such an one as John Smith ! 
 All glory to God, the decision in this case was worthy 
 a strong and enlightened mind. How many will for 
 ever adore that grace which at this time wrought
 
 68 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 effectually in him, the revelation of the great day alone 
 can determine. 
 
 The following extract from his private papers will serve 
 to show with what pious and humble feeling he entered 
 upon his new situation. "BRIGHTON, Sept. 1, 1818. I 
 am ashamed before the Lord on account of my unfaith- 
 fulness ; yet I feel encouraged to put my trust in Him. 
 He is a God of boundless mercy. I have an affecting 
 sense of my own inability ; the Lord must undertake for 
 me. I wish to be useful. By the grace of God, I will 
 aim at souls. The people here seem very kind, but the 
 place is very gay. I know not how to proceed. Lord, 
 direct and strengthen me, and deliver me from the fear 
 of man. that this may be a growing year to my soul, 
 and a year of general prosperity throughout the circuit !" 
 
 In his superintendent Mr. Smith found a true and 
 stanch friend, who discerned and estimated his real 
 character and worth, and who has amply contributed 
 to these pages, principally characteristic notices of the 
 present period. 
 
 At the commencement of his ministry at Brighton, 
 Mr. S. seems particularly to have dwelt upon the high 
 calling of believers, with the hope of producing among 
 them that quickened feeling which, as has been already 
 noticed, he deemed essential to permanent prosperity in 
 the church of God. He particularly insisted on the 
 necessity of Christian perfection ; and that so frequently 
 and emphatically, that at the conclusion of one of his 
 sermons on the subject, a member of the congregation 
 met him at the foot of the pulpit- stairs, and accosted him 
 with, " So, Mr. Smith, you have given us the old thing 
 over again ! " " Yes," said he, with his accustomed 
 benignant smile, " and till all your hearts are cleansed 
 from sin, you shall have it still over and over again." 
 Nor were his labours in this respect without encourage- 
 ment. In one of his first letters to his parents, dated 
 October 8th, he says, " I trust we shall have a revival 
 of the work of God. We have had a few drops ; several 
 seem to be longing for purity of heart."
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 69 
 
 The following interesting testimony of the state of his 
 own experience, and the fulness and force of his views of 
 evangelical truth, is also from the same letter. " Blessed 
 be God, He is carrying on His good work in my soul. 
 He has of late poured upon me a spirit of wrestling 
 prayer. He has also astonishingly answered my prayers. 
 I hang upon Him continually, and He keeps my soul in 
 peace. There is nothing like getting into, and keeping 
 in, action. Let us be constantly at work ; we shall soon 
 have done : the night is coming on apace. If our work 
 be done, we shall have a calm night. The Lord still 
 inclines me to offer and urge a present and full salvation. 
 The Gospel offers nothing less than a full salvation. "We 
 want the faith that cannot ask in vain : a holy panting, 
 labouring, hungering, thirsting; and this constantly. 
 Self-denial is absolutely necessary. Do not hear much 
 of ' I am unworthy,' in your class. God does not save 
 us because we are worthy, but because He is bountiful. 
 God knows that we are unworthy, and therefore offers 
 us the blessings of salvation freely. Should we not be 
 nearer the truth if we were to say, ' I will have a little 
 sin to remain ; a little pride, anger, love of the world, 
 &c. ? ' 0, let us say as God says, Destruction to sin ! 
 And we must have the whole man engaged constantly in 
 the service of God, or we shall soon be tainted again." 
 
 Under the date of Nov. 2d of this year he writes thus 
 to Miss Hamer : " Last Monday morning J. P. died of a 
 cut which he had received the week before. I saw him 
 the day before he died. I said, ' Is the Lord precious to 
 you in your suffering ? ' He replied, ' I have a steady 
 reliance upon Him.' ' Do you think you will die ? ' 'I 
 have not thought much about it ; but, if I were to die now, 
 I should go to heaven.' He was nearly eighteen years of 
 age, had met in class about five years, and for three years 
 had had a constant sense of the approbation of God. 
 
 " While I have been pleading with God, I have seen 
 such a fulness in Christ, that I have been encouraged to 
 cast my poor soul upon Him. The Lord is very kind to 
 me, but I am like a child who cannot rest except when
 
 70 MEMOIBS OF THE 
 
 his father is saying, < My dear child, I love you/ I want 
 more faith. God has given me the greatest proof of His 
 love in giving His only-begotten Son to be the propitation 
 for my sins. I must believe, whatever I feel. All prayer 
 will secure us constant victory. Stand firm, and Satan 
 cannot harm you. He is a chained enemy. Do not put 
 yourself within the reach of danger, and, ' having done 
 all, stand.' Mason's ' Self-Knowledge' will do you good. 
 Head your Bible much." 
 
 Of Mr. Smith's personal attachment to the word of 
 God, and its influence on his ministry, the testimony 
 of Mr. Calder is very striking. " The whole force of his 
 mind," Mr. C. remarks, "was directed to the object for 
 the accomplishment of which he undertook the Christian 
 ministry, the presenting God's truth to men in order to 
 effect the salvation of those who heard him. And while 
 he was fully capable of luxuriating in the riches of literary 
 pleasures, he steadily and conscientiously avoided that 
 species of reading which, though innocent in itself, was 
 not immediately connected with his great work. He 
 would frequently remark to me, in relation to any work 
 of a generally interesting character, ' Yes, it is very good, 
 I have no doubt : I shall be glad to read it at a future 
 period, if God spare my life ; but I must read my Bible 
 more ; I must devour God's book, or how can I know His 
 mind ? I do not legislate for others, but I must be allowed 
 tofollowmy own views on this subject.' The result was, 
 a distinctness of conception on the subjects of evangelical 
 and experimental religion, accompanied by a simplicity 
 and perspicuity of statement, I had almost said, unique 
 in its kind. His style and manner of preaching always 
 accorded with the great end of leading men to God ; it 
 was emphatically scriptural, and, in the best sense of the 
 term, highly theological. Indeed, he was a great divine, 
 if understanding God's word makes a man such, and 
 especially understanding and exhibiting God's mode of 
 saving a sinner. 
 
 " His memory was extraordinary : and I believe it 
 would have cost him very little trouble to commit any
 
 KEV. JOHN SMITH. 71 
 
 moderate-sized volume to its storehouse. To God's book 
 his pious and devout heart turned as to an ever-living 
 fountain of truth and light, to satiate and delight his 
 soul. He usually read twelve chapters, or the whole of 
 a scripture book, in a day, and committed a portion of it 
 to memory. In consequence of being short-sighted, and 
 not able to read when travelling on foot, he was accus- 
 tomed to repeat some considerable portion of the sacred 
 oracles as he itinerated his circuit ; and when I informed 
 him on one occasion, in a village where he met me to 
 assist in holding a Missionary Meeting, that he must 
 preach before the public meeting commenced, it being his 
 appointment, he smilingly replied that he had no sermon 
 to preach, but that he would go into the pulpit, and 
 repeat the epistle of St. James, having just done so on 
 the road as he walked to the village. I need scarcely 
 add, that we had not the epistle so repeated ; yet it 
 ought to be stated, that amongst those causes which con- 
 tributed to the wonderful success attending his ministerial 
 labours, the aptitude with which he could use the sword 
 of the Spirit may be deemed not one of the least. To 
 souls in distress on account of sin his quotations of 
 Scripture, as suited to their state, were singularly appro- 
 priate, and attended with blessed effects. 
 
 " His own views of Divine truth might, with great 
 propriety, be described as those of a minister of the Spirit. 
 His mode of presenting the subject of God's love to man, 
 His willingness to save sinners, the value of the atonement, 
 and the power of faith to secure personal salvation, as 
 known in its different degrees of justification or entire 
 purity, might well entitle him to the designation of a 
 master in Israel." 
 
 Notwithstanding his simplicity, plainness, and vehe- 
 mence, the congregations at Brighton increased consider- 
 ably soon after his arrival. Some, no doubt, came from 
 motives of curiosity, many were surprised, and a few were 
 terrified. His own feelings may be readily gathered from, 
 the following sentences, from a letter to a friend written 
 in the beginning of November : " Our congregations
 
 72 MEMOIKS OF THE 
 
 increase at Brighton, but we are not got into the way, I 
 am afraid, of looking for present blessings. This is of 
 the greatest importance. He cannot do many mighty 
 works because of our unbelief. In the circuit, I had a 
 prayer-meeting after preaching in every place during my 
 last round : we saw nothing very particular. Persever- 
 ance ! we must have souls converted.'" 
 
 Under the influence of this last sentiment, he appears 
 constantly to have lived. Whether in the pulpit or in the 
 closet, in social intercourse or alone, he never lost sight 
 of the great design of his mission. " Of that species of 
 preaching," Mr. Calder observes, " which only produced 
 intellectual pleasure, he had a holy abhorrence." Nothing 
 can be more characteristic of the man than his remark 
 to a friend, on sermons in which power of intellect or- 
 imagination is almost exclusively predominant : " They ' 
 achieve nothing, Sir." Perfectly capable, as he was, of 
 appreciating what was refined and intellectual, a sermon 
 which achieved nothing, however characterized by taste, 
 argument, eloquence, or even abstract and generalizing 
 theology, was to him merely as the play of the painted 
 fly in the sunshine, whose parent is a worm, and whose 
 life is a day. " The importance of the object of his 
 vocation held his faculties in a state of excitement which 
 was too rigid to be affected by lighter interests. All 
 his subordinate feelings lost their separate existence and 
 operation by falling into the grand one. There have not 
 been wanting trivial minds who have marked this as a 
 fault in his character : but he is above their sphere of 
 judgment. The invisible spirits who fulfil their com- 
 mission of philanthropy among mortals, do not care about 
 the objects we so much admire : no more did he, when 
 the time which he must have devoted to them would have 
 been taken from the work to which he had consecrated 
 his life. Such a sin against taste is very far beyond the 
 reach of common saintship to commit. It implied an 
 inconceivable severity of conviction, that he had ONE 
 THING TO DO ; and that he who would do some great 
 thing in this short life, must apply himself to the work
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 73 
 
 with such a concentration of his forces as, to idle 
 spectators, looks like insanity." * 
 
 " Where the results which he desired," says Mr. Cal- 
 der, " did not attend his own ministry, he would spend 
 days and nights almost constantly on his knees, weeping 
 and pleading before God, and especially deploring his 
 own inadequacy to the great work of saving souls. He 
 was, at times, when he perceived no movement in the 
 church, literally in agonies; travailing in birth for precious 
 souls, till he saw Christ magnified in their salvation. 
 He was accustomed to say, that a preacher ought to have 
 restless solicitude on the subject of fruit ; that God demands 
 this of us ; and that wherever it is found, it will secure His 
 approbation. How far he was right, let the case of Jere- 
 miah testify, who said, ' If ye will not hear it, my soul 
 shall weep in secret places for your pride, and mine eyes 
 shall weep sore, and run down with tears ;' or indeed, the 
 Prince of preachers, in His weeping over Jerusalem." 
 
 To his parents, who were now as desirous to receive his 
 counsels, as they were formerly anxious that he should 
 listen to theirs, he thus writes, Nov. 13, 1818 : " Have 
 your enemies without : allow them no place within. 
 Open the door of your heart wide : invite Christ, yea, beg 
 of Him to come in, and dwell, and take up all the pi ace; 
 to be Sovereign. He will put down all rule and autho- 
 rity, and bring every thought into subjection. Hear 
 what He says, ' Behold, I stand at the door, and knock : 
 if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come 
 in to him, and sup with him, and he with Me.' Do you 
 believe Him ? He is more ready to enter than we arc 
 to receive Him. The devil will rage, but we must tear 
 ourselves from ourselves, the world, and the devil. When 
 Jesus Christ fills the soul, the commandments of God are 
 not grievous. You know there are many who say, ' I 
 desire, I would wish, I would wish above all things, to 
 serve the Lord.' Now, suppose a man to fall down in 
 your street, and you were to hear him say, ' I desire, I 
 
 * A passage from Foster's Essays, pp. 126, 127, accommodated 
 to the present subject by an intelligent and familiar friend of llr. 8.
 
 74 MEMOIES OP THE 
 
 would wish, I would wish above all things, to get up ! ' 
 What would you say ? Why, ' Man, get up, do not sit 
 whining there : try make the attempt.' 
 
 " God commands us to be holy ; we cannot make 
 ourselves holy. He has promised to make us so : let us 
 enter into His designs. Be close with your class ; tell 
 them they must be saved from sin. You are right re- 
 specting looking to Jesus. This is the way to get, keep, 
 and increase in purity. Let us look intensely, steadily, 
 and constantly to Jesus ; then we shall be pervaded with 
 the rays of His glory, and reflect His image in the world. 
 ' We all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory 
 of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory 
 to glory, as by the Spirit of the Lord.' 
 
 "Through mercy, I continue pretty well. The Lord 
 has blessed me with some signal revelations of His love 
 in my soul since I came to this place. Yesterday Mr. 
 Adams (who is going on a foreign mission) and I had a 
 blessed time in brother D.'s chamber at Lewes. While 
 we were pleading with God, and throwing ourselves on 
 His mercy and protection, He came down and blessed 
 us abundantly. 0, it is a good thing to plead with God ! 
 We want more Bramwells, Longdens, Nelsons. God can 
 ' do for us exceeding abundantly above all that we ask 
 or think.' I have had many conflicts. Christ is strong, 
 and at hand to deliver. Praying that God may bless 
 you with His great salvation, I am," &c. 
 
 " P.S. How comfortable we are in our family ! Mr. 
 Calder is nothing but kindness to me." 
 
 Of Mr. Smith's humility and watchful jealousy over 
 himself, the following private memorandum will give 
 some idea : "Dec. 6, 1818. I am more fully persuaded 
 of the necessity of looking constantly to Jesus, in order 
 to be preserved from falling ; yet 1 am afraid I am not 
 sufficiently sensible of the great evil of falling. Gracious 
 God, deliver me not up to vile affections ! I wish to be 
 more diligent in redeeming the time, and in my studies : 
 I am persuaded that much depends on this. I have been 
 one of the most unfaithful of all the servants of God 5
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 75 
 
 yet I am encouraged to come to Him, because I ' have an 
 Advocate ' with Him, ' Jesus Christ the Righteous ;' and 
 
 ' Jesu's blood, through earth and skies, 
 Mercy, free, boundless mercy, cries ! ' " 
 
 In still further illustration of these amiable and Chris- 
 tian qualities, Mr. Calder relates the following incident : 
 " During Mr. Smith's residence in Brighton, a certain 
 female became deeply distressed on account of her 
 condition as a sinner. He deemed it right to pay her 
 several visits in order to instruct and pray with her. The 
 husband, a violent, unconverted man, was greatly incensed 
 at these intrusions, and, it was said, put Mr. S. out of the 
 house by violence. After his departure from the circuit, 
 this man was converted, and he then greatly deplored his 
 treatment of our friend. In London, I subsequently 
 adverted to the man's behaviour, saying to Mr. Smith 
 that I understood he had thrust him out of the house. 
 ' No,' said he, ' he did not do that; but I saw that he was 
 under the power of strong feelings, and I apprehended 
 that he was about to lay hands upon me. I therefore left 
 the house, not afraid of him, but afraid of myself, not 
 knowing to what I might have been tempted had he 
 touched me.' " 
 
 Nor did his low opinion of himself refer merely to those 
 moral accomplishments which were the most remote from 
 his natural character. It extended itself to the qualities 
 in which, by the united influence of nature and grace, he 
 seemed most fully to excel. How severe, for example, is 
 the following piece of self-accusation! " Dec. 11. I 
 have not had that lively sense of the presence and favour 
 of God, the whole of this day, which I wish to enjoy. I 
 am deeply sensible of my ignorance, and of my want of 
 ability for the work of the ministry ; yet the Lord is 
 all-sufficient, and He will qualify and help. I trust I 
 shall be more diligent than I have been. / have to lament 
 my instability in everything. I have not prayed against 
 it as I ought to have done. By the grace of God, I will 
 moke a renewed effort." 
 
 G 2
 
 76 MEMOIES OF TEE 
 
 Under the same date as the foregoing, he writes thus 
 to Miss Hamer: "I am glad that the good Spirit of 
 God continues to strive with you; but I would just say, 
 do not let Him strive : YIELD to Him : he led by Him 
 at all times. Be as much in private as possible. Come to 
 the throne of grace with boldness. God's having given 
 His Son is an infinite and everlasting proof of His willing- 
 ness to save us to the uttermost. 0, get transforming 
 views of Christ : these you must get in private. Do not 
 rest without the constant enjoyment of the perfect love of 
 God. Get deeper baptisms, signal revelations of the love 
 of God in your heart. Experience the word ; feel that you 
 have the same Spirit that inspired the sacred penmen. 
 Of late I have had severe and peculiar temptations; and, 
 blessed be God, I have had strong and peculiar conso- 
 lation and support." In reference to the work of God, he 
 adds, " Our prospects in the circuit are very cheering. 
 Congregations increase ; the people in many places are 
 greatly quickened, and some are brought out of darkness 
 into God's marvellous light. Last Tuesday night, in one 
 of our country places, there were many in distress, and 
 several professed to be made happy. On Wednesday 
 night also there were some in distress. ! if we were 
 always filled with the Holy Ghost before we go to the 
 house of God, we should see signs and wonders." 
 
 Mr. Smith's letters to his parents usually contain a few 
 words specifically addressed to his mother ; and, as she 
 was often much afflicted, they commonly suggest some 
 topics of consolation. The following is a specimen : 
 "Dec. 22. Your bodily indisposition has a tendency to 
 weigh down your spirits, but cast body and soul on Christ. 
 However you may feel, trust in Christ. Cast your burden 
 on the Lord, and He will sustain you. Like as a father 
 pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear 
 Him. The father attends to the afflicted child, because it is 
 afflicted; and we have not a High Priest who cannot be 
 touched with the feeling of our infirmities," &c. Nothing 
 could be more sober and scriptural, nothing farther 
 removed from the visionary and enthusiastic, than Mr.
 
 KEV. JOHN SMITH. 77 
 
 Smith's sentiments on the subject of Christian consola- 
 tion. One of his friends relates, that " to a person suffer- 
 ing from debility, he said, ' You must not make joy the 
 criterion of your state, but confidence in the truth of 
 God. It would be a miracle for you to rejoice.' And 
 again, to the same person, ' Now do not be giving way 
 to despondency because you are weak. I used to do it, 
 but I know better now. I use my privilege, and rejoice :' " 
 meaning, of course, by the term " rejoice," in this 
 latter case, not to describe the abounding of active de- 
 light, but the calm satisfaction arising from an unshaken 
 sense of God's fidelity. 
 
 In the letter from which the above is extracted, he 
 elsewhere remarks, " Let us plead with God for deeper 
 baptisms. We want more of the Spirit : this should 
 be our grand petition THE SPIBIT. It will purify, trans- 
 form, strengthen, comfort ; yea, all is in the Spirit. Give 
 God no rest. How soon can He come down and shake the 
 mountains, and dash the rocks to pieces ! We may be 
 assured, if we are not saved, the hindrance is in us. Let 
 us take hold of our fellow-creatures, consider ourselves ono 
 with them, and plead with God for them. Blessed be God, 
 He is beginning to work among us in different parts." 
 
 The preceding extract displays one of those grand 
 principles, to which Mr. Smith was so much indebted for 
 his usefulness, SYMPATHT ; the taking hold of our 
 fellow-creatures, and making ourselves one with them, 
 To this, indeed, the most obvious forms of love to souls, 
 and exertion for their welfare, are distinctly referrible. 
 No man feels the value of the soul of another, who has 
 not been made sensible of the worth of his own soul. No 
 man discerns the malignity of sin in the world, who has 
 not felt its bitterness and terror in his own heart. No 
 man is awake to the peril of the ungodly, who has not 
 trembled under the sense of personal danger. No man 
 forms a correct estimate of the value of the atonement, 
 who has not had the blood of Christ sprinkled on his 
 own conscience. In proportion as religion becomes a 
 matter of deep personal interest, will be the concern which 
 o 3
 
 78 MEMOIES OF THE 
 
 a man feels for the salvation of others. God might have 
 employed (had it consisted with His wisdom) a race of 
 intelligences superior to men, as the heralds of His truth ; 
 and had luminous perceptions of His character, and 
 sensitive jealousy for His glory, been the sole qualifica- 
 tions required for a minister of Christ, there is no question 
 but that they would have been inconceivably better fitted 
 for this office than any human beings. But they could 
 have possessed no sympathy with those whom they 
 addressed, and herein would have lacked an essential 
 element of the ministerial character. God has therefore 
 appointed sinners to be instructed and awakened by the 
 instrumentality of those who have themselves been in the 
 darkness and sleep of sin. Men are to be exhorted to 
 repentance by those who have themselves repented. 
 Christ is to be proclaimed as a Saviour ; the duty of pro- 
 claiming Him, therefore, rests on those who experience 
 His salvation ; and heaven is to be offered to the spirits 
 of the faithful, by those who personally enjoy the lively 
 hope of possessing it. 
 
 "With these arrangements, so fitting in themselves, the 
 whole of Christianity is in the most perfect harmony. 
 Christ, as our great High Priest, was rendered perfect, by 
 being invested with our nature and our sympathies, and 
 having that nature tried, and those sympathies fed, by 
 undergoing the same temptations to which we are sub- 
 jected. He was incarnated, not merely that He might 
 make an atonement for sin, but that His human nature 
 might be filled with horror on its account, and might enter 
 into a full perception of the infinite peril of sinners. These 
 impressions He received with such weight in the garden 
 and on the cross, that His soul was exceedingly oppressed 
 with amazement and agony. And now, being for ever 
 glorified at the right hand of the Father, the memory of 
 these causes Him to long for the salvation of an apostate 
 world with infinite passion, till " of the travail of His soul 
 He shall see the fruit,"* and His boundless desire shall 
 " be satisfied." " The great principle of vicarious suffer- 
 * Lowth's Translation of Isaiah liii. 11,
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 79 
 
 ing, which forms the centre of Christianity, spreads itself 
 through the subordinate parts of the system, and is the 
 pervading if not the invariable law of Christian benefi- 
 cence. He who, with a due sense of the greatness of the 
 enterprise, devotes himself to the removal of the moral 
 wretchedness in which human nature is involved, will find 
 the sad quality of these deeper woes in a manner reflected 
 back upon himself; and that to touch the substantial mise- 
 ries of degenerate man is to come within the infection of 
 infinite sorrow. And this is the law of success in the Chris- 
 tian ministry, that highest work of philanthropy. Every 
 right-minded and heaven-commissioned minister of 
 religion is baptized with the baptism wherewith his Lord 
 was baptized ; and he knows that, by the great law of the 
 spiritual world, the suffering of substitutes enters into 
 every procedure of redemption." * 
 
 Some eminent ministers have been possessed by so 
 great a jealousy for the honour of God, and by so deter- 
 mined a resentment against sin, that their minds have 
 been shaded by sternness, rather than softened by com- 
 passion. But there was a native softness and susceptibility 
 about Mr. Smith's affection which, when sanctified by the 
 power of grace, would have peculiarly disposed him, had 
 he been merely an ordinary Christian, to weep with 
 those who weep. And while, on the one hand, as will be 
 hereafter shown, he never forgot the claims of the Divine 
 purity, and thus invested with an extraordinary power 
 his denunciations of sin, he preserved the full-flowing tide 
 of human feeling, and the condition of sinners inspired 
 his heart with an unutterable pity. He entered so fully 
 into their misery and peril, and had so poignant and dis- 
 tressing a sense of the malignity and heinousness of their 
 violations of the law, as to be often indescribably oppressed. 
 It was a settled principle with him to " confess the 
 sins of the people." " I remember," says Mr. Clarkson, 
 " to have heard him remark, that ' unless a preacher 
 carries about with him a daily burden, he is not likely 
 to see many sinners converted to God.' " That he him- 
 
 * Natural History of Enthusiasm.
 
 80 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 self carried about this burden, Mr. Calder's testimony 
 will be sufficient to evince. This gentleman remarks, 
 " I have often seen him come down stairs in the morning, 
 after spending several hours in prayer, with his eyes 
 swollen with weeping. He would soon introduce the 
 subject of his anxiety by saying, ' I am a broken-hearted 
 man ; yes, indeed, I am an unhappy man ; not for 
 myself, but on account of others. God has given me 
 such a sight of the value of precious souls, that I cannot 
 live if souls be not saved. 0, give me souls, or else I die !'" 
 
 And as the sympathy which he felt for sinners was 
 unusually strong, so was it also peculiarly practical. 
 This was strikingly manifested in the case of penitents. 
 " When you are Avith people in distress on account of 
 their sins," he sometimes said to the compiler of these 
 memoirs, "you must not only pray for them, but you 
 must throw yourself into their circumstances : you must 
 be a penitent too : they must pray through you, and what 
 you say must be exactly what they would say if they 
 knew how." * He carried out the same principle into 
 the matter of faith: and he has related instances in which, 
 when he has been labouring to exert the faith of sym- 
 pathy, actual faith has arisen correspondingly in the mind 
 of the sinner, and the power of God, and the joy of 
 salvation, have burst upon both, as they simultaneously 
 appropriated the atonement of Christ. 
 
 To his parents, Mr. Smith writes : "Jan. 25, 1819. 
 I was very glad to hear that my dear mother gets more 
 bodily strength, and with it an increase of the power of 
 faith, power to trust in God. They that trust in Him shall 
 never be confounded. I was very glad to hear that my 
 dear and respected father has got a greater victory over 
 his spiritual foes, a more settled peace ; and that he is 
 blessed in his labours. What encouragement ! Labour 
 on. ' There is no work in the grave.' The work is 
 glorious, the reward will be great; will be, did I say ? 
 
 * In the Life of Mr. H. Longden, of Sheffield, p. 44, there is a 
 case mentioned which beautifully illustrates this method of treating 
 a penitent.
 
 KEY. JOHN SMITH. 81 
 
 it is great. Preach in faith : expect that God will work, 
 when, in obedience to His authority, you go to offer 
 salvation to perishing sinners. In prayer, plead with God; 
 and in preaching, plead much with the people. We do 
 little now unless we get the people into action. Through 
 mercy, I am in a tolerable state of health, and am 
 choosing God for my portion ; goodly portion ! satisfying 
 portion ! Good Mr. Spence, of York, once said to me, 
 ' Give all, and take all.' Thank God, I feel power to 
 give Him my undivided heart, and I expect to be filled 
 with all His fulness. The Lord has astonishingly blessed 
 me of late, and He will bless me. He has saved 
 
 ' My eyes from tears of dark despair, 
 ily feet from falling into hell. 
 
 * Wherefore to Him my feet shall run ; 
 
 My eyes on His perfection gaze ; 
 My soul shall live to God alone, 
 And all within me shout His praise.' " 
 
 The following statement of the way of salvation, from 
 the same letter, is very simple and happy. It is a speci- 
 men of the form in which Mr. S. greatly delighted to 
 propound the truth. " Jesus Christ is the gift of God to 
 a lost world. ' It hath pleased the Father that in Him 
 should all fulness dwell.' Faith is the condition on which 
 we receive the blessings of the Gospel. I am a lost 
 sinner. Jesus is offered to me. I trust in Him, and am 
 saved. I continue to trust, and am continually saved. 
 God testifies this by His Holy Spirit. So all the way 
 through, in every situation, and in all circumstances, if 
 we only trust in Christ, we cannot be confounded. 
 "What is it that I want ? it is in Christ, and Christ is 
 offered to me : then I must take what I want in Christ. 
 Nothing but a want of this faith can prevent me from 
 enjoying the blessing. This completely strips man, and 
 puts the honour of God's grace on Christ. This is the 
 Gospel, good news, glad tidings. ' Glory to God in the 
 highest ; on earth peace, good- will to men.' 
 
 ' for a trumpet voice, 
 
 On all the world to call ! ' "
 
 82 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 Of the progress of the work of God he remarks, " I 
 think we are rising a little throughout the circuit. My 
 dear colleague has had some glorious seasons. At Eram- 
 field, a number of praying souls were met together to 
 spend a day during the Christmas holidays. Mr. C. 
 had to go that way ; he called, and preached to them. 
 While he was preaching, the power of God came down. 
 Several cried aloud for mercy. I suppose there were 
 twelve in distress, and one of the local preachers was 
 enabled to believe for entire sane tin* cation." 
 
 At the District-Meeting held in London in the month 
 of May, Mr. Smith was appointed to assist in conducting 
 a watch-night at City-road chapel. The whole of the 
 preceding afternoon he spent in earnest entreaty for the 
 Divine blessing upon the meeting. He had great enlarge- 
 ment in delivering an exhortation on the occasion ; and, 
 while he was afterwards engaged in prayer, the influence 
 of the Holy Spirit descended in an unusual manner. 
 The effect was extraordinary. Some cried aloud under 
 a consciousness of their sin and peril ; some were unable 
 to repress exclamations of praise to God ; while others 
 were so overwhelmed as to be obliged to retire from the 
 chapel. Among these last was a baker, who had been 
 accustomed to follow his business on the Sabbath-day. 
 His alarm was so powerful that he was bowed down 
 towards the earth, and it was with great difficulty that he 
 succeeded in reaching his own house. When he retired 
 to bed, sleep had forsaken him. He arose in inexpressible 
 agony, and, casting himself on his knees, wrestled with 
 God for about two hours, when the Lord pardoned his 
 sins, and filled his heart with joy, and his mouth with 
 thanksgiving. His wife also soon experienced the same 
 blessing ; the immediate result of which was, that they 
 altogether relinquished baking on the Sabbath-day, and 
 sacrificed the gains of iniquity, which amounted to one 
 guinea per week. " I had an interview with them," 
 says Mr. Clarkson, "about two years afterwards, and 
 they assured me that the Lord had so prospered them 
 in their business, that they had been gainers ever since."
 
 KEY. JOHN SMITE. 83 
 
 Mr. Smith was at this time a stranger in London ; and' 
 the day after the occurrence of this remarkable scene, he 
 became the subject of pretty general conversation among 
 those who had been present. His character was of course 
 freely canvassed, and the opinions respecting him were 
 very various. Even among his brethren assembled at the 
 District-Meeting, there was this diversity of sentiment. 
 This was what Mr. S. everywhere expected ; and, though 
 it never deterred him from what he considered his duty, 
 it was often a sore trial to him that his labours were not 
 appreciated by some of those whom of all men he most 
 honoured and loved. In this feeling there was nothing 
 selfish, except, indeed, so far as he identified himself with 
 the work of God. He was personally independent of the 
 opinions of men, of how great influence soever they 
 might be : but where hearty co-operation was withheld 
 by any who had the ability to assist his plans, he felt 
 that injustice was done to the cause of Christ ; and hence 
 his regrets. It is proper, however, to remark, that it was 
 a very rare case for him to be known without being in 
 the highest degree esteemed, both personally and minis- 
 terially. It is only, therefore, to cases of casual inter- 
 course, such as the foregoing, that these remarks apply. 
 
 In the course of the District-Meeting, some conver- 
 sation took place on the decrease in the number of mem- 
 bers during the preceding year, and several measures 
 were suggested to prevent the recurrence of so melancholy 
 a circumstance. Among those who spoke on the subject, 
 was a preacher of the highest character and influence, 
 who had known Mr. S. before he entered on the itinerant 
 work, and who highly estimated his devotedness and 
 ardour. After having alluded to several other particulars, 
 he added, Avith much emphasis, " If we all possessed the 
 burning zeal of the brother who addressed us last night, 
 we should not have to lament any diminution of our 
 societies." This remark, from such a quarter, had a 
 happy effect upon the minds of those who had previously 
 been unacquainted with the worth of the person to whom 
 it referred. To Mr. S. himself it was highly gratifying ;
 
 84 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 it was so full a recognition of the value of the spirit 
 which he took such pains to cherish, that he subse- 
 quently recollected it with much thankfulness. " I 
 have reason to believe," says Mr. Calder, " that he 
 often afterwards remembered Mr. B. where it is of most 
 importance that we should not forget our friends." Many 
 other instances might be cited, in which Mr. Smith's 
 singular excellence was acknowledged by men to whose 
 opinions the highest deference is due. The venerable 
 Walter Griffith, for example, under whose auspices he 
 had commenced his labours as a local preacher, met 
 vath him some years afterwards, and with profound 
 delight wept over him as he said, "You, my dear 
 brother, have from the beginning preserved your sim- 
 plicity :" adding much more in the way of approbation 
 and encouragement. But his character demands not the 
 applause of men, as it cannot be aifected by their cen- 
 sure. Some may have been induced by the testimony 
 of those whom they respected, to offer him a measure of 
 their approbation; but his dearest lovers are such as 
 knew him most familiarly, many of whom are men too 
 fully of his own stamp to be materially influenced except 
 by the distinct personal perception of worth and virtue. 
 The following is an extract from a letter to his parents, 
 dated June 11,1819: " My health is better considerably 
 than when I came to Brighton. The rides, air, &c., agree 
 with me very well. I may yet be strong to labour. All 
 things are at God's disposal. His will is heaven to me. 
 The Lord is carrying on His work in my soul. I have, 
 I expect to have, conflicts with the powers of darkness ; 
 but the Lord is my helper and defence. ' The name of 
 the Lord is a strong tower : the righteous runneth into 
 it, and is safe.' God is everywhere ; faith realizes His 
 presence, the presence of a Father: and will not a father 
 protect and defend his child ? will he not provide for him, 
 and give him tokens of his affection ? I want more of 
 the simplicity of faith, and I am aiming at it. We fre- 
 quently attempt great things without capacity to do them. 
 What should we say to a person who wished to plough,
 
 HEV. JOHN SMITH. 85 
 
 BOW, buy, sell, and to transact a great deal of business, 
 when at the same time he was so unwell that he could 
 scarcely walk across the house ? We should say, ' You 
 really cannot do what you wish ; you must go to the 
 doctor ; you must have something to remove your weak- 
 ness.' The depravity of the heart renders us incapable of 
 doing God's will : it is a disease ; it is debility ; it per- 
 vades the system. But there is ' balm in Gilead,' there 
 is ' a Physician there.' Thanks be to God ! ' The Lord 
 thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy 
 seed, to love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and 
 with all thy soul.' ' I will sprinkle clean water upon you, 
 and ye shall be clean : from all your filthiness, and from 
 all your idols, will I cleanse you.' If He speak health 
 and soundness into the soul, we shall be capacitated to 
 do His will. We shall do well to wait at His feet till He 
 speaks. I am looking for a deeper baptism of the Holy 
 Ghost. I am greatly encouraged by what God has al- 
 ready done for me, and by His numerous exceeding great 
 and precious promises secured to them that believe. It 
 is well to dare to take God at His word, to venture on the 
 promises as well as we can, notwithstanding all opposition 
 and difficulty, until it is easy to lay hold of the blessing, 
 to claim it as ours in all its fulness and glory. We can- 
 not believe too much; we cannot believe too soon. A man 
 who is in perfect health naturally desires to be in action; 
 he does well to be in action. When God has written His 
 law in the heart, His. commandments are not grievous. 
 The sum is this : the first business of a diseased man is 
 
 to get cured Our prospects in this circuit continue 
 
 cheering. I have seen the grace of God displayed iu 
 the conversion of sinners since I wrote to you." 
 
 Mr. Smith excelled in pastoral qualifications and duties, 
 and was often distinguished ly useful in private society. 
 "Kindness," says Mr. Calder, " was peculiarly prominent 
 in his moral constitution, and gave to his piety the most 
 interesting forms of sweetness and benignity. And this 
 induced an individual, who was no mean judge of religious 
 character, to observe of him, that he had the piety of a
 
 86 MEMOIKS OF THE 
 
 certain distinguished saint and minister, [who has already 
 been alluded to in these pages,] with more of the milk of 
 human kindness. Hence the absence of all austerity from 
 his manners. Of this, children seemed to be conscious, 
 and soon attached themselves to him with peculiar fond- 
 ness, which he amply returned. In this respect, he 
 resembled the founder of Methodism, and, I may add, 
 the Founder of our holy religion also. Not satisfied 
 with merely doing the work of the pulpit, he deemed it 
 right to acquaint himself with, and frequently to visit, 
 every family connected with the society. An uncon- 
 verted individual in such a family became the subject 
 of his peculiar solicitude, and he was placed upon his 
 list to be specifically remembered before God, with many 
 tears and persevering intercessions. This ceaseless con- 
 cern for the children and servants of our people was 
 attended with glorious results. My house was frequently 
 the scene of holy triumph ; for if a visit was paid to me 
 by any of the children of our friends, residing in other 
 parts of the kingdom, they became the objects of his 
 peculiar regard. By his kind and affectionate behaviour, 
 he first ingratiated himself into their favour ; and then, 
 watching the effect of his admonitions, he was restless till 
 they obtained the mercy of God. Never shall I forget the 
 case of one of the sons of the late Mr. B., of London, upon 
 whom, while paying a visit to my house at Brighton, 
 Mr. S. commenced a serious attack on the subject of his 
 salvation. This was followed up from day to day, till the 
 young man became duly impressed with the importance 
 of religion ; and, not long after, our departed friend called 
 me into his study, to join with them in praising God for 
 having bestowed upon this person a sense of pardon. He 
 shortly after returned to his family, ' a truly converted 
 character,' and subsequently became a zealous local 
 preacher." "The daughter of one of our London friends," 
 Mr. C. adds, " was brought to God in a similar manner." 
 Another incident, which occurred about this time, will 
 serve to exemplify the same subject. Having to go to a 
 distant part of the Brighton circuit, Mr. S, stayed to dine
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 87 
 
 at an intermediate village. After dinner, an interesting 
 and intelligent servant girl, of about fourteen years of age, 
 who was engaged in the room in which he sat, arrested 
 his attention. " Come hither, my dear," said he, in his 
 usually serious and impressive manner : " I wish to 
 speak to you." She immediately came, and, looking very 
 earnestly in his face, awaited, with an appearance of 
 great interest, what he had to say. "Do you know 
 that you are a sinner?" he asked. Heaving a deep sigh, 
 she replied, "Yes, Sir." "Do you know that you will 
 be lost unless your sins be pardoned?" "Yes, Sir." 
 " Are you unhappy ?" " Yes, Sir." " Do you ever 
 pray ?" " Yes." " Do you say your prayers, or do you 
 ask God for what you feel you want?" "I say my 
 prayers." " But you could ask me for anything you 
 wanted, could you not?" "Yes, Sir." "Suppose you 
 were a very poor girl, and went to Mrs. S. to beg, you 
 could tell her of your distress, and ask her to give you 
 something?" In a voice full of emotion, she replied, 
 "Yes, Sir." " Well, you are a poor distressed sinner: 
 God pities you : you can ask Him to forgive you. Shall 
 I pray for you? What shall I pray for?" The poor 
 child could not reply for weeping. They then kneeled 
 down, and in a very few minutes she began to cry aloud 
 for mercy, and to confess and bewail her sins in a remark- 
 ably fluent and affecting manner. She continued to cry, 
 till God revealed His Son in her heart. The change in 
 her countenance and accents was astonishing. She 
 praised God in a loud and joyful voice ; and with a faith 
 that greatly surprised Mr. S., who stood at her side, 
 interceded for her relations, for all sinners, and for the 
 world at large. Her gratitude taught her new and elo- 
 quent language : with extraordinary emphasis, she said, 
 over and over again, "Jesus has died for me ! Jesus has 
 died for me ! Blessed Jesus ! Blessed Jesus ! my God ! 
 my Father ! God pities me ; God loves me, and I love 
 my God ! 0, when shall I be with Thee in glory, to 
 praise Thy name for ever and ever ! " &c. She continued 
 on her knees for more than an hour, and her state of 
 a 2
 
 88 MEMOIUS OF THE 
 
 rapture was so extreme, that, as Mr. S. afterwards said, 
 it seemed as if it had been impossible for her to survive 
 so overpowering a revelation of the Divine love. 
 
 In the month of July, Mr. Smith visited Chichester, 
 to assist in the opening of a new chapel, and remained 
 there for several days. His labours in that city were 
 honoured by God. He preached one evening from 
 1 Peter iii. 13 : " Who is he that will harm you, if ye be 
 followers of that which is good?" and had great liberty of 
 speech. During the concluding prayer, the influence of 
 God descended on the congregation in a remarkable 
 manner, and several groaned audibly under the burden of 
 their sins. Mr. S. cried out, " Now let your hearts 
 yield ?" and began to pray again. He then came down 
 from the pulpit, and Mr. Hiley, the resident preacher, 
 continued to plead with God on behalf of the distressed. 
 Mr. S., in his usual way, immediately addressed those 
 individuals who were seeking salvation, and exhorted them 
 to trust in Christ for a present deliverance. Arrangements 
 had been made for letting the seats in the chapel; but all 
 other business was forgotten, in the urgency of the cries 
 of penitent sinners, and the meeting was protracted to a 
 late hour. Nine persons were ascertained that evening 
 to have been brought into the enjoyment of the pardoning 
 love of God, and many others still remained under deep 
 and painful concern for their souls. 
 
 Mr. Smith thus writes to his parents, Aug. 5, 1819 : 
 " My soul is kept in peace ; frequently I am filled with 
 holy triumph, and I rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 
 ' The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places ; I have 
 a goodly heritage.' ' Bless the Lord, my soul, and 
 forget not all His benefits.' It is reasonable that / should 
 devote myself to the service of God. Thank God, I have 
 this power : I do present myself to Him ' a living sacri- 
 fice,' and through Christ He accepts of me. I am engaged 
 in a work in which my soul delights, the preaching of the 
 glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is an awfully import- 
 ant work, but those whom Jesus Christ appoints to it, He 
 engages to help and support in it : I will trust in HIM."
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 89 
 
 VIII. 
 BRIGHTON" CONTINUED. 18101820. 
 
 AT the Conference of 1 8 1 9, Mr. Smith was re-appointed, 
 with his friend Mr. Colder, to the Brighton circuit. His 
 feelings in reference to the past and his hopes for the 
 coming year, are stated in a letter to Miss Hamer, dated 
 August 14: "During the year that is past," he says, 
 " 1 see much cause for shame and contusion of face ; 
 but, 0, it has been a year of mercy ! What long-suffer- 
 ing ! What signal outpourings of the Spirit, both in 
 public and private ! What displays of the grace and 
 power of God among the people ! I cast my unworthy 
 soul on the mercy of God, through the mediation of His 
 Son Jesus Christ. I trust in Him for ' pardon, and holi- 
 ness, and heaven.' I wish that all I have and am may be 
 a sacrifice acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. I 
 trust we shall see glorious days : it stands in the power of 
 God. 'Ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be 
 full.' I am thankful to God that a few, during the past 
 year, have got cleansed from all sin. I trust that God will 
 raise up many more witnesses in this circuit of His power 
 to save to the uttermost .... On Monday night, a woman 
 got into liberty at the prayer-meeting. Last night also, 
 a poor lad, that goes with a crutch, was weeping in the 
 chapel-yard, after the prayer-meeting, on account of his 
 sins. A few of us went with him into the chapel again, 
 and God removed his burden, and caused him to sing 
 for joy. These are encouraging displays of God's mercy. 
 I hope we shall expect greater things. We may have, 
 yea, we shall have, if we ask." 
 
 The following expression of filial feeling is very inter- 
 esting. Gratitude to parents or other earthly benefactors 
 is in itself so pleasing, that the generality of mankind 
 dwell upon it as something intrinsically complete and 
 satisfactory. Mr. Smith, as will be here remarked, em- 
 ploys it to a higher ultimate object; and this application 
 H 3
 
 90 MEMOIBS OF THE 
 
 of the natural charities of man's heart to the production 
 of a stronger faith in God is delightfully characteristic. 
 It displays a mind searching diligently the ordinary trains 
 of human feeling for the most holy purposes, and stretch- 
 ing beyond the creature, however fair and venerable, to 
 the Fountain of all purity, perfection, and love. " Oct. 
 1, 1819. Your kindness towards me" thus he writes 
 to his parents "aids me much in my approaches to 
 God. It is said, ' If ye then, being evil, know how to 
 give good gifts to your children, how much more shall 
 your heavenly Father give His Holy Spirit to them that 
 ask Him.' I think, what is it that my parents would not 
 do for me ? what is it that they Jutve not done for me ? 
 They have provided for me, wept over me, prayed for me, 
 dealt tenderly with me, forgiven me, and, under God, have 
 been my spiritual parents too. They cared for my soul 
 as well as my body : God regarded them, and crowned 
 their efforts with success : their kindness has been a 
 flowing stream. Well, God is my heavenly Father ; He 
 cares for me : there is no evil in Him. He is full of pity 
 and compassion. He has given His Son. He is willing 
 freely to give all things. I may come to Him with 
 confidence : I do come with confidence, with the con- 
 fidence of a little child, and He blesses me. He gives 
 me His Holy Spirit. Of late, I have had such revelations 
 of the love of God in my soul, such baptisms of the Holy 
 Ghost, as I never had before, and such as I had no con- 
 ception of. God is not only able, but willing, ' to do 
 exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.' 
 ' Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it.' We want 
 more faith ; power implicitly to rely on what God has 
 said, to take God at His word. 
 
 ' Faith, mighty faith, the promise sees, 
 And looks to that alone.' 
 
 I see, more clearly than ever, that GOD Himself is the 
 portion of His people. All the promises lead into God. 
 Faith looks at them as living springs, always sending 
 forth something fresh. There is an infinite deptli in the
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 91 
 
 promises. Let us daily, through the promises, by faith, 
 draw more of God into our hearts. ' If any man thirst, 
 let him come unto Me and drink.' ' The water that I 
 shall give him shall be in him a well of water, springing 
 up into everlasting life.' I am happy, increasingly happy 
 in God. God is my portion. ' Bless the Lord, my 
 soul.' ' Christ is in me, the hope of glory.' I have the 
 earnest of heaven in my heart. This is my treasure. I 
 esteem everything else as nothing in comparison of this. 
 I long that every child of man should participate the 
 same blessedness. 
 
 1 What shall I do to make it known, 
 
 What Thou for all mankind hast done ? ' 
 
 Thanks be to God, He is blessing us in some parts of 
 our circuit. Some are rejoicing in perfect love ; others 
 are gasping for it : and although, in some places, we are 
 low, God can, and I trust will, raise us. We must pray. 
 ' Ask, and ye shall receive ! ' Bless God for such words 
 as these. How are you coming on in your class ? what 
 number in society r what prospects in Cudworth ? Are 
 the backsliders quite dead ? ' Come, Breath, from the 
 four winds, and breathe upon these slain ! ' ' 
 
 Our next quotation from the same correspondence is 
 beautifully illustrative of Christian perfection ; beginning 
 and ending in humility, and including delight in Christ, 
 devotedness to God, joy in the Holy Ghost, heavenly - 
 miudedness, confident desire, trust in the atonement, and 
 victory over temptation. The writer appears to labour 
 for expression, and to feel the inadequacy of all human 
 language. It is no matter of surprise that, with the en- 
 joyments to which he alludes, he should long to see others 
 in an equally elevated state of salvation. "Nov. 29. 
 Thanks be to God for His continued and increasing good- 
 ness to me, the unworthiest and most unfaithful of His 
 servants. What shall I say about my soul ? my dear 
 parents, Jesus was never so precious to me as at present. 
 He is the fairest among ten thousand, and the altogether 
 lovely. My soul is penetrated with His excellencies. All 
 I want is in Him, and He is mine. 1 have power to give
 
 92 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 Him my whole heart, and I have the witness that He takes 
 it. His Spirit dwells in me, and reveals to me the 
 beauties of my Saviour. I 'rejoice with joy unspeakable 
 and full of glory.' My ' conversation is in heaven : ' my 
 treasure and my heart are there. God fills my soul. I 
 know that He has taken away the body of sin. In obedi- 
 ence to Him, I reckon myself ' dead indeed unto sin, but 
 alive to God through Jesus Christ.' God is my portion. 
 His fulness is mine. YET HE is 'able to do exceeding 
 abundantly above all I ask or think.' I am looking for 
 fresh discoveries of His glory. My soul thirsts for God. 
 I never needed the blood of Christ more than I do at 
 present. But I have it, and I never made so much use 
 of it as I do now. I have been mightily assailed by the 
 powers of darkness, but Jesus is my Protector. Protected 
 by omnipotent love, what can harm me ? ' Thou wilt 
 keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee.' 
 I wish to live in the act of casting my helpless soul upon 
 Christ. I am thankful for your prayers, and for the 
 prayers of God's people. I have the prayers of some 
 who have power with God. I am filled with shame 
 when I turn my eyes backward : 
 
 ' But lo, from sin, and grief, and shame, 
 I hide me, Jesus, in Thy name.' 
 
 " God is working among us. Many of the people are 
 rising. Several are panting for entire sanctification. 
 Their expectation shall not be cut off ; God will speak for 
 Himself. He will raise up in this antinomian country, I 
 trust, many witnesses of His power to save from all sin, 
 and to keep in that state. My spirit is filled with grief 
 at the prevalence of iniquity around us. I find relief in 
 Christ. 'He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for 
 ours only, but for the sins of the whole world.' my 
 dear parents, be solicitous to have all the salvation of the 
 Gospel ; labour, pant, struggle, believe, and ' be filled 
 with all the fulness of God.' Give my kind love to your 
 class, and tell them from me, that Jesus is waiting to do 
 all they desire for the salvation of their souls. Honour 
 Him, by trusting in Him."
 
 RET. JOHN S3HTH. 93 
 
 The beginning of the year 1820 was marked by a 
 considerable increase of religious feeling in the Brighton 
 circuit, and Mr. S. had the high satisfaction of seeing 
 the grace of God displayed in several instances of clear 
 and striking conversion. The following is an example : 
 Calling one day on Mrs. M., a pious lady of Lewes, he 
 there met with her niece, who was under concern for her 
 soul. He engaged in prayer with peculiar sweetness, 
 and was afterwards led to speak of the excellencies of the 
 Saviour, and the happiness of those who are united to Him. 
 His word was accompanied by special unction, and Miss 
 
 ,the young person before alluded to, was so powerfully 
 
 affected, that she arose from her seat, and, casting herself on 
 her knees, began to plead with God in earnest prayer for 
 the blessing of a present salvation. In a short time, hope 
 sprang up in her heart. She exclaimed, " I will believe," 
 and instantly the Comforter came. She rose and cried, 
 " The Lord has washed away my sins for the sake of the 
 blood of Christ;" and, in an ecstasy of gratitude and 
 triumph, she flung herself on the neck of her rejoicing 
 relative, exclaiming, " It is you that have brought me to 
 this ! " with similar expressions of joyful feeling. They 
 then united in the praise of a pardoning God. If my 
 information be correct, two other persons in the same 
 family were, a few days afterwards, through Mr. Smith's 
 instrumentality, made partakers of the blessings of 
 saving grace. 
 
 In a letter to Miss Hamer, dated Feb. 5, 1820, Mr. S. 
 thus speaks of his own experience : " My soul is kept 
 in peace and purity. Glory be to God ! What charms 
 there are in Jesus ! ' Unto you that believe He is pre- 
 cious.' I believe ; and God testifies that He approves of 
 my faith, by continually sending ' the Spirit of His Son 
 into my heart, crying, Abba, Father.' I am grafted in 
 the true Vine ; life flows into my soul, and shows itself in 
 buds and fruit ; love, joy, peace, &c. I wish to be ' filled 
 with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, 
 to the glory and praise of God.' I ' hunger and thii-st 
 after righteousness.' Blessed are such. My soul longeth
 
 94 MEMOIRS OF THB 
 
 after God. He is all my desire. I am yet but foolish 
 in using the means, especially prayer. I want more of 
 Brarnwell's spirit, more of Longden's spirit, more of 
 Nelson's spirit. It is to be had. I believe I shall have it. . . 
 Lately God has signally blessed me in visiting the sick. 
 ' It is better to go to the house of mourning than to the 
 house of feasting.' My soul has been filled and expanded. 
 The excellencies of Jesus have been more fully revealed. 
 It is good frequently to visit the abodes of the afflicted, 
 especially when Jesus gives us sympathy for the afflicted. 
 I long for more sympathy. I must go to Jesus for it. 
 As man, He was full of it ; as God-man, He is the fountain 
 of it. Jesus, come and live in me, that I may, like Thee, 
 go about doing good ! " 
 
 With his accustomed affection, Mr. S. thus writes to 
 his parents in the following month: "EASTBOURNE, 
 March 27. Last Friday evening, we had a love-feast at 
 Brighton. I, with many others, bore a public testimony 
 to the power of religion. Of course, I could not but 
 mention, with gratitude to God, the influence which the 
 example, instructions, entreaties, &c., of my parents had 
 had upon my mind. A few, to the praise of God's grace, 
 testified that the blood of Christ cleansed them from all 
 sin. I hope that many more will be speedily brought 
 into this glorious liberty, although, in this part, those who 
 profess it are opposed, and considered to be in a danger- 
 ous error. Thank God, there are some, in various parts 
 of the circuit, who are clearly convinced of the necessity 
 of a clean heart, and who are longing and seeking for the 
 entire destruction of sin. The Lord is very favourable to 
 me. My health is as usual, and I am enabled to believe 
 in Jesus Christ to the saving of my soul. Christ is in- 
 creasingly precious. I want stability and firmness in the 
 grace of God. God will establish me. The word of God 
 is precious : I feast upon it. I am persuaded, the more 
 implicitly we give credit to it, the more of God we shall 
 enjoy and diffuse." 
 
 To the same, he thus writes, May 19: "God has 
 possession of my heart. Christ not only visits me, but
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 95 
 
 dwells in me by faith. Christ is all, and Christ is mine. 
 His excellencies exert a continual attraction. The world 
 is unmasked to me. I see it unsuitable for the portion of 
 niy soul. It is unsatisfying and perishing. But Christ 
 possesses everything that is suited to me. He is the 
 eternal God. I choose Him for my portion. Yet I want 
 more divine power. This must result to me from deeper 
 and more glorious revelations of the excellencies of Christ 
 in my soul, by the Holy Ghost. that I may ever lie 
 at the foot of the cross, and feel my need, and have 
 the merit of the death of Christ ! 
 
 ' Weaker than a bruised reed, 
 Help I every moment need." 
 
 I am kept no longer than I am kept ly the power of God 
 through faith. But does He not say, ' Fear not : I will 
 never leave thee ; I will never forsake thee ? ' Amen, my 
 Lord : never leave, never forsake me ! " Of the work of 
 God he remarks, in the same letter : " The state of this 
 country affects me. I wish to be strong to labour. I 
 know that it is God the Holy Ghost that converts and 
 saves souls. But God works by the instrumentality of 
 men ; and in all ages of the Christian church He has 
 signally owned and blessed extraordinary exertions. I 
 wish to aim constantly at precious souls, and to look for 
 present effects. I anticipate better days. God is at 
 work. Several are entering more fully into God, and 
 He, I trust, is preparing them to be useful ; but we want 
 a union of effort : then something signal will be done." 
 The following incident, related by Mr. Calder, will 
 serve to illustrate Mr. Smith's disregard to ordinary 
 opinions and manners, in the prosecution of what he con- 
 sidered hi? duty. A woman at Brighton, who was very 
 ill, had been several times visited by him. Her husband 
 was an ungodly fisherman, and, had he dared, would 
 personally have opposed the efforts of Mr. S. for the con- 
 version of his wife. Being, however, unable to summon 
 sufficient resolution to meet the pointed admonitions 
 of his most unwelcome visiter, he sent for a woman 
 notorious for profaneness and vulgarity, to guard the sick
 
 96 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 chamber. The next time Mr. S. called, as he was about 
 to go up-stairs, she sprang on him, and, seizing him by 
 the collar of his coat, protested that he should not proceed 
 any farther. All his entreaties and expostulations were 
 utterly useless. He at last said, " If I am not allowed to 
 see her, I must kneel down here and pray for her." With 
 a tremendous oath, she swore that he should not. He 
 then saw that it was in vain to continue the contest, and 
 returned to Mr. Calder in deep distress. After having 
 related the whole affair, he wished to know whether, when 
 he had been put out of the house, he had not done wrong 
 in not immediately kneeling down in the street before 
 the door, and there interceding for the sick woman, and 
 whether it was not his duty now to return and do so. 
 "It was with the utmost difficulty," says Mr. C., " that 
 I could prevail on him to abandon the intention." 
 
 The same friend has supplied also the following relation, 
 which is equally characteristic : "Mr.S.,ononeoccasion, 
 was seated at table directly opposite to a lady of family 
 and respectability, who, though in theory acquainted 
 with the truths of the Gospel, was destitute of its saving 
 power. According to his custom, he embraced the 
 opportunity of addressing her on the subject. She was 
 greatly offended, and expressed her resentment in a 
 manner scarcely suitable either to her sex or her rank. 
 "When she was silent, Mr. S., with a look of inexpressible 
 kindness, replied, ' Madam, you may spit in my face if 
 you please, but you cannot prevent me from loving your 
 soul.' The lady was deeply affected. A few years after- 
 wards she was taken ill, was attended by the Methodist 
 preachers, and died a true penitent." 
 
 At the Conference of 1820, Mr. Smith, after having 
 undergone the usual examinations with credit to himself, 
 and satisfaction to his brethren, was admitted into full 
 connexion.* Immediately afterwards lie was married, 
 and in a few days proceeded with Mrs. o. to the Windsor 
 circuit. 
 
 * His public mid formal admission did not take place till the 
 Coiiiureiicu o 1822.
 
 KEV. JOHN SMITH. 97 
 
 IX. 
 
 WINDSOR. 18201821. 
 
 ME. SMITH'S new situation was, in several respects, 
 peculiarly responsible and trying. Until this time, Windsor 
 had formed a part of the Hammersmith circuit. There 
 were but three places, besides the circuit-town, in which 
 societies had been formed ; and in each the congregation 
 and number of members were very small. Villages and 
 towns presented themselves on every side, containing a 
 large mass of population, very inadequately, if at all, 
 supplied with opportunities of evangelical instruction. 
 Perhaps there are few districts in England which, with so 
 considerable a measure of wealth, intelligence, and influ- 
 ence, present so many indications of spiritual destitution. 
 In our own societies, also, there was at this time great 
 and manifest torpor. Many, Avho had a name to live, 
 were dead ; and not a few who maintained a decent 
 profession had never known the regenerating influence 
 of the Holy Spirit. 
 
 Those who do not know the perversity of human 
 nature might have anticipated, that, in such a state 
 of things, the labours of Mr. Smith would have been 
 hailed with a universal welcome. It should be par- 
 ticularly noted, that he was now no theorist, however he 
 might have been esteemed such at an early period of his 
 ministerial life. Many of those to whom he was now 
 called to minister, must have been acquainted with his 
 devoted zeal, and his considerable success; and all might, 
 without difficulty, have ascertained how far his experi- 
 ments had previously tended to the accomplishment of the 
 great object of the Christian ministry. Yet (to employ 
 the testimony of one who was intimately acquainted with 
 him at this period) " his efforts, by some individuals, were, 
 for a time, neither understood nor appreciated. This cir- 
 cumstance rendered the struggles of his faith far more
 
 98 MEMOIES OP THE 
 
 painful to himself, while it delayed no less the general 
 blessing for which he ardently longed. It appeared to 
 me, as if settled unbelief, though only in a few, weighed 
 down his own faith much more than the coldness and 
 indifference of a far greater number. It seemed to hang 
 upon him (and I think I have heard him so describe it) 
 ' as a dead weight,' encumbering and retarding his spirit, 
 when it was struggling to get free, and ascend to plead 
 with God for the congregation. Under the pressure of 
 such a feeling, I have even known him to call upon such 
 as were indisposed to believe to quit the chapel, with a 
 tone and manner of solemn earnestness which must have 
 thrilled through every mind." 
 
 His own heart, however, was fixed. His principles 
 were too firmly established within, to be materially 
 affected by the variation of circumstances without. As 
 indifference could not quell them, so the resistance of 
 unbelief served more fully to confirm them. To the 
 friend from whom I have just quoted, who, on one 
 occasion, lamented the obstructions to his success, he 
 replied in his own laconic and decisive style, " I know 
 the plan on which I am acting ; I have tried it, and 
 found its success." And this was sufficient for his own 
 mind. Before a spirit of his decision, others of a less 
 determined character naturally gave way; and though the 
 blessings which he sought were retarded, they were not 
 ultimately prevented. Indeed, as the following extract 
 from a letter to his parents will show, he was not with- 
 out early and unequivocal tokens of the Divine appro- 
 bation upon his efforts. 
 
 " WINDSOR, Sept. 15, 1820. I am going to Uxbridge 
 to-day, God willing; a place nine miles distant, formerly 
 connected with Windsor, but which has been given up 
 about two years. I was there last week, making the 
 necessary inquiries. I believe it is a providential 
 opening, and I anticipate much good. Several are long- 
 ing for the bread of life. Last Tuesday night I visited 
 a place near Windsor, where I hope good will be done. 
 When I came, I saw that very little indeed was done,
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 99 
 
 and also that much needed doing. I was almost ready 
 to despoud ; but I recovered myself by considering that 
 the work is God's, that He has all power, and that He 
 is willing and solicitous to save the whole world. Last 
 Sunday afternoon, it pleased God to set two souls at 
 liberty, while I was preaching from, ' Come unto Me, all 
 ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you 
 rest.' One woman got down upon her knees while I was 
 preaching, and kneeled until we concluded. I then 
 hastened to her, and said, ' Woman, are you happy ?' 
 She said, ' I am.' ' When did you receive this happi- 
 ness?' ' While you were preaching,' she said, ' I believed 
 that God had pardoned all my sins.' * I then called upon 
 the friends to sing, ' Praise God, from whom all blessings 
 flow,' &c. They who were going out stopped, and 
 assisted us to praise God. The other woman did all she 
 could to conceal her emotions, but she was observed by 
 her leader, to whom she confessed that God had then set 
 her soul at liberty. I was not acquainted with this until 
 afterwards. Last night I was renewing the tickets. A 
 young man was present who had not found peace. I told 
 him God was ready to pardon him then. While I was 
 at prayer, he began to be in deep distress, and cried aloud. 
 I concluded, that those who wished to go might have an 
 opportunity, and requested any who were so disposed to 
 remain with us. The young man continued on his knees, 
 unwilling to rise without a sense of pardon. I and one 
 of the leaders remained with him until, after a smart 
 struggle, it pleased God to set his soul at liberty. He 
 then sang, ' Lord, I will praise Thee ; though Thou 
 wast angry with me, Thine anger is turned away, and 
 Thou comfortest me.' We all triumphed in the mercy 
 of our God. I do not intend to despond. God can, and 
 does, and will work. We have a few in this place, truly 
 pious, who long for the prosperity of Zion. The people 
 are very kind, and are solicitous to make us comfortable. 
 
 * Accuracy of expression is scarcely to be expected in all these 
 cases. Doubtless, the woman had believed on Christ for pardon, and 
 then received the assurance of her part in Him. 
 
 i 2
 
 100 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 We are in good health, through mercy, and are trusting 
 in God for a full salvation." 
 
 Immediately after his coming to Windsor, Mr. Smith's 
 mind was painfully affected by the numerous and glaring 
 instances of the violation of the Sabbath, which presented 
 themselves on every hand. Among other means which 
 he adopted for the diminution of this evil, were regular 
 weekly visits to the shops of Sabbath-breakers. Wherever 
 he found in his neighbourhood articles exposed for sale, 
 he entered, and with affectionate firmness remonstrated 
 with the parties to whom they belonged, on the sin and 
 danger of their conduct. The reader will readily antici- 
 pate the fact, that, though his admonitions were very 
 troublesome to such persons, their success was but partial. 
 Some success, however, it is gratifying to record, did 
 attend them. 
 
 A daily prayer-meeting at five o'clock in the morning, 
 rnd a similar meeting after the Supday evening preaching, 
 were some of the methods for the revival of the work of 
 God which Mr. S. employed almost from the time of his 
 arrival at Windsor. They were attended by the happiest 
 results. His estimation of these means of grace has 
 already been intimated ; and to them he, in common with 
 the most successful ministers of modern Methodism, was 
 greatly indebted for his usefulness. " In different places, " 
 says one of his familiar friends, in special reference to this 
 period of his life, " and according to the different circum- 
 stances in which Mr. Smith found himself, or the people 
 among whom he was stationed, his plan of action, in 
 reference to that revival of the work of God which was 
 everywhere his first object, was doubtless subject to 
 various modifications. But, in general, I suppose, as it 
 pre-eminently was wherever I have witnessed his labours, 
 the fruits of his ministry were most decisive and abundant 
 in meetings for prayer." These were usually to him 
 seasons of extraordinary physical as well as spiritual 
 effort, though there were interesting instances of a dif- 
 ferent class. " On one occasion, after returning from a 
 meeting, where nine persons had obtained entire sancti-
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 101 
 
 fication the same night, he remarked, ' I -was not equal 
 to strong exertion, and chiefly said, Thy blood was 
 shed for this very purpose : cleanse them, Lord !' " 
 
 But "it was not only by his own individual exertions 
 that Mr. S. acted upon others. Among the numbers 
 converted by his ministry, there were always some who 
 imbibed his views and spirit, and who engaged themselves, 
 after his example, in ' holding forth the word of life.' It 
 was, indeed, part of his plan to form and encourage others 
 to work for God. He aided them by his counsel, sj~ru- 
 pathy, and prayers; maintained an intercourse with them 
 when separated, and made occasional visits to London and 
 elsewhere, in order to assist their exertions ; so that it is 
 not only the instances in which he was immediately and 
 directly the instrument, (numerous as these were,) that 
 are to be recounted when we number up the spiritual 
 children whom the Lord gave him ; nor are we to annex 
 to these only those remote effects which usually ensue in 
 the private circle of individuals newly converted to God; 
 but we are bound especially to add to them those cases 
 in which he was a spiritual father, in scarcely the second 
 degree, because occurring under the instrumentality of 
 men who were not only his own children in the Gospel, 
 but who continued to act under his direction, and looked 
 expressly to him for counsel and encouragement." 
 
 Nor was it merely among the host of souls of whose 
 conversion he was the direct instrument, that he found 
 the partakers of his spirit, and the willing agents of his 
 plans. The Christianity of many others he succeeded in 
 modelling : to occasional and untaught fervour he often 
 gave principle and direction, and kindled scriptural and 
 persevering zeal in hearts which before had been com- 
 paratively cold and inert. It was especially in meetings tor 
 prayer that such characters were formed. There was in 
 his atmosphere at these times a moral stimulus so power- 
 ful, that sincere minds could scarcely fail to catch a portion 
 of his heaven-descended spirit. Here they saw his prin- 
 ciples brought into actual practice, and the value of his 
 plans attested by their skilful and anticipated operation. 
 I 3
 
 102 JKEU.OIKS OP THE 
 
 Every such meeting was a series of striking and triumphant 
 experiments; and it was thus, mainly, that there was 
 formed that class of individuals whom he, from the most 
 prominent feature in their character, was accustomed to 
 designate " the praying men." Of the majority of these, 
 the probability is that, had it not been for his influence, 
 they would have remained however personally upright 
 and sincere of little service to the church of God. 
 Hence, in attempting to form, an estimate of the extent 
 of his usefulness, it is necessary to include, not only the 
 persons to whom reference has been made above, but 
 those also to whom, through the subordinate agency of 
 men whom he had trained, he was, in a remoter but not 
 less certain sense, the instrument of conversion. Had he 
 done no higher service to the church of God, this alone 
 would have been sufficient to entitle him to peculiar 
 honour. The traveller looks with deep interest upon the 
 rock which pours forth the waters of the infant Nile : 
 with how much more profound emotion ought he to 
 contemplate the mighty river itself, as, through its 
 numerous channels, it diffuses universal fertility and 
 abundance ! the fitter emblem of the zeal and wisdom 
 of the subject of these pages. 
 
 By the Minutes of Conference, Mr. S. was appointed 
 to exchange regularly with the Hammersmith preachers. 
 On his first visit to that circuit, he witnessed on several 
 occasions the exertion of the saving power of God. At 
 one place, two persons obtained mercy under his sermon. 
 One of them, a woman who sat in the front of the gallery, 
 as soon as he had done preaching, rose up and publicly 
 testified of the salvation which she had received; and 
 these were but the prelude to yet more extensive success 
 in that neighbourhood. Meantime, in his own circuit, he 
 diligently pursued his plans. He frequently preached 
 out of doors,* when the weather permitted, especially in 
 
 * In this duty Mr. S. was several times exposed to the violence 
 of wicked men. Having once engaged to preach near a sand-bank, 
 contiguous [o one of the villages which he was in the habit of visit- 
 ing, he was informed before he set out that several mischievously
 
 EET. JOHX SMITH. 103 
 
 places to which he had no other means of access. He 
 succeeded in establishing societies in some villages which 
 had never before been visited by the Methodist preachers ; 
 and on every hand pleasing prospects of usefulness began 
 to present themselves. 
 
 ' ' Among those who engaged his particular attention and 
 care," says the friend from whom I have already quoted 
 largely, "were the soldiers of the regiments of Life Guards 
 who were successively stationed at the neighbouring bar- 
 nicks. To many of that fine body of men he was made 
 eminently useful. He felt for their naturally exposed 
 situation, and rejoiced in their profession of godliness, as 
 marked by more decision, and maintained under severer 
 temptations than ordinary. Nor was he, I think, insen- 
 sible to the manly bearing of these Christian soldiers. 
 Certainly, if there was any quality he admired that was 
 not in itself religious, it was manliness under all its forms. 
 We love to see the feelings of the man thus disclosing 
 themselves in the Christian. And thus I remember being 
 pleased, when the habitual current of his thoughts and con- 
 versation was interrupted (though but for a moment) by a 
 natural expression of pleasure at the interesting appearance 
 of some Eton boys, whom he seemed to regard with just the 
 sort of complacency which a father might have expressed 
 had they been his own. Several of these pious soldiers 
 were men of no common faith and prayer ; and active in 
 promoting such meetings, and using such means, as were 
 calculated to spread religion. ' ' Of the work of God among 
 this interesting class of persons, Mr. S. thus speaks, in a 
 
 disposed persons intended to be present and interrupt the service. 
 He was not, however, to be deterred from his purpose by the 
 apprehension of danger. The congregation assembled ; he gave out 
 a hymn and prayed. In the mean time the mob had conveyed an 
 empty cart to the summit of the bank, designing, when the attention 
 ot the people was occupied, to drive it violently down the steep. 
 The principal agent in this piece of wickedness, however, by some 
 means got entangled with a chain, or some such thing ; and he was 
 thrown down with so much force as to be personally injured. This 
 retarded the progress of the cart ; the preacher and his audience 
 had the opportunity of getting out of the way, and no evil ensued. 
 There were also other instances, in which attempts to molest him 
 and his congregations proved equally unsuccessful.
 
 104 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 letter to Hsparents, dated Jan. 1 1, 1821 : " On the Sunday 
 evening before Christmas-day, a corporal in the Horse- 
 Guards found peace. He was awakened about three weeks 
 before at our chapel. His father is a Methodist at Cleck- 
 heaton. Last Tuesday week, he had an affecting discovery 
 of inbred sin, and the whole of the week longed for a clean 
 heart. This morning, at our half-past five o'clock prayer- 
 meeting, God cleansed him from all sin, and he made 
 confession before all present : such a confession, I think, 
 I never heard. I hope he will be very useful. On 
 Christmas-day, another soldier and his wife were awakened 
 while I was praying in our chapel. The Wednesday 
 following they came to our house with corporal E., a 
 pious man, who obtained entire sanctification about 
 three weeks ago ; and it pleased the Lord to set them 
 both at liberty. Several other soldiers are earnestly 
 seeking pardon." 
 
 Among those for whom Mr. Smith was peculiarly 
 interested, was a corporal who once enjoyed religion, but 
 who had forsaken God and His people. His wife was a 
 pious woman : she mourned deeply on his account, and 
 perseveringly prayed for his restoration. It was one day 
 impressed on Mr. Smith's mind to visit this man ; and, 
 accompanied by Mrs. S., he walked as far as the door of 
 his house, where he met his wife. "Well, Mrs. B.," 
 said he, " where is your husband? " With much concern, 
 she replied, " Yonder he is, going to the races." " I 
 will follow him," he said, and, without entering the 
 dwelling, hastily set off in the direction indicated. The 
 corporal soon perceived that he was pursued, and, quicken- 
 ing his pace, succeeded, before Mr. S. came up with him, 
 in getting into a ferry- boat which would ha ve taken him 
 across the river to within a few minutes' walk of the race- 
 course. The boatman, however, had to put back for 
 another passenger. This brought him near the friend 
 whom he so much wished to shun, who solemnly accosted 
 him with, " Did you pray about it before you set out?" 
 The inquiry fastened on his conscience. He went to the 
 races, and was wretched. " Did you pray about it before
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 105 
 
 you set out?" still seemed to ring in his ears. He soon 
 returned home, but he could not succeed in dislodging 
 the arrow which was fixed in his heart. When Mr. Smith 
 next visited him, he was in deep distress. Mr. S. invited 
 him to unite himself to the people of God. He did so, 
 and never rested till the Lord healed his hackslidings, 
 and restored him to His favour. He became useful, and 
 for some time has been an active class-leader in the 
 regiment. 
 
 In the letter from which our last extract was made, 
 Mr. S. thus speaks of the work in general : " I have 
 still to lament an almost general want of effort in these 
 parts. It is lifting work to get the people to God ; but 
 help is laid upon One that is mighty to save. When the 
 Spirit comes, there must be a moving. We are encou- 
 raged to expect the Holy Spirit, not only by the sure 
 word of promise, but also by what we receive. Thank 
 God, there is a striving among the people. Some are 
 teased, and are ready to leave the society, or at least have 
 had thoughts of it; but others are looking to God, 
 panting, labouring for God. Several are on the point of 
 receiving entire sanctification, and a few have received 
 that blessing. Others have obtained pardon. The last 
 time I was at Uxbridge, two souls found peace, and one 
 the time before, who shortly afterwards was cleansed from 
 all sin, as he and I were praying together in his bed- 
 room. He has just begun to preach, and I hope will be 
 useful. For two years he was a backslider. This day 
 fortnight, I and my wife went to take tea with brother S., 
 whose wife a short time ago was a persecutor. . . . On my 
 return from Stoke, after preaching, I thought God would 
 save her. After a few inquiries, we began to pray. The 
 power of God came upon her : she groaned for mercy, 
 and, after a struggle, God set her soul at liberty. Her 
 husband found peace a few months before. A young 
 woman found peace at one of cur morning meetings, 
 about a fortnight ago. God, you see, is working. Since 
 I wrote last, I have changed with one of the Reading 
 preachers. At the prayer-meeting after evening preach-
 
 106 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 ing at Beading, four or five found peace. But it is rather 
 strange work in these parts for souls to be in distress and 
 to get liberty. I hope it will not continue so, and that it 
 will not be opposed, but desired and laboured for. My 
 soul is happy in God. I am looking for a greater per- 
 sonal salvation, and for glorious outpourings of the 
 Spirit upon the people. I confidently expect them." 
 
 Many notices of facts similar to the foregoing occur 
 in Mr. Smith's correspondence of this period; but, as they 
 are not connected with any details, I forbear to insert 
 them. The following extracts from his private papers 
 will show how fully he maintained the simplicity of his 
 piety: " WINDSOR, June 8, 1821. On all created objects 
 is written, in legible characters, VANITY! I believe the 
 report, and turn from the creature to the Creator, the 
 Fountain of happiness. He is accessible through the 
 incarnation, sufferings, death, and intercession of His only 
 begotten Son, whom He hath set forth ' a propitiation 
 lor the sins of the whole world.' I come to Him through 
 Jesus Christ, and thankfully avail myself of the blessings 
 which He freely offers. I rest on Christ for the pardon 
 of my past sins, for the destruction of the body of sin, 
 and for God as my portion. He gives Himself to me. I 
 am His : He is mine. I present my dear Ellen to Him, 
 and depend upon Jesus Christ for His blessing upon her 
 also. God is her portion. I pray that we may be a 
 blessing to each other, to the church, and to the world. 
 The people around us are in a deplorable state. We 
 want general and abundant outpourings of the Spirit. 
 I want more sympathy. 
 
 "9. God reveals Himself to me as a Fountain of 
 mercy. I have increasing power to lay hold on His truth. 
 This is the result of the fresh baptisms of the Spirit with 
 which I have this day been favoured. I have an increase 
 of sympathy ; glory be to God ! I will endeavour to be 
 anxiously careful for nothing. God is blessing my dear 
 Ellen. She is precious in His sight. We shall have 
 more of the mind of Christ. Amen. 
 
 "10. My soul is at rest in God is centred in God
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 107 
 
 My desire is to Him. All my springs are in Him, and He 
 is in me ' a well of water, springing up into everlasting 
 life.' In endeavouring to water others, I have myself 
 been watered. In the right of Jesus, I claim the promise 
 of the Spirit. God admits my claim : He must : ' He 
 spared not His own Son.' 0, how astonishing is the love 
 of God ! How astonishing are the blessings to which He 
 invites ! But He offers them. I will, I do accept them. 
 I have spoken plainly and affectionately to the people. 
 May God give the increase, for Christ's sake ! Amen." 
 
 As a still more striking illustration of the scriptural 
 character of Mr. Smith's piety, I quote the following 
 remarks of the friend whose communications have already 
 so enriched these pages : " Of all that he did or suffered, 
 of all that he experienced or enjoyed, faith was the great, 
 the animating principle ; and the truth of God (which is 
 nothing more nor less than the reality of things) was the 
 groundwork and basis of his faith. To believe, as it con- 
 stitutes the whole of religion, the highest attainments 
 of which are only a development of that all-compre- 
 hending principle, constituted the substance of all his 
 exhortations to others, and the scope of all his own 
 prayers and exertions. To the efficacy of faith he set 
 no limits. ' If,' said he, ' a man were as black as a 
 devil, and had upon him all the sins that were ever 
 committed, if he would but begin to believe, God would 
 raise him.' Again, I have heard him say, ' That is the 
 way I rise. I will not suffer myself to dwell on my 
 unfaithfulness ; if I did, I should despond.' I have 
 known him quote, with great seriousness, a remark of 
 Mr. Wesley, to the effect that most persons perished 
 through despondency. On my asking him as to his con- 
 fidence of final salvation, he replied that he had ' no 
 doubt whatever on the subject;' but, to prevent mis- 
 conception, he added, ' Not that I have any peculiar 
 assurance of it : but I know I shall get to heaven, 
 because I am determined to believe.' And as he set no 
 bounds to the efficacy of faith, so he appeared to set 
 none to its application. "When I have been engaged
 
 108 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 in writing a letter, he has called out to me, ' "Write in 
 faith!' 
 
 " But the daily victories of faith were accompanied 
 with daily conflicts. ' We may suppose,' said he, ' that 
 believing is difficult work, because the blessings of 
 salvation are suspended on it, and they are great.' 
 Speaking of Brainerd's life and his eminent piety, he 
 replied, ' He laboured for it ; and all that are eminently 
 pious labour for it.' At another time he said, 'Ah! that 
 is the way; to be always at it; to be on full stretch.' 
 When I spoke to him, on one occasion, of the quiet 
 manner of some eminent Christians, he appeared to acqui- 
 esce in the sentiment, that it is not equally an effort to all 
 to believe; but to himself, he said, it was a conflict. We 
 are, however, to remember that his life was a continual 
 struggle of faith to raise others ; and all the opposition, 
 not only of their unbelief, but of Satan himself, must 
 have been set in array ' to resist him.' 
 
 " Of the efficacy of his own faith, the number of con- 
 versions which took place under him, and of which ' the 
 greater part remain unto this present,' is an incontestable 
 and abiding monument. But those who knew him must 
 remember many evidences equally conclusive to them- 
 selves, although less capable of being attested and verified 
 to others. I have myself seen a whole congregation so 
 perceptibly quickened in their devotions on his entrance 
 into the chapel, though unperceived by every one, that 
 it could be imputed to nothing but the earnest exercise 
 of his faith ; and I have found, on inquiring whether it 
 were not so, that he had been employed in an act of 
 faith for the people as he came in." 
 
 In the month of June, he paid a visit to his friends at 
 Brighton, and was deeply affected, to use his own words, 
 " with the goodness of God in the kindness of the 
 people." On the Sunday evening on which he preached 
 there, the Spirit of God descended powerfully on the con- 
 gregation. Many were deeply convinced of sin ; fifteen 
 or sixteen persons obtained pardon, and the meeting was 
 continued till nearly midnight. On the following day lie
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 109 
 
 attended the quarterly meeting of the circuit at Lewes. 
 In the evening he preached, and the Lord granted the 
 congregation a baptism of fire. His subject was the love 
 of God to man : and he urged on his hearers the duty of 
 loving God in return, from the consideration that this 
 alone would fit them for heaven. For himself, he said, in 
 his own pathetic style, he did love God, and he intended 
 to get to heaven. He then appealed to the people, whether 
 they woiild go with him. When he paused, as for a 
 reply, there Avas, of course, profound silence, and every 
 heart seemed filled with the deepest emotion. Then, 
 turning to his friend Mr. Calder, he said, in a thrilling 
 tone, "Brother Calder, will you go to heaven?" As 
 well as he could articulate for weeping, he replied, "By 
 God's grace, I will." " Hear him," cried Mr. S. with a 
 loud voice, " he says he will; " and then, as if putting a 
 seal to a solemn covenant, he feelingly added, "Amen, 
 and now for all of you. God is here to receive your 
 vow, and help you to fulfil it." The effect was magical; 
 awe appeared to rest on every spirit, and multitudes 
 testified that they had never before observed such an 
 impression from simple and anointed eloquence. 
 
 Nothing can convey to the reader who never witnessed 
 the exertions of the man, the degree of intense fervour to 
 which he was wrought by the time he had finished his 
 sermon. He seemed rapt, inspired; and, to a certain 
 degree, his auditors were carried with him. He then 
 called on the Rev. John Pipe, who had succeeded him in 
 the Brighton circuit, to pray. The Spirit of intercession 
 had come on him also, and with extraordinary earnestness 
 he besought God to bless the circuit. Full of confidence 
 and ardour, and forgetful of everything but the amplitude 
 of the petition, Mr. S. pronounced an Amen like the 
 sound of thunder. A second petition that God would 
 bless the nation, elicited a second and still louder AHEX. 
 But when he who prayed, extending the exercise of his 
 faith and charity, called on God to bless the world, Mr. S. 
 uttered, at the extreme of his voice, an AMEN which 
 thrilled through every heart, and seemed to infuse the 
 K
 
 110 MEJIOIES OF THE 
 
 energy of his faith into those who heard it : " making," 
 says Mr. Calder, " the three most memorable Amens that 
 I, or I think any human being, ever heard." When the 
 first service was concluded, lac proceeded to assist in 
 carrying on the prayer-meeting, and had the happiness 
 of seeing, that night, about twenty souls delivered from 
 the burden of their sins, as were two more by his instru- 
 mentality on the following morning.* 
 
 It might naturally be supposed that much animad- 
 version would follow this singular scene. On the con- 
 trary, however, so fully was Mr. Smith's shall I call it 
 unique character understood, and so highly was his worth 
 appreciated, that little surprise and no displeasure was 
 awakened even in the town. All inquiry was silenced by, 
 " It was only Mr. Smith come to visit his old friends." 
 
 Yet Mr. Smith was no enthusiast. They who deem 
 him such, either do not know the indications of the 
 character and the signification of the term, or they 
 grievously misunderstand the man to whom they venture 
 to apply it. His principles were as sound and sober as 
 his vehemence in employing them was extraordinary and 
 resistless. Indeed his mind was essentially unimagina- 
 tive and deficient in the inventive faculty. It was dis- 
 tinguished by its strength of common sense, shrewdly 
 observant of human nature, endowed with a keen sense of 
 the ridiculous, and remarkable for its natural and healthy 
 cheerfulness. Is it too much to affirm, that there never 
 was, and that there never will be, an enthusiast made of 
 such materials? " Enthusiasm is a term, not of measure- 
 ment, but of quality.' 11 It does not describe what is 
 intensely good, but what is essentially evil. It is the 
 religion of the imagination, and not of the heart. There 
 is no antidote against it so infallible as that which was 
 
 * The following note from his private papers appears to have been 
 written immediately on his return homo : " June 28. I am thankful 
 that 1 went to Brighton. I have gained a blessed increase of personal 
 salvation. that I may grow in grace constantly ! I hope I shall 
 have more sympathy for the people in this circuit. I have more 
 already than I had when 1 went to Brighton. This is the result of 
 that increase of grace which 1 have received. Glory be to God ! "
 
 KEY. jonx SMITH. Ill 
 
 possessed in a peculiar degree by the subject of those 
 memoirs, simple, earnest, scriptural, and absorbing 
 piety. This in him was strikingly practical : it was not 
 made up of reveries and visions, or maintained by occa- 
 sional impulses and frequent abstraction. He knew 
 nothing of those speculations without which enthusiasm 
 must die, which tickle the fancy, but leave the heart 
 untouched; pleasant enough to the contemplation, but 
 practically worse than useless ; like the phosphoric lights 
 of a damp summer evening, which play around objects, 
 but have no power to enter them, and only serve to 
 scare the traveller, or lead him astray. His religion 
 pervaded all the occupations of common life ; it was 
 elevated and impassioned, but without the slightest taint 
 of fanaticism, either of doctrine or experience ; it never 
 revolted from the most ordinary subjects and engage- 
 ments ; it presided in his home as well as in the sanc- 
 tuary ; and, to use a common but expressive phrase, 
 wore well in all the rubs of the world. 
 
 If, however, by enthusiasm be meant the single, devoted, 
 unwavering pursuit of one object ; the concentration of 
 mighty and sanctified affections ; the labouring night 
 and day, with many tears, for the salvation of men ; the 
 literally counting " all things loss " for Christ ; the ex- 
 pecting the fulfilment of the promises of God in their 
 most ample sense ; the ready and constant preference of 
 the interests of eternity to those of time, however worthy 
 to be consulted : if, in short, the loving God with all the 
 heart, and serving Him with all the strength, be enthu- 
 siasm, John Smith teas an enthusiast. But the term 
 which describes such a character, far from being a term 
 of reproach, is a title of the highest dignity ; and there is 
 no instructed Christian who would not covet to gain it, or 
 would not glory in it when acquired. To use the words 
 of Mr. Smith's attached friend: "He who best secures 
 an end which many aim at, may well be presumed to hare 
 employed the best, and therefore the most rational, means. 
 And, consequently, since the salvation of souls is the end 
 of the Christian ministry, his known and eminent success, 
 K 2
 
 112 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 compared with that of most others, may well establish the 
 superior fitness of the means employed by him. In other 
 words, it transfers the suspicion of enthusiasm to those " 
 who imagine that a pointless generalizing harangue on 
 some theological subject, that the mere " letting off a 
 sermon," is to convey "life from the dead," and to 
 demolish the bastions of Satan and unbelief. The 
 " gentle theologues," whose nerves are strung with such 
 exquisite sensibility that they are alarmed at the slightest 
 ripple on the dead calm of human affections, and yet 
 expect to accelerate the period when " the sea shall roar 
 and the fulness thereof," are the real visionaries. " And 
 we who mourn that an Elijah is taken from us, and would 
 fain catch something of his spirit, will be content that it 
 shall be said of him, 'Whether he were beside himself, it 
 was for God ; or whether he were sober, it was for our 
 cause ; for the love of Christ constrained him.' 
 
 " But nothing can more decisively show the thorough 
 sobriety of his judgment, than his sentiments on that 
 very subject in which ignorance or prejudice might be 
 disposed to allege that he went too far. It is common 
 for persons to conceive of, and expect, the influence of 
 the Holy Ghost, only as some undefined and inarticulate 
 illapse promised in answer to prayer. It is even rare to 
 hear truth pointed out as the appointed and ordinary 
 medium of operation to the blessed Spirit, and yet it might 
 easily be shown that this is the doctrine of the New Testa- 
 ment.* Nothing can more clearly evince the rational 
 and scriptural character of Mr. Smith's piety, than a 
 saying of his on this one subject. ' The Spirit,' said he, 
 ' blesses in the truth : therefore get to know the states of 
 the people, and apply appropriate truth.' Could a sen- 
 timent be mentioned, or even imagined, that would be a 
 better test of sound general views ? And whatever he did 
 or said was in harmony with it. The law and the testi- 
 mony furnished the rule by which he acted. Whether 
 
 * See, for example, John viii. 32 : comp. 2 Cor. iii. 17, 18 ; John 
 xvii. 17; Eph. v. 26: comp. Tit. iii. 5; 2 Thess. ii. 13 ; 1 Pet. i. 
 22, 23 : comp. James i. 18, &c., &c.
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 113 
 
 he encouraged the penitent to believe, or the believer to 
 expect entire sanctification, his exhortation was to ' lay 
 hold on the truth of God.' In the spirit of the same 
 views he always inculcated that ' God would not go out 
 of His own order.' Perhaps a calmer school of theology 
 is not always equally scriptural." 
 
 X. 
 
 WINDSOR CONTINUED. 18211822. 
 
 " ALREADY, in October, 1 821 , fifty persons had received 
 the blessing of pardon in the Windsor circuit, and scores 
 in the Hammersmith circuit had obtained the same salva- 
 tion ; there prevailed everywhere a more earnest spirit of 
 religion ; and the piety of various individuals had acquired, 
 through Mr. Smith's example, a deeply interesting and 
 useful character." Such is the statement of the friend 
 from whom I have already quoted so much at length, as 
 to the spiritual prosperity which presented itself, almost 
 immediately after the re-appointment of Mr. S. to this 
 circuit. Writing to the same person about this time, he 
 thus exhorts him : " If I do not see you, present yourself 
 as a hell-deserving sinner before God : acknowledge the 
 goodness of God in the gift of His Son, ichether you feel 
 it or not. Rest your soul with your ski on the atone- 
 ment and mediation of Christ, and wait for the Holy 
 Ghost. Claim the Spirit. The promise is to you. 
 Everything must yield to His working. Do have the 
 Spirit, in spite of hell and yourself. God is for you : 
 wait, wait, my dear brother; God will come. He 
 will make you unspeakably happy." 
 
 The following is an extract from a letter to Mr. Calder, 
 dated October 22: "I was much pleased with your 
 letter. God is teaching you by If is Spirit some import- 
 ant lessons. The same lessons are taught in His word, 
 and have been taught by wise and good men ; but we 
 want the Spirit : we must have the teaching of the 
 Spirit, or after all we shall be foolish. I thank God for 
 K 3
 
 114 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 what He is doing in you and by you. Be in the 
 of God : KNOW that you are in it fully, constantly. 
 Perhaps you will have to spend hours on your knees, or 
 upon your face before the throne. Never mind ; wait. 
 God will do great things for you, if you will yield to 
 Him, and co-operate with Him. 0, play the man ! Dwell 
 in the clear light. I am hoping that God will make you 
 a great blessing : but you must be a burning and shining 
 light. The fire must come from heaven : you have free 
 access. Nelson says to me, ' Remember, men must be 
 saved FIRST.' Be determined not to rest, unless souls 
 get into clear liberty. We have a deal to say to them, 
 but they must be saved. 0, what numbers among us 
 are not clear in pardon ! Let us agonize to get them 
 into liberty. Maintain simplicity. If you spend several 
 hours in prayer daily, you will see great things. I long 
 for you. I do not cease to pray for you. You and your 
 family are closely connected with my mercies : when I 
 think of them, I think of you ; so that, as long as I have 
 piety, I shall not forget you. I am resting on the 
 atonement and intercession of Jesus. God gives Himself 
 to me. His Spirit is in me. 0, what rest is connected 
 with an indwelling God ! The abominations of the people 
 around me fill me with grief. I can only find relief in 
 the mercy and power of God, and in the merits of Christ. 
 Many of our people are very ignorant of the way of faith. 
 When the power of God is mightily upon them, they do 
 not lay hold of what they want. Until there be a taking 
 hold of God, we cannot expect much signal work." 
 
 In the beginning of the year 1822, Mr. Smith assisted 
 at the anniversary of the Canterbury chapel, of which cir- 
 cuit Mr. Calder was at this time superintendent. Among 
 the preachers assembled on the occasion, much concern 
 was felt and expressed on account of Mr. Smith's extra- 
 ordinary, and, as they could not but too truly augur, 
 self-destructive exertions. It was agreed that he should 
 be the subject of serious remonstrance, and that his new 
 and interesting ties to society (he having recently become 
 a father) should form the ground of expostulation. His
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 115 
 
 old and valued friend Mr. Methley, who at that time 
 travelled in the Canterbury circuit, was to be the spokes- 
 man, and was to be followed up by the serious and 
 affectionate representations of the rest. While they were 
 at supper, Mr. M. opened the business ; and Mr. Smith, 
 laying down his knife and fork, listened with the most 
 patient and respectful attention. As soon as the former 
 had ceased, he burst into a flood of tears, and, literally 
 sobbing with grief, at length replied, " What you say is 
 all correct. I ought to put restraint on myself; but, 0, 
 how can I ? God has given me such a sight of the state 
 of perishing souls, that I am broken-hearted, and can 
 only vent my feelings in the way I do, entreating them 
 to come to God, and pleading with Him to act upon and 
 save them." Still weeping as in an agony, he continued, 
 " Look round you, my brother : do you not see sinners 
 going to hell ? and when I thus see and feel it, I am com- 
 pelled to act." To this pathetic statement there was no 
 reply ; all the company were melted into tears ; and Mr. 
 Methley was so deeply affected, that, unable to restrain his 
 emotions, he abruptly arose from table and left the house. 
 During this visit, Mr. Smith was, as usual, made the 
 instrument of the conversion of a considerable number of 
 persons ; and among others, of a young lady, the daughter 
 of one of our principal friends in a neighbouring town. 
 Mr. Colder states that, of all the results of Mr. Smith's 
 labours in private which he ever witnessed, this was the 
 most interesting. It appears that she was very much 
 afraid of meeting Mr. S., lest he should address her on 
 the subject of personal religion. While he was at Mr. 
 Calder's house, however, she was prevailed on to call. 
 As she had apprehended, he immediately began to converse 
 with her on the necessity and desirableness of a present 
 salvation, until she was completely subdued. For three 
 hours did the friends present incessantly wrestle with God 
 on her behalf, and her soul was then filled with peace 
 and joy. She returned to her home a new creature, 
 and from that time walked worthy of her Christian 
 profession.
 
 116 MEJI01BS OP THE 
 
 This, however, was only an earnest of the extraordinary 
 blessing which attended his labours during the next few 
 days, which he spent in the metropolis and its vicinity. 
 Previously to this, God had begun a good work in London 
 west, through the instrumentality of some pious soldiers, 
 who, while stationed at Windsor, had obtained the blessing 
 of entire sanctification, and had imbibed Mr. Smith's 
 spirit, and been taught his plans. He had visited them a 
 few weeks before, and had seen the arm of the Lord 
 gloriously revealed. He now witnessed, to use his own 
 words, "the greatest work he had ever seen." In the 
 course of a very short time, there were, including the fruits 
 of his former visit, nearly seventy individuals pardoned, 
 and about sixty made profession of having attained purity 
 of heart. In the same week he also received a letter, 
 giving an account of a revival, in what is now the London 
 east circuit, of which, under God, he had been the first 
 mover. In his own circuit, too, several interesting con- 
 versions occurred about the same time. " So mightily 
 grew the word of the Lord and prevailed." 
 
 Mr. Smith'shouse wasfrequentlyresorted to by persons 
 under the awakenings of the Holy Spirit, and scarcely 
 a week elapsed in which it was not the scene of devout 
 exultation, on account of the liberation of some captive 
 soul. One afternoon a stranger called, in deep distress. 
 Mr. S. invited him to take tea, and inquired into the 
 means by which he had come under religious concern. 
 He stated that his name was D , that he was a publican 
 at Hampstead, and that for many years he had given 
 himself up to the love and practice of vice. He never 
 attended any place of worship, was a gambler, a hard 
 drinker, and, in short, a sinner in almost every conceivable 
 way. One of his companions in riot, having left his house 
 in a state of intoxication, had fallen into a river, and was 
 drowned. This accident roused him to alarm, which 
 was increased by the discovery that his own mind was 
 so weakened, probably in consequence of intemperance, 
 that he was unable to keep his accoiints. He thought 
 that he was about to lose his reason; and, while under tho
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 117 
 
 influence of this distressing apprehension, the enormity 
 of his past sins was powerfully presented to his mind, with 
 the fear of something more awful than even madness. In 
 this state, he recollected a pious person whom he had 
 formerly known; to him he applied for counsel, and this 
 friend brought him down to Windsor, that he might 
 receive the benefit of Mr. Smith's direction and prayers. 
 Such was the account which he gave of himself : but his 
 distress was so great, that, before tea was concluded, he 
 was down upon the floor ; and it was a solemn spectacle, 
 a large muscular man prostrated by extreme anguish, 
 while he groaned and prayed in unspeakable dis- 
 quietude. It happened to be the night on which Mr. 
 Smith met a class which he had formed, to the members 
 of which, after the ordinary conversation had concluded, 
 he introduced the case of this penitent, requesting their 
 intercession on his behalf ; at the same time urging him 
 to the exertion of faith in Christ, and the expectation of a 
 present salvation. The struggle was continued for a con- 
 siderable time. At length Mr. S. perceived that the man 
 was relaxing in his efforts. ' ' What, will you give it up ? " 
 said he. Mr. D. complained of exhaustion. " You have 
 danced for whole nights together, ' ' was the reply. ' ' That' s 
 true," said the other, and with renewed energy he began 
 again to cry to God ; nor did he rest till about eleven 
 o'clock, when his guilt was removed, and he rejoiced in 
 the assurance of the Divine favour. The following morn- 
 ing, as he and Mr. S. were walking out, he suddenly 
 stopped, and cried, " 0, my load is all returned ! " In 
 vain did Mr. S. tell him that this was only an effort of the 
 tempter ; in vain did he remind him of the peace which 
 he had before enjoyed. He remained almost on the verge 
 of despair the whole day. The religious services of the 
 next, which was Sunday, seemed to produce no beneficial 
 effect on his mind. In the evening prayer-meeting, he 
 was again made the subject of special intercession. One 
 of the friends employed to him an argument similar to 
 that of Naaman's servants, "If the prophet had bid thee 
 do some great thing, wouldst thou not have done it ? "
 
 118 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 "Yes," said he, with an air of desperate energy, "I would 
 stand and be shot." The meeting was continued to a late 
 hour ; his strength was exhausted, but his soul refused 
 comfort ; and the next day he returned, promising that he 
 would try to believe all the way home. He immediately 
 disposed of his inn, and retired to a private house at 
 Hoxton. For some weeks his despondency continued, 
 but at length the Comforter returned, and he wrote to 
 Mr. Smith, giving him an account of his deliverance. A 
 short time afterwards he took cold, fell into a rapid 
 consumption, and died in peace. 
 
 And here, perhaps, may be inserted with propriety 
 the following instances of the happy effects of the Sunday 
 evening prayer-meetings at Windsor. On one occasion, 
 when a remarkable influence appeared to rest on the 
 congregation, and several persons were penitently seek- 
 ing pardon, Mr. Smith remarked a woman standing near 
 the door, and looking at what was going forward with 
 much apparent curiosity and surprise. Her garb indicated 
 much poverty, and it afterwards appeared that she gained 
 a miserable subsistence, partly, by gathering and selling 
 water-cresses. She had attended the chapel a few times 
 before, but her ignorance was extreme. Mr. S. went up 
 to her, and said, "Woman, get down on your knees, and 
 begin to pray." She immediately knelt down, and asked, 
 " What shall I say, Sir?" "Ask God to give you true 
 repentance," was the reply. The poor woman for the first 
 time opened her mouth in prayer : " Lord, give me true 
 repentance." She had not long uttered this petition, 
 before it was in a measure answered, and she came under 
 the gracious influence which was in the meeting. She 
 began to tremble, and with great anxiety inquired, ' ' What 
 shall I do now ? what shall I pray for ? " "Ask God to 
 have mercy upon you," said Mr. S. " Lord, have mercy 
 upon me, a poor sinner," cried she, " a guilty sinner ! " 
 Who need be told the sequel ? She was that night clearly 
 converted, and filled with the love of God. When Mr. 
 Smith was about to leave Windsor, she came, with many 
 others, to look once more on him who had proved her
 
 BEY. jomr sjiiin. 119 
 
 best friend ; and so deep was her emotion, that, when he 
 extended his hand to her, she fell down on her knees, 
 filled with a gratitude which she could not express. 
 Mr. S. was deeply affected, and no doubt that moment 
 amply repaid him for all his labours in that circuit. 
 
 The following is an extract from a letter written in 
 April, 1822: ' ' I should say a good deal about the Lord 
 Jesus, if I had not the pleasing prospect of seeing you so 
 soon, and of talking about Him. However, He is precious 
 to my soul. I rest on Him ; and I do not rest on Him in 
 vain. God is my portion : all my springs are in Him ; 
 they never fail. Still I am tardy : 0, how powerfully I 
 ought to be attracted by His excellencies ! May He 
 quicken me ! Be determined to make use of Jesus ; ' lay 
 claim to His merit, and take for your own.' He is God's 
 gift to you and to the world. In the right of Jesus, claim 
 the Spirit ; expect to be filled ; do expect and wait. All 
 is yours. Offer yourself to God as you are, with all your 
 badness, and believe that He takes you through Christ. 
 Do believe. God will bruise Satan under your feet 
 shortly ; and your badness shall yield to the working of 
 the Spirit. 0, believe ! The word of God is sure. He 
 cannot lie. I hope to see you shortly ; to weep with you, 
 if you weep ; to rejoice with you, if you rejoice." 
 
 Yet, though for the afflictions of his friends Mr. S. 
 had an ever-ready sympathy, it was in behalf of those 
 who had no tears for themselves that he wept most 
 frequently and bitterly. " Some," says he, in one of his 
 private papers, " are so base that they do not weep. 
 Hardness and hard-heartedness are their characteristics. 
 From them we expect nothing tender, or even good. 
 Some cannot weep: grief has so stunned them; the 
 fountain of tears is walled in. These strike us, and for 
 them we weep, because they cannot. Some weep for 
 mankind and God. This is to be imitated. Think it 
 not unmanly to weep. The God -man wept over Jerusa- 
 lem. Is there not a cause ? Will it be useless ? ' Put 
 Thou my tears into Thy bottle : are they not in Thy 
 book ? ' This grief tells with God." JSor was it merely the
 
 120 MEMOIBS OF TUB 
 
 misery and peril of sinners which induced his tears, but 
 principal!}' his tender jealousy of the Divine honour. Of 
 God's purity and glory he had an awful and penetrating 
 sense, and that aspect of sin which most deeply affected 
 his own mind was its rebellious and treasonable character. 
 He felt in respect of it, what he affirmed primarily of 
 heathen idolatry, that "it is a system of rivalry to God." 
 Often, from the pulpit and elsewhere, was he accustomed, 
 with a voice which almost always faltered when he ap- 
 proached the subject, to exclaim, " God is dishonoured in 
 His own world." While he cherished a melting pity for 
 sinners, his nobler feelings still made him the advocate of 
 the Divine perfection, and gave an indescribable cordiality 
 and intensity to his abhorrence of iniquity. In his public 
 services, as well as in the devotional exercises of the 
 social circle, it was scarcely possible for a person of dis- 
 cernment to hear him speak of the threats of the law, 
 without perceiving that his mind was deeplj r impressed 
 with their rectitude and fitness. He not only presented 
 perdition to the sinner with the hope of rousing him, but 
 because he felt, with peculiar force, that it was proper 
 that an impenitent sinner should be lost. Horror seemed 
 sometimes to take hold of him, on account of the wrongs 
 which the Creator sustained from His creatures ; and for 
 a moment his faith appeared to stagger. His naturally 
 cheerful mind thus acquired an occasional tinge of 
 melancholy; and one of his friends mentions the com- 
 munity of his feelings with those expressed in the 
 writings of Jeremiah, as being at these times very dis- 
 tinct and remarkable. 
 
 About the Midsummer of 1 822, he went into the High- 
 Wycombe circuit to preach occasional sermons. On the 
 Sunday morning, when the congregation was assembled, 
 he had not arrived at the chapel, and several persons 
 were despatched in different directions to seek him. 
 After the lapse of a considerable time, he was found in a 
 solitary place out of doors, forgetful of all time, wrestling 
 with God in mighty prayer for His blessing on the 
 services in which he was about to engage. The result
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 121 
 
 may be readily anticipated. Throughout the day his 
 mind appeared to be peculiarly impressed with the Divine 
 benevolence ; and in one of his sermons he repeatedly, 
 and with extraordinary vehemence, cried out, " He is 
 willing! He is willing ! He is willing!" Many, on 
 that occasion, had a blessed experience of God's willing- 
 ness to save, and numbers of others were powerfully 
 awakened to seek salvation. And as, in the foregoing 
 paragraph, we have alluded to the first of those grand 
 impressions which contributed to form Mr. Smith's 
 character, and to render him eminently useful, we may 
 properly, in this place, speak of the second. To employ 
 the statement of the friend to whom was addressed the 
 letter from which our last quotation was an extract : 
 " With these views of the holiness of the Divine character 
 was combined a conviction, not less absolute and vivid, 
 of the unspeakable compassion of God. Hence, while, on 
 the one hand, he was jealous in maintaining the rectitude 
 and purity of God, by asserting the exceeding sinfulness 
 of sin, its guiltiness, and the necessity of humiliation; he 
 was no less earnest, on the other, in insisting on His 
 boundless mercy, and in leaving men burdened with the 
 responsibility of their own continued impenitence. Accord- 
 ingly, he was displeased when persons prayed as if God 
 were unwilling to bless ; or when they spoke of unbelief 
 as a mere infirmity. ' It is an abomination,' he said, 
 ' when men talk as if they were more willing to bless than 
 God.' Thus he showed how the most awful sense of the 
 Divine sanctity and justice may accompany and grow 
 with the deepest conviction of the Divine compassion, being 
 radicated in the same common sentiment. ' There is no 
 impediment on God's part,' said he, in his own brief and 
 energetic manner : ' He has given us His Son.' By thus 
 firmly asserting the willingness of God to save, against 
 all the temptations of unbelief, he urged and encouraged 
 himself to plead with God for sinners. ' It is by justifying 
 God,' said he, 'that I sting and stimulate myself to con- 
 tend.' And again : ' The necessity of wrestling arises not 
 from the unwillingness of God, but from ourselves or 
 
 L
 
 122 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 Satan : God is the same.' And thus his resolute purpose 
 to justify God, and to believe, at all events, that there is 
 no hindrance on His part, since He has given His Son, was 
 to him like cutting off retreat : it left him no alternative 
 but to wrestle and prevail. This was the principle which 
 he would never suffer himself or others to call in question. 
 But in following it out, in still tenaciously hanging 
 upon it, and pleading it, in spite of every impediment, 
 of all that Satan could oppose, or unbelief suggest ; this 
 was the conflict which we saw in him ; this was that 
 agony to believe which I have heard him describe as so 
 severe that it has been ' as if soul and body were ready 
 to part asunder.' " 
 
 Such were the discoveries by which Mr. Smith's un- 
 bending resolution was upheld in his arduous labours for 
 the conversion of men: the purity and benevolence of 
 God, alike infinite : sin, in its malignity, prevalence, 
 and misery : and salvation, in its fulness, freeness, and 
 power: the horrible condition and awful peril of the 
 sinner ; and the unspeakable tenderness, readiness, and 
 ability of the Saviour. Had his been merely an ordinary 
 Christianity grafted on a naturally determined spirit, it 
 would have been subject to fluctuations to which he was a 
 stranger; and this would have been equally the case, had 
 he been the creature of animal and passionate impulse 
 alone.* There are moments when the most powerful 
 constitutional determination languishes and fails. Weak- 
 ness of body, mental exercise, strong temptation, and 
 other causes succeed in prostrating the most resolute ; 
 
 * The friend who has so largely contributed to illustrate Mr. Smith's 
 character, remarks on this subject : " 1 have heard a doubt suggested 
 by a clergyman, who highly valued his ministry, and who acknow- 
 ledged himself to have been more powerfully affected under his 
 preaching than he had ever been under that of any other person, 
 whether Mr. Smith might not, perhaps, depend too much on ' animal 
 feeling.' From a thorough observation of the character of his mind, 
 aided by all the advantages of daily and unrestrained intercourse for 
 several months, I am fully convinced that he was utterly incapable 
 of it. In his most animated moments, in the full tide and energy of 
 a revival, I am confident that he might have replied, 4 I speak lorth 
 the vords of truth and soberness' "
 
 REV. JOHJT SMITH. 123 
 
 and such a reaction is often long-continued and extreme. 
 Who has not occasionally seen a mighty mind broken, 
 down, dissolved, as it were, into more than infantile 
 weakness? But Mr. S. was too fully a Christian and a 
 minister of sound and strong principle to be materially 
 affected by the varieties of circumstances. Others I 
 have known, who had vivid impressions of the heinous- 
 ness of sin, and they have so lived under their influence 
 as to have become gloomy and severe ; but I never met 
 with a mind so happily balanced by these antagonist 
 truths, so preserved, on the one hand, in its intensity 
 of feeling, and, on the other, in its buoyant tenderness 
 of hope. There were moments, it is readily admitted, 
 in which one or other of his principles predominated : 
 generally, however, these two impressions were, to his 
 mind, like the centrifugal and centripetal forces in the 
 planetary system, preserving it in its holy equilibrium, 
 and impelling it around its centre, "in glory and in 
 joy," the fountain of benign and kindly influence. 
 
 XI. 
 
 FROME. 18221825. 
 
 the three following years, the Frome circuit 
 enjoyed the advantage of Mr. Smith's ministry, in con- 
 junction, first, with that of the Rev. James Heaton, and 
 afterwards of the Rev. T. H. Squance. Of the con- 
 fidence and friendship of each of these ministers he 
 possessed a large measure, and their kind feelings he 
 most cordially reciprocated. Harmony was in their 
 counsels, and success crowned their united labours. On 
 the first Sunday evening on which Mr. S. preached in 
 Frome, an interesting young female obtained mercy at ths 
 prayer-meeting. She was the youngest of three sisters, 
 all of whom were members of the society ; but neither of 
 the others had entered into the enjoyment of the Divine 
 favour. A short time afterwards, the second sister called 
 * 2
 
 124 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 one morning at Mr. Smith's, and, according to his custom, 
 he inquired whether she had received the blessing of 
 pardon. Upon her replying in the negative, he proposed 
 prayer, and they did not rise from their knees till she also 
 was able to testify the power of the atoning blood ; nor 
 was it long before the eldest sister was likewise brought 
 into the same happy state of experience. The parents 
 of these young pei'sons were members of the Society of 
 Friends. Upon one occasion of Mr. Smith's visiting 
 them, he was invited up-stairs to see the mother, who 
 was very ill. He found her surrounded by her weeping 
 family, and suffering under pain so severe that they 
 apprehended her speedy death, unless it were mitigated. 
 After making a few observations, he kneeled down and 
 brought the case before the Lord. The answer was 
 immediate. The pain entirely left her, and, with the 
 return of bodily ease, came an extraordinary blessing 
 upon her spirit.* 
 
 A few cursory extracts from Mr. Smith' s correspondence, 
 during the years 1822 and 1823, will enable the reader 
 to form some idea of the happy results of his efforts : 
 "Oct. 8. A few weeks ago, at Nunney, we had a blessed 
 lovefeast. Nine found peace, and five the Tuesday fol- 
 lowing ; seven on the Wednesday, one on Monday, and 
 one on Friday. Yesterday week, at Warnstow, five found 
 peace. Last Wednesday night, at Kilmington, I think 
 ten found peace. A few others, in different places, have 
 
 * An answer to prayer of an equally remarkable kind was granted 
 to Mr. Smith during the time he was at Brighton. Calling one dny 
 
 at the house of Mr. , he there found an infant lying on the lap 
 
 of its distressed mother, and writhing in a severe convulsion-tit. It 
 had frequently been aifected in a similar way, even from the time of 
 its birth. Mr. S. took the child from the mother's arms, and, sitting 
 down, sang one of his favourite hymns. He then engaged in interces- 
 sion on its behalf. Having risen from his knees, he gave it back to 
 the mother, and retired. From that time the affliction ceased ; the 
 child became strong, and, after the lapse of eight years, the grateful 
 mother assured the relater of this incident, that it had never since 
 had a single fit. The same gentleman adds, from his personal know- 
 ledge, that the young person for whom this deliverance was wrong-lit 
 out is now in the bloom of perfect health ; and he intimates that this 
 was only one of many coses, in which similar extraordinary effects 
 resulted from Mr. Smith's prayers.
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH: 125 
 
 been saved since we came. I believe we shall see a great 
 and glorious work." "Feb. 18, 1823. We admitted on 
 trial, last quarter, upwards of two hundred and seventy. 
 We had about the same number of conversions. Many 
 obtained the blessing of entire sane tin* cation. Since the 
 quarter-day, we have given nearly a hundred notes of 
 admittance, and we have had about the same number of 
 conversions. The work is likely to go on. The people 
 very generally are getting into action. They look for 
 present blessings in their meetings. Some of the leaders 
 and local preachers are very active and successful. I have 
 frequently seen eight or ten saved at a meeting ; I think 
 twenty more than thrice ; and once, at Frome, between 
 thirty and forty. This blessed work melts me into grate- 
 ful love to God." " March 22. I have witnessed many 
 signal displays of the power and grace of God since I last 
 wrote. At Badcomb, in the Shepton- Mallet circuit, about 
 twenty souls found peace with God in one night ; and a 
 person who does not relish a revival in what is called a 
 noisy way, says he believes forty souls were awakened. At 
 our lovefeast upwards of twenty found peace. In several 
 of the country places many have been saved. Glory be to 
 God !" "June 26. A short time ago, we had a prayer- 
 meeting after the Missionary meeting at Shepton. Num- 
 bers were in deep distress, and many found peace with 
 God. I was informed, on Monday last, by a pious young 
 gentleman from that place, that the work is still going on, 
 and that fifty have been saved since the Missionary meet- 
 ing. Several have been saved in various parts of our own 
 circuit lately. We are trying to keep those whom God 
 has given us, and to get more converted. It is God's 
 work; it must prosper." "July 30. The work at 
 Shepton has been going on ever since. On the 20th, I 
 preached there. There was much of the power of God 
 among the people during the sermon. A special power 
 came down in the last prayer. I called on a local 
 preacher to pray. Some ran out with all speed ; some 
 were in great distress ; some were taken into the vestry 
 apparently senseless. I concluded, and commenced a 
 L 3
 
 126 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 prayer-meeting ; and I think nearly thirty souls found 
 peace with God." " Oct. 8. The work of entire 
 sanctification is going on in many parts of the circuit, 
 particularly in Frome. We have a number of private 
 bands, and have begun to meet them on the Saturday 
 evenings. "VVe anticipate much good from this. God 
 is giving stability to the work already done. The 
 backsliders are comparatively few. Some that sustained 
 loss during the harvest, are stirring themselves to take 
 hold of God again. There is a blessed spirit of union 
 among the people Our leaders at Frome are one, and 
 they are prepared to hail a continued revival. I have 
 been at Bristol since I wrote last. I preached at Easton 
 on a Sabbath evening. During the last prayer, a woman 
 cried aloud for mercy; others were in distress, and five 
 or six found peace. We have had a friend of ours from 
 London, spending a week with us lately. He was one of 
 eleven who were cleansed at one meeting in London : ten. 
 of the eleven, he tells me, have been made leaders. He 
 went with me to several places, and was astonished at the 
 work. One evening six persons obtained purity of heart." 
 In the course of the year Mr. S. paid several visits to 
 Bath ; and in that city his labours were greatly blessed. 
 On one occasion, at a prayer-meeting at Walcot chapel, 
 several were in distress, and seven or eight obtained mercy. 
 On the following evening, Mr. Smith preached at King- 
 street chapel. Much Divine power was present, and 
 upwards of twenty penitents received pardon. " The 
 work," says he, in. one of his subsequent letters, " is 
 going on still. At one meeting since, I have heard that 
 twenty-two found peace." At one of the above meetings 
 there was present a medical gentleman, who was a 
 member of another religious community. At the con- 
 clusion, he came to Mr. S., and, taking him by the hand, 
 said, "Well, Sir, you are a stranger to me; but I know 
 your Master. I never witnessed such a night as this ; 
 but I perceive nothing here contrary to the Scriptures. I 
 could not leave the place without saying this to you, and 
 wishing you God speed !" adding, with other expressions
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 127 
 
 of kindness, " and when your lungs are worn out, if you 
 will come to mo, I may perhaps be able to say something 
 which will do you good." This instance of cordial and 
 catholic feeling was very gratifying to Mr. S., and, con- 
 nected as it was with an unusual order of ministerial 
 labour, seems to deserve record in these pages. After 
 the Missionary anniversary, also, Mr. Smith, with his 
 excellent superintendent, conducted a prayer-meeting in 
 one of the Bath chapels, in which about twenty persons 
 were justified, and ten or twelve enabled to rejoice in 
 the blessing of perfect love. In his own circuit, the 
 success of his ministry was not confined to persons of 
 moral habits. Not a few of the grossly wicked were 
 awakened and saved through his instrumentality; and 
 among others of this class were a considerable number 
 of poachers. The Earl of Cork had some game-preserves 
 in the neighbourhood of Frome ; and it was remarked, by 
 a person who knew the extensive results of Mr. Smith's 
 labours, that he was of more service to this nobleman 
 than all his game-keepers. But although the Divine 
 blessing thus remarkably succeeded his efforts, his own 
 spirit looked higher for satisfaction and happiness. No 
 outward events could afford him greater delight than the 
 salvation of men ; yet on one occasion, after expressing 
 his gratitude for the good work going on in the circuit 
 and neighbourhood, he added, " But God is my portion.' 1 
 To employ his own phrase, his first object was to " obtain 
 more of God;" his second, to "diffuse more of God." 
 God was the beginning and ending of his meditations, 
 his affections, and his labours : having received, he 
 diffused; and in diffusing he obtained. But he never 
 transposed the order of these duties, or allowed minis- 
 terial efforts to call forth any other than an interest 
 subservient to the cultivation of personal holiness. 
 
 In the latter part of the year 1 823, his robust health 
 yielded to severe and long-continued exertion. For some 
 time he was wholly laid aside, and some of his friends 
 feared that his lungs were seriously diseased. Dr. Parry, 
 of Bath, however, upon being consulted, gave them
 
 128 MEMOIES OP THE 
 
 encouragement to hope that this was not the case, and 
 thought that by relaxation and rest he might be fully 
 restored to health. This, though very necessary, was to 
 Mr. S. himself a great trial. Yet, with a strong desire 
 to return to his beloved employment, his mind was kept 
 in peace. In one of his letters he says, " I wish to be 
 employed for God. I can stand hard labour better than 
 sickness; but I want patience to have its perfect work." 
 At another time he remarks, "I must rest a little longer 
 yet, and proceed with great caution. Mr. Squance has 
 acted the part of a father to me. The Lord reward him. 
 for his great kindness and affection." Then, recurring to 
 the ever-present subject of his thoughts and concern, he 
 adds, " God is giving stability to His work in this circuit, 
 and it is spreading a little. Eight souls found peace with 
 God, I hear, in one of our country places last Sunday 
 week. Several have been saved in Frome lately. Many 
 of our people are looking out for signal displays of the 
 power and grace of God. 0, how ready is God to save ! 
 The gift of His Son unto death, His promise and His oath, 
 ought to kill every doubt. ' He that believeth not hath 
 made God a liar.' I hope I shall credit God more than 
 ever. He is worthy. The connexion between man and 
 man is very close. God will do astonishing things for 
 others in answer to our prayers. I want qualifying, 
 especially as a minister, to take faster hold of the people ; 
 to be more like Moses, Samuel, Daniel, Paul, and the 
 Lord Jesus. I must wait in faith, and then ." 
 
 In February, 1824, he went into Yorkshire, with the 
 hope of being benefited by his native air. After spend- 
 ing some time with his parents, he paid a visit to hi 
 friend Mr. Nelson, who was then stationed in the Birsta, 
 circuit. At the band-meeting in that place, which he one 
 evening attended, there were several seeking pardon, and 
 he could not resist the impulse to labour, and thus risk 
 the little strength which he had been two months gather- 
 ing. The following Sunday, he with great difficulty 
 persuaded Mr. N. to allow him to preach, by way of 
 experiment, as he said ; promising at the same -time that
 
 HET. JOHN SMITH. 129 
 
 he would be very cautious. For a little while his exer- 
 tionswere moderate; but atlength,\varmedby the subject, 
 he forgot his engagement, and gave way so fully to his 
 generous ardour, that it seemed as if he would have fallen 
 in the pulpit. Of course, he was not again to be trusted. 
 He returned to Cud worth ; and, finding that he was there 
 in danger of expending his strength as he gathered it, he 
 judged it prudent to travel home. He soon after re- 
 sumed his labour, and witnessed still greater displays of 
 the grace of God than he had before seen. The effects of 
 this illness, however, he never fully recovered; and, 
 though his exertions in public were still almost 
 unexampled, yet the prostration of his strength imme- 
 diately consequent upon them was, in nearly all instances, 
 more severe and long- continued than at any previous 
 period. 
 
 In the latter part of the year, he was again afflicted. 
 Under the date of Oct. 18, he thus writes to his father : 
 " You would have heard from me sooner, had I not been 
 unwell. I have had a touch of a fever which has been 
 making dreadful ravages in Frome and its neighbourhood. 
 I providentially attended to it in time, so that I have had 
 but a slight attack. I think it likely that I took the fever 
 through visiting some who were ill in it. I had for a 
 .few days much pain in my head. Thank God, it has 
 been to me the best affliction with which I was ever 
 visited. It has brought me much nearer to God. I was 
 so touched with the Divine goodness, while in an agony of 
 pain, that I was constrained to shout the high praises of 
 God. We had a blessed baptism of the Spirit last night 
 at family-prayer. We have devoted ourselves afresh to 
 God, and He accepts us." 
 
 Nor was this a solitary instance of peculiar Divine bless- 
 ing upon Mr. Smith's family- worship. In domestic life he 
 was a happy and an interesting man ; and the uniformity 
 of his personal religion exerted a perpetual influence over 
 his home. But it was especially when the members of 
 his household accompanied him to the throne of mercy, 
 that the piety of the husband, the father, the master,
 
 130 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 and the friend was presented in its most impressive and 
 touching aspect. Many, who have had the privilege of 
 uniting in these solemn engagements, can never forget 
 the emotions which were then excited. Mr. Smith's 
 pertinent observations on the portion of Scripture, (the 
 reading of which formed a regular part of the service,) 
 the singular sweetness of the family-music, succeeded by 
 powerful and appropriate prayer, could not fail to affect a 
 mind endowed with any measure of religious feeling. After 
 the family-worship of the morning, which Mr. S. usually 
 prefaced by several hours of private devotion, he returned 
 to the exercises of the closet, and sometimes on his knees, 
 and often on his face, wrestled with God, till not unfre- 
 quently a considerable part of the floor of his study was wet 
 with his tears. In his unreserved disclosures of feeling to 
 his friend,Mr.Clarkson,he once remark edthathe was some- 
 times engaged in prayer tor two or three hours, before he 
 enjoyed that unrestricted intercourse with heaven which 
 he always desired, and which he generally succeeded in 
 obtaining. " Often," says another of his friends, " when 
 I have gone to his house with those who were seeking 
 salvation, I have interrupted his devotions, in which he 
 would be engaged for seven or eight hours at a time." 
 He occasionally spent the whole night in prayer ; some- 
 times the greater part, if not the whole, of several suc- 
 cessive nights : and when he has been from home, the 
 members of the families by whom he has been entertained 
 have, at various hours of the night, been awakened by 
 his groans, when his desires became too big for utterance, 
 and his emotions too mighty to be controlled. Of his 
 public and social prayers, perfectly simple and inartificial 
 as they were, multitudes have testified that the Divine 
 influence attending them exceeded anything which they 
 ever experienced. The author of these pages, in common 
 with many others, has seen persons so affected under 
 them, that nature itself has sunk, and they have been 
 removed from the scene of action in a state of insensibility. 
 And these results were as observable when his manner 
 was placid, as when it was peculiarly impassioned.
 
 KEV. JOHN SMITH. 131 
 
 Indeed, as some of his friends have remarked, there were 
 seasons when his physical exertions were peculiarly 
 violent, in which there was less accompanying influence 
 than when he exercised more command over himself. 
 
 A similar power appeared to accompany his conversa- 
 tions, his reproofs, and sometimes even his looks. A 
 woman in Frome, who attended the chapel, was in the 
 habit of keeping her shop open on the Sunday morning. 
 Mr. S. several times faithfully warned her of the impro- 
 priety of her conduct; but, though she promised amend- 
 ment, her heart was too fully wedded to worldly gain, 
 to be persuaded to abandon the sin. One Sunday, as 
 Mr. S. was going to the chapel, he stopped at her house. 
 Leaning over the half-opened door, he fixed his eyes 
 intently on her as she served her customers, and, shaking 
 his head, silently withdrew. Had a bolt from heaven 
 fallen at her feet, she could scarcely have been more 
 affected. The shop was never again opened on the 
 Sabbath ; and in a short time she herself, having joined 
 the society, became savingly converted. A sinner 
 within the sphere of Mr. Smith' s influence was perpetually 
 exposed to the holy compulsion of his expostulations and 
 prayers ; and few who were resolved to cleave to their 
 sins, ever had the hardihood to endure a second interview 
 with him if it were possible to be avoided. At a prayer- 
 meeting in the Frome circuit, where several were in dis- 
 tress, he once remarked an old man looking on with much 
 surprise. " Well," said Mr. S., " do you intend to leave 
 off your sins, and be saved to-night ? " " Why, no,'' re- 
 plied the other with great coolness : " I think I will wait 
 till next time." Had this been his real design, his policy 
 would have been immediately to leave the place. He re- 
 mained, however, and presently the hand of God came upon 
 him. He cried aloud in anguish and horror, and in a short 
 time the Lord gave him " the garment of praise for the 
 spirit of heaviness." About twelve months since, he died 
 in peace. The following incident also, which belongs to 
 the same class of facts, deserves insertion here : A young 
 lady of Frome, who was very ill, expressed a strong desire
 
 132 MEMOIRS OP TIIB 
 
 to see Mr. S. Her state of weakness, however, was such, 
 that it was with difficulty her friends were prevailed on to 
 comply with her wishes. At length he was admitted to 
 visit her, and he had the happiness of leading her into the 
 enjoyment of the peace which passeth all understanding. 
 For two or three days she retained the assurance of her 
 acceptance, and her spirit then returned to God. Shortly 
 afterwards, her sister, who was religiously disposed, re- 
 marked to a pious female, that she feared Mr. Smith's 
 visit had hastened the death of her deceased relative. 
 The person to whom this observation was made replied, 
 that, if this was her feeling, she would recommend her 
 to go to Mr. S., and express it to him ; at the same time 
 offering to accompany her. They went, and found him 
 at home. He immediately addressed the young lady on 
 the subject of personal salvation. " Your sister," he 
 said, " has gone to heaven : are you preparing to follow 
 her ? " She was much affected; and when he inquired if 
 she wished to obtain the present pardon of her sins, she 
 replied in the affirmative. They then united in prayer, 
 and, before she had the opportunity of stating the object 
 of her visit, the light of God's countenance broke upon, 
 her soul, and she Avas filled with unspeakable delight. 
 No persons for whose salvation Mr. S. was particularly 
 interested, could be secure from his efforts. If they even 
 sought the resorts of drunkards and harlots, it did not at 
 all cut them off from his influence. Sometimes, when 
 he discovered them, he succeeded in leading them away ; 
 and I have a letter now before me, which refers to his 
 having in more than one instance kneeled on the floor 
 of a haunt of intemperance, till the individual for whom. 
 he interceded 'obtained the salvation of God, in the 
 presence of those who had been the companions of his 
 excess. 
 
 In the beginning.of 1825, Mr. Smith spent a fortnight 
 in London. Here his labours were attended with extra- 
 ordinary success. In what is now the second London 
 west circuit, nearly a hundred and twenty persons obtained 
 peace with God, through his instrumentality, and about
 
 KEY. JOHK SMITH. i33 
 
 half that number entered into the enjoyment of purity of 
 heart. Many of these received salvation at tea-parties and 
 other social meetings of a similar kind ; and it was one of 
 the excellencies of this devoted servant of God, that he 
 rendered the parlour a sanctuary, and occasions of ordinary 
 intercourse means of grace. In Frome and its neighbour- 
 hood, he will long be remembered with peculiar delight. 
 One of his intimate friends * on that circuit says, " In 
 every lovefeast that I have attended or do now attend, 
 many rise and declare, with heartfelt gratitude, that 
 Mr. Smith, was made a blessing to them." 
 
 XII. 
 NOTTINGHAM. 1825 1 820. 
 
 AT the Conference of 1825, Mr. Smith was appointed 
 to the Nottingham circuit. His colleagues were the 
 Rev. Messrs. Aver, Hanwell, and Parker, men to whom 
 he was strongly attached, and with whom he laboured in 
 delightful harmony. Among the people his ministry was 
 awaited with great expectation, which was strengthened 
 by his first public appearance among them, which h appened 
 to be at the meeting of the bands. A person present on 
 that occasion remarks: "He professed in striking lan- 
 guage what the blessed God had done for him ; the deep 
 concern he felt for the Divine honour, the state of the 
 world, and the salvation of souls ; after which he engaged 
 in prayer. Never shall I forget the impressions made 
 upon me by his fine athletic figure, his open and majestic 
 countenance, his powerful and sonorous voice, and, above 
 all, his fervent and mighlyprayer. It seemed as if heaven 
 were opened, and we all believed that success was cer- 
 tain." On the following Sunday evening, he preached 
 
 * Lieut. Clarke, who with his wife was converted through 
 Mr. ifniith's instrumentality. An account of the experience and 
 hiippy dcnth of the. latter will be found in the "Wesleyau-Muthodist 
 Maguziiie lor October, 1828,
 
 134 MEMOIES OP 1ILE 
 
 with great power at Halifax-place chapel. His subject 
 was the love of God, and on this (to him) most delightful 
 of all topics he dilated in "breathing thoughts" and 
 "burning words." "I preach in faith," he cried in 
 one part of his discourse. " God will answer prayer, 
 and save souls to-night." About twelve persons at the 
 prayer-meeting that evening professed to receive the 
 blessing of pardon. 
 
 This was an encouraging presage of the great work which 
 succeeded ; for, perhaps, in no place were Mr. Smith's 
 labours attended with more remarkable results. The 
 spirit in which his ministry was at this time conducted, 
 may be gathered from the following facts. Shortly after 
 his arrival in the circuit, a pious friend remarked to him 
 one morning that he looked very unwell. He said, in 
 reply, that he had spent the whole of the preceding day 
 and night in fasting and prayer, and that he was assured 
 that God would shortly begin a glorious revival in Not- 
 tingham and its neighbourhood. Some time afterwards 
 a few friends called at his house one evening, and found 
 him in a state of deep depression of mind. He had 
 been meditating on the condition of the sinners in the 
 town and its vicinity, and lamenting, with many tears, 
 their dishonour of God and His laws. He invited his 
 friends to join him in prayer. One or two engaged in 
 this exercise, and then Mr. S. himself poured forth his 
 sorrows before the Lord, confessing and bewailing the 
 sins of the people with great minuteness and indescribable 
 emotion. His vehement agony was so extraordinarj-, 
 that Mrs. Smith, accustomed as she was to witness his 
 exertions, was at length unable any longer to endure 
 the sight, and left the room. His friends rose from 
 their knees, and gazed on him with astonishment, 
 mingled with apprehension. One of them ventured to 
 expostulate with him, and besought him to cease. Mr. S. 
 turned to him, and in a tone of inconsolable grief ex- 
 claimed, " Go, man, kneel down, and cry and sigh for 
 the abominations of the people." For nearly two hours 
 did he continue to call on God with his utmost strength
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 135 
 
 of body and of mind, and it was by sheer exhaustion 
 alone that he was at last induced to desist. These 
 extraordinary exercises were accompanied and followed 
 by signs of a coming revival, and in a short time " there 
 was a great rain." 
 
 I subjoin a few extracts from his correspondence during 
 the former part of the year 1826, which will serve in 
 some degree to exemplify his success: "Jan. 13. A few 
 weeks ago, I was at Ilkestone. In the evening we had a 
 very interesting time. Many were in deep distress, and, 
 after a good deal of labour, I think eight persons found 
 peace with God. The following morning, 1 learned that 
 there were several very unhappy, who had been at the 
 preaching on the preceding evening. I agreed with a local 
 preacher to go to a lace-warehouse, where some of them, 
 were working. We went. I made a few observations 
 respecting the importance of salvation, &c. Many were 
 much affected : we sang, 'Take my poor heart,' &c., aiia 
 began to pray. The distressed souls cried aloud for 
 mercy. Such anguish as some of them were in for more 
 than an hour, I have seldom witnessed. After consider- 
 able struggling, six found peace with God. May God 
 give stability to His good work ! We want more nurses 
 in the church of Christ. Last Tuesday evening, I was 
 at Draycot, in the Derby circuit. We had much of the 
 power of God among us. Many were in distress, and I 
 think about twelve found peace with God." " April 8. 
 God is blessedly moving among the people in various parts 
 of our circuit. More than one hundred and fifty were 
 added to the society the last quarter, and upwards of two 
 hundred and twenty are on trial. In two or three places, 
 the awakening influence of God seems to be general. The 
 people are distressed in their houses without any outward 
 means, doubtless in answer to prayer. At New Basford, 
 the people appear to be panic-struck. Some of the most 
 notoriously wicked characters have been converted to 
 God. I gave fourteen notes of admittance to persons in 
 one class at that place a few weeks ago, all of whom pro- 
 fessed to have found peace with God. We had a blessed 
 M 2
 
 136 HEMOIKS OF THE 
 
 time there last Thursday. The glory of God filled the 
 place, and five obtained mercy. Many souls have been 
 saved there every week for some time past. I gave 
 seventeen notes at Old Radford a short time since : all who 
 received professed to have obtained liberty. The work is 
 going on. In several places it is spring. Hallelujah ! 
 At Nottingham souls are saved every week. More than 
 a dozen were saved after Mr. Dawson had preached, a few 
 weeks ago ; and six found peace with God on the morning 
 of the same day, in a private house. I have seen some 
 signal work also in the Mansfield and Ilkestone circuits !" 
 " June 29. Although our increase of members has not 
 been very great two hundred we have four hundred 
 and forty-seven on trial. In some places, the work 
 astonishes the old members : they never saw anything 
 equal to it. Numbers have trusted God for a full salvation, 
 and many more are panting for it. It is the good pleasure 
 of the good God to save to save fully. How important 
 it is to hold this truth fast through everything!" 
 "July 12. Many backsliders are returning to the Lord, 
 and cleansing work is going on. Last Sunday night, 
 at Carlton, upwards of twenty, I think, either found peace 
 with God, or obtained a clean heart. We had a still 
 greater night on Monday, at Halifax chapel ; and last 
 night, at New Sneinton, many souls were saved. Glory 
 be to God ! I have not time to enter into any particulars." 
 It is, of course, impossible to trace the good which 
 was effected primarily through Mr. Smith's instrumen- 
 tality, as it extended, and still extends, in numerous 
 ramifications. Many instances there are, in which whole 
 families were brought to the knowledge of the truth, in 
 consequence of the influence which, in the first place, he 
 had exerted upon individual members of them. The 
 following case is too remarkable to be omitted. A young 
 man left his home and his friends in Derbyshire, in rather 
 a discreditable manner, and came to reside at Nottingham, 
 a little after Mr. Smith's appointment to that circuit. A 
 pious female, one of our tract-distributers, had occasion, 
 to call at the house wheie he lodged, during the time of
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 137 
 
 Nottingham fair. With her he was very jocose, and 
 pressed her to go with him to the fair. She agreed, pro- 
 vided he would first accompany her to the chapel. Having 
 gained his consent, she took him to hear Mr. Smith. 
 During the sermon, he was deeply convinced of sin; and 
 at the prayer-meeting which followed he obtained peace 
 with God. He soon after returned home, and surprised 
 all his family by his seriousness and consistently pious 
 deportment. One day, his mother, with an appearance 
 of much concern, asked him how it wes that he was so 
 constantly happy. He told her his experience, and 
 assured her that God was willing to make it equally hers. 
 Upon this they betook themselves to the throne of grace, 
 and mingled their prayers and tears, till the God of all 
 consolation revealed Himself in her heart, and mother and 
 son rejoiced together in unspeakable joy. Some time 
 afterwards, her other son was married. The young man. 
 besought the Lord to grant that on the day of the wed- 
 ding, one soul might be saved ; and though up to the 
 very morning there was no appearance of any answer to 
 his prayer, he felt assured that his request would be 
 granted. Upon the return of the bridal party from 
 church, he retired to renew his suit before the Lord. He 
 then came back to the company, and solemnly called upon 
 them to j oin him in prayer. They did so, and before they 
 rose from their knees, the bride was awakened, and clearly 
 converted. The youth once more withdrew, and confessed 
 and bewailed his sin in only asking for one soul, as he 
 was convinced that God was far more desirous to save 
 the whole than he could be. As he came down frora^his 
 devotions, he heard a noise in one of the chambers, and, 
 upon entering, found his brother in deep distress, crying 
 to God for the pardon of his sins. In a little while, he 
 also was filled with peace in believing. Shortly after, two 
 musicians, who had been hired to contribute to the hilarity 
 of the party, came in. The bridegroom, in the fulness 
 of his joy, told them that they were not wanted. "We 
 have other music," he said, and invited them to unite in 
 it. Again they had recourse to prayer, and once more 
 M 3
 
 138 MEJIOI2S OP THE 
 
 the Saviour answered. Before they had ceased their 
 intercessions, one of the musicians was convinced of his 
 sins, and brought into the enjoyment of the favour of 
 God. The melody of renewed hearts celebrated their 
 espousals to Christ on that happy day, and the burden 
 of their chorus may well be supposed to have been, 
 " Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins 
 in His own blood ; unto Him be glory aud dominion for 
 ever and ever ! Amen." 
 
 The strength of Mr. Smith's faith was probably never 
 more fully displayed than in behalf of dying sinners. 
 The condition of many of these is such as to extinguish 
 all hope in the mind of an ordinary Christian ; but I 
 never heard of a case which he looked upon as hopeless ; 
 and what discouraged others appeared only to give to him 
 an additional stimulus. The following is an example. 
 He was called to visit an aged woman, who was dying 
 in the most miserable circumstances. Her heart seemed 
 shut up in despair, and she expressed herself as having 
 made up her mind to be damned ! Mr. S. spent several 
 hours with her, exhorting, praying, and reading appropri- 
 ate portions of Scripture. She repeatedly begged him to 
 desist, assuring him that his efforts were of no sort of 
 use ; but every rebuff seemed only to increase his zeal 
 for her salvation. At length she confessed that for many 
 years she had been a backslider : she added, that she had 
 sinned away her day of grace, and her salvation was 
 utterly impossible. He now renewed his exertions ; his 
 faith appeared to gather fresh strength, and he wrestled 
 yet. more mightily with God in her behalf. He consi- 
 dered the infinity of the merit of Christ, that His atone- 
 ment was avail able even for her aggravated guilt, that the 
 Holy Spirit was purchased by the blood of the Saviour, 
 that a sufficient measure of His influence might be exerted 
 upon her to meet her case, and that this influence might 
 be obtained by believing prayer. He persevered, there- 
 fore, in the contest of faith with despair ; and at last the 
 dying sinner began to yield, to relent, to weep, to hope 
 that it was yet possible that she might be saved before
 
 RET. JOHK SMITH. 139 
 
 the eleventh hour expired. Shortly afterwards, she 
 ventured to cast her soul on Christ, and the Holy Spirit 
 witnessed in her heart that God had accepted her. She 
 was filled with gladness and thanksgiving, and, having 
 praised the grace of Christ for a few hours on earth, 
 went to join the remembered thief in paradise. 
 
 Many other similar examples of the unfailing character 
 of Mr. Smith's faith might be quoted. I have before me 
 an account of his successful labours in behalf of a male- 
 tactor of the name of Wood, who was executed at Not- 
 tingham for murder. This person had some pious friends, 
 by whom he was recommended to Mr. Smith's attentions. 
 Ihe afternoon before he suffered, Mr. S. was with him 
 for some time, and then engaged to return and spend the 
 night in the condemned cell. It was with considerable 
 difficulty, and only at Wood's earnest wish, that he ob- 
 tained admission. He then assiduously set himself to 
 declare to the unhappy man the evil of his sins, and had 
 the satisfaction of bringing him, through the agency of the 
 blessed Spirit, into a state of deep and sincere penitence. 
 Next he pointed him to Christ. Much time was em- 
 ployed in calling on God ; and at length Divine mercy 
 beamed into the darkness of his dungeon, and the still 
 more dense darkness of his heart, and he testified that all 
 his sins were taken away. In the morning Mr. S. 
 accompanied him to the place of execution, and, at his par- 
 ticular and repeated request, commended him by earnest 
 prayer to the grace of that God into whose presence he was 
 ushered a few moments afterwards. The popular feeling 
 against Wood was unusually strong, and many were very 
 sceptical as to his repentance. Mr. S. himself, however, 
 had no doubt of his acceptance at the last hour ; and the 
 error, if it were an error, was amiable and characteristic. 
 
 In the course of the year, a pretty little chapel was 
 built at New Basford ; and there were several events 
 connected with the work of God in that place, sufficiently 
 striking to demand insertion in these pages. The first 
 exhibits faith resulting from effort. Mr. Smith called 
 on a person who had been a Socinian. After some con-
 
 140 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 versation, he complained that he was unable to believe the 
 divinity of our blessed Saviour. It was one of those 
 eases, with which every minister is familiar, where 
 argument would have availed nothing. " We will pray 
 about it," said Mr. S. ; " and if you will only try to 
 believe, I will forfeit my head if God does not give you 
 the power." The result answered his anticipations. The 
 man became there and then a true believer, and forthwith 
 united himself to the society. The following illustrates 
 the soundness and clearness of Mr. Smith's practical 
 counsels. Mrs. M. had the happiness of seeing all her 
 children, except one, converted to God. He was the 
 subject of many prayers and admonitions; but he perse- 
 vered in his sins, seldom attended any place of worship, 
 and assiduously avoided meeting with Mr. Smith, of 
 whose faithful expostulations he was greatly afraid. The 
 distressed mother proposed the case to Mr. S., and re- 
 quested his advice. "Lay your hand on one thing at 
 once," was his reply; meaning that she should define to 
 her own mind a distinct object of petition, and not cease 
 till her prayer was answered.* She did so, especially in 
 
 * One of Mr. Smith's friends relates an instance in which he 
 gave, with remarkable good effect, advice similar to the above. It 
 was during a visit which he paid to the metropolis, while he was 
 stationed at Windsor. He had attended a prayer-meeting, where 
 many had been pardoned and purified. On the following day, 
 which was Sunday, he had engaged to preach several times : how- 
 ever, a little before the previous midnight, he set out to assist at 
 
 a watch-night. " It was," to use Mr. 's own words, " an 
 
 overwhelming time." At first, nothing was done ; the hearts of the 
 people seemed hard, and prayer was accompanied with little power. 
 Mr. S. himself prayed after almost every one who engaged. Now 
 and then, he gave a short exhortation, showed the way of faith, and 
 urged the praying men to believe for the people [to believe, that is, 
 for a manifestation of Divine power in behalf of the people] . Parti- 
 cularly he called on the congregation to wait solemnly before God, 
 arid to apply to the throne of grace " for something definite ; to 
 determine in their own minds what blessing they wanted, and then 
 plainly and perseveringly to come to God for it." Several hours 
 elapsed before the happy results of this counsel were apparent. At 
 length, between two and three o'clock, the Lord whom the)' sought 
 suddenly came to His temple. One person was then cleansed from 
 sin ; five minutes after, four others ; then two more ; and so the 
 work proceeded. Six of these persons were subsequently made 
 leaders.
 
 EEV. ions SMITH. 141 
 
 reference to her ungodly son ; and a short lime aftenvards, 
 returning from the chapel, where Mr. S. had been preach- 
 ing on the subject of prayer, she said to the young man, 
 " Now I believe that the Lord will have mercy upon 
 thee ; for He has heard my prayer on thy behalf." The 
 impression which these words produced was indelible. In 
 about a fortnight afterwards, he was brought into the en- 
 joyment of true religion, and is now an active leader and 
 local preacher. I add a singular instance of the result of 
 Mr. Smith's intercession. He was one evening preaching 
 at New Basford, and a very holy influence rested on the 
 people. In the congregation was a woman who had 
 recently begun to seek the Lord, whose husband was pro- 
 verbial for wickedness. During the sermon, this man 
 came to the door of the chapel, and in a furious tone 
 exclaimed, " Is Mary C. here ? " adding, that, if she did 
 not come out, he would break her legs. Mr. S. stopped 
 in his discourse, and ciied, " Lord, lay Thy hand on that 
 man ; put Thy hook in his nose, and Thy bridle in his 
 mouth," &c., and then proceeded. A prayer-meeting, as 
 usual, followed, and, before it was concluded, the man 
 returned to the chapel. But he was now a different 
 character. He came to tell the people that God had 
 forgiven all his sins. It appeared that when, at the 
 conclusion of the first service, his wife returned home, 
 accompanied l>y a pious female, they found that, in the 
 interval, God had powerfully wrought on him, and he 
 now gladly joined them in prayer for pardon. Some 
 persons were sent for to pray with him, and in a short 
 time the Lord answered, and poured out upon him the 
 regenerating and adopting Spirit! "When he thus pub- 
 licly declared the mercy of God to him, incredulity sat 
 on almost every countenance ; nor could the people be 
 persuaded " that he was a disciple," till his Christian 
 deportment manifested the greatness of the change which 
 had been effected in him. Much fruit of Mr. Smith's 
 labours in New Basford still remains. Some of his spi- 
 ritual children have left the place, and others have pre- 
 ceded him to a better world ; but, after all deductions, I
 
 142 MEMOIKS OP THE 
 
 am informed that there are now thirty persons living in 
 the village, who were converted through his immediate 
 instrumentality. 
 
 I conclude this section with the relation of another 
 characteristic incident, which occurred in the early part of 
 Mr. Smith's residence at Nottingham. While, on ono 
 occasion, he was preaching at a village in the circuit, the 
 whole audience appeared to be moved, and cries and 
 groans resounded from every part of the chapel. The 
 extraordinary scene which followed at the prayer-meeting 
 attracted a considerable number of careless or scoffing 
 spectators, who crowded in at the door, producing much 
 confusion by their behaviour, and arresting the progress 
 of the work of God by their unhallowed spirit. Mr. S. 
 went to them, and begged them to kneel down with the 
 rest of the congregation, and to join in the worship. To 
 this request they paid no attention. He then fell on his 
 knees before them, and with remarkable earnestness 
 renewed his entreaties. Finding, however, that they were 
 unmoved, he rose, and, stretching out his arms, drove 
 them all out of the place, at the same time declaring, with 
 strong emphasis, that he would not suffer God to be in- 
 sulted in His own house. The Lord then wrought a great 
 deliverance. Fifteen persons were that evening enabled 
 to trust in Christ for pardon, the greater part of whom 
 still adorn their Christian profession in the same village. 
 
 XIII. 
 NOTTINGHAM BEESTON. 18261829. 
 
 Iff the year 1826, it was my happiness to be appointed 
 to the Nottingham circuit, and here I became intimately 
 acquainted with the subject of these memoirs. It will 
 not, therefore, I trust, be offensive to my readers, if, 
 without circumlocution, I lay before them the results of
 
 KEV. JOHN SMITH, 143 
 
 my personal observations on Tiis character. I do this 
 with the less hesitation, as after the lapse of several years, 
 and with the maturest judgment which I am capable of 
 exercising, I see no reason to alter, or even materiallj' to 
 modify, the opinions which at that time I formed. And 
 here, in the first place, I candidly acknowledge that my 
 prepossessions were decidedly unfavourable to the discern- 
 ment and admission of Mr. Smith's excellence. I had 
 heard of him as a zealous though singular minister : in 
 a degree I had been informed of his success, and I had 
 learned that this was to be attributed principally, if not 
 whollj r , to his personal piety, and the power of his prayer. 
 The shadows of the picture I had myself supplied from 
 the characters of others whom I supposed to resemble 
 him ; and, with a want of liberality, in which I fear I was 
 not singular, I had invested him with qualities which 
 went far to neutralize the charm of his acknowledged 
 virtues. In this state of feeling I met him for the first 
 time ; and I had scarcely been five minutes in his com- 
 pany, before I was ashamed and humbled on account of 
 rny prejudices : his amiableness at once commanded 
 affectionate respect. I use the term amiableness, because, 
 though it is somewhat vague, it is the only expression 
 which includes the ideas of his character which immedi- 
 ately presented themselves to my mind. Of his native 
 qualities which may be comprehended under this phrase, 
 the preceding pages have given the reader a cursory view. 
 I therefore, in this place, allude principally to particulars 
 which have not before been expressly noticed. 
 
 I soon discovered the infinite spiritual disparity which 
 existed between us : but his religion was of an order 
 which conveyed no sort of discouragement to those who 
 contemplated it. It was neither mystical on the one hand, 
 nor exclusive and repelling on the other. There was 
 about it no spiritual empiricism, if I may so express my- 
 self. ISo one who perceived (what it was all but impossible 
 to overlook) the power of his faith, could for a moment 
 hesitate to admit, that it was perfectly adequate to the 
 production even of his maturity of Christianity. The
 
 144 MEMOIBS OF TUB 
 
 eminence of his virtue, therefore, exerted a stimulating 
 influence on those who came within its reach. His expe- 
 rience supplied the most satisfactory reply to the popular 
 objection against the doctrine of entire sanctification, that, 
 by setting the standard of Christian perfection so high, we 
 necessarily discourage Christians from seeking to attain 
 it. It was at once perceived that to the simplicity of his 
 faith no spiritual blessing was difficult or remote ; and no 
 one could discern the nature of that faith, without being 
 convinced that it was, in its gradations, readily attainable 
 by every sincere and childlike spirit. And this I cannot 
 but consider a principal cause of Mr. Smith's success, as 
 a preacher of the great doctrine to which I have just 
 alluded. Hence, also, he himself sought out the most 
 perfect models of Christian experience, with the rejoicing 
 consciousness that what one believer has succeeded in 
 obtaining was equally within his reach. " When I read 
 Fletcher's Life," said he, " I saw a narrow way : not that 
 I had not chosen a narrow way, but I saw one still nar- 
 rower." And thus he not only recommended to others a 
 high degree of Christian holiness, but likewise urged the 
 best methods of attaining it. " Get signally blessed," 
 was one of his common advices. At a lovefeast which he 
 conducted in the neighbourhood of Nottingham, several 
 persons spoke of their trials doing them good, by driving 
 them to prayer. At the close, Mr. S. made some striking 
 remarks on what had been said. He thanked God on 
 behalf of those whose afflictions had been so beneficial to 
 them. " But," said he, " there is a more excellent way : 
 that state of mind is to be attained, in which a man shall 
 not need to be whipped to his knees, but shall go to his 
 duty, attracted by the delight which he feels in it." He 
 then exhorted all to seek this happiness, at the same 
 time assuring them that he himself enjoyed it. 
 
 And while his views of the omnipotence of faith gave 
 to his own experience the aspect of simplicity and ready 
 attainableness, they also supplied a singular unity to his 
 theology. Hence, his profound and painful discoveries of 
 the depravity of the sinner wpre combined with the most
 
 EV. JOHN SMITH. 145 
 
 lively and practical perceptions of the high vocation of 
 the saint. The sinner and the saint, in some schools of 
 theology, are two isolated characters ; and generally it is 
 impossible to perceive, with any degree of clearness, how 
 one individual can, at different periods of his life, sustain 
 them both. The impression on the mind of a partially 
 instructed reader, after rising from the perusal of some 
 popular evangelical treatises, is of a fearful and insur- 
 mountable distinctness between man in his natural con- 
 dition, and the elevated privileges of the New Testament. 
 Heaven and earth could not have been more remote, 
 before the promise of a Mediator beamed from the one, to 
 enlighten the despair of the other. But Mr. Smith's 
 faith, boundless, untiring, undelaying, perpetually grasp- 
 ing a present promise in its illimitable breadth, brought 
 the deepest depravity into contact with the fulness of 
 evangelical purity, and seemed continually to cry, '* The 
 word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth and in thy 
 heart." 
 
 His extraordinary humility gave a peculiar charm to 
 all the other graces of his character, and not unfrequently 
 assumed a most affecting prominence. During the time 
 he was at Windsor, he had a rather severe illness ; and 
 with emotion he directed that, should it terminate fatally, 
 his coffin should have no inscription but 
 
 " UNFAITHFUL JOHN SMITH." 
 
 There was in his mind, to use a happy phrase of one of 
 his fricuds, " a springing forth to meet instruction ;" and 
 with it was combined a prompt and extensive sympathy 
 for the infirmities and even unbelief of others. At a 
 Missionary meeting, I recollect, one of the speakers, after 
 having descanted upon the mass of corruption and total 
 alienation from God which exists in the world, re- 
 marked, that, sometimes, when his own mind had been, 
 deeply and painfully impressed with these facts, he had 
 for a moment doubted whether it were possible for the 
 world to be converted. Mr. S., who was seated imme- 
 diately behind him, replied, loudly enough for several on 
 H
 
 146 MEMOIRS 0? THE 
 
 the platform to hear, " Yes, and so have I too." The 
 man remembered the feelings of the child, and dealt 
 accordingly with those who, in a peculiar degree, still "saw 
 in part, and prophesied in part." It is here proper to notice 
 also his remarkable liberality, especially in reference to 
 different schools of ministers. On the subject of his own 
 duty, he never had the slightest hesitation ; and he some- 
 times expressed himself with a tone of determination, 
 amounting almost to severity, when any one questioned 
 the correctness of his principles, as they respected himself. 
 These were fixed ; and the law of gravitation in the 
 natural world might as easily have been annulled, as his 
 mind have been turned aside from the course to which 
 he had bound himself. " Sir, you are in error," said he, 
 with calm decision, to a person of high respectability, 
 who once in his presence attacked one of his principles. 
 The other Was considerably irritated, and, in a tone which 
 was intended to repress all further discussion, replied, " I 
 will not be told that I am in error by a young man, Sir, 
 and before this company." " Then, Sir," said Mr. S., 
 " you must not make such assertions when I am present." 
 The quiet resolution with which this was uttered silenced 
 his antagonist, and the conversation took another direction. 
 But with this decision was united the most noble 
 admission of the excellencies of those whose style of 
 preaching was totally different from that which he him- 
 self cultivated. He never made his own conduct a rule 
 for that of others. " He was aware," says one of his 
 intimate friends, " of the diversity of minds, as well as of 
 gifts, which ' the same Spirit has divided to every man 
 severally as He will ; ' and never did I know conscientious 
 strictness combined with more liberality of thinking." 
 He deeply regretted, it is true, that his own strong and 
 serviceable views of Divine truth were not generally 
 received, especially among the more intellectual agents of 
 the church ; but, wherever he saw a sincere desire to do 
 good, he hailed it with unequivocal demonstrations of 
 pleasure. He often remarked that the man who took 
 pains to mend the world had his hearty thanks. In short,
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 147 
 
 I may venture to affirm that there never was an individual 
 whose character was more diametrically remote from that 
 of the sour censorious zealot. 
 
 Of the tenderness of his spirit, mention has already 
 been made ; and this rendered him a peculiarly welcome 
 visitant to the chamber of affliction. I remember accom- 
 panying him to see one of our leaders in Nottingham, a 
 poor but pious man, who was near his end. When we 
 arrived at his house, he was in the article of death. His 
 eyes were glazed, and there was in his throat that awful 
 sound which announces the immediate and inevitable 
 approach of the king of terrors. We stood for some time 
 gazing in stillness, but not in sadness, on the solemn 
 spectacle. I looked on my dear friend : the tears were 
 chasing each other over his face, his chest was heaving, 
 and the whole of his athletic frame was agitated by 
 irrepressible emotion. At length he broke the silence, 
 and in a tremulous voice repeated, with a pathos and 
 freshness with which I could scarcely have conceived it 
 possible to have invested so hackneyed a passage, 
 
 " The chamber where the good man meets his fate 
 Is privileged beyond the common walk 
 Of virtuous life, quite in the verge of heaven : " 
 
 and truly it was so at that hour, as we successively com- 
 mended the soul of the departing saint to the hands of 
 God. And this susceptibility Mr. S. preserved at all 
 times to a remarkable degree. No sort of personal grati- 
 fication seemed to have the power to shut up his heart 
 in selfishness, or even at all to take off the sensitiveness 
 of his feelings. Walking, for example, one day in the 
 streets of London with a friend, the conversation took 
 some turn which he highly enjoyed. In the midst of 
 his full flow of pleasure, he casually turned his head, 
 and saw, slowly moving along, a young man who 
 appeared to be in the last stage of a consumption. The 
 smile instantly forsook his face, and he burst into a 
 flood of tears. 
 
 It is difficult to determine whether Mr. Smith's energy 
 or amiableness were the most striking. Perhaps the
 
 148 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 former generally impressed those who knew him only, or 
 principally, as a public man ; the latter, those who were 
 more fully admitted into his personal friendship. It cer- 
 tainly is rare for these qualities to be so remarkably com- 
 bined in one individual. Men of strong resolution and 
 independence often seem alone in their sphere, bending 
 all others to their will, but submitting their wills to none; 
 cut off from the charities of mankind, and wrapped up in 
 their own plans and their own power. Several circum- 
 stances, besides his natural constitution, contributed to 
 render Mr. S. so interestingly different. The first and 
 most important was the peculiarly tender tone of his per- 
 sonal religion; and the second, the expectation of success 
 only by the co-operation of others. His plans, it is true, 
 were his own ; but, as we have already remarked, it 
 was for the church to succeed them. This brought him 
 continually into intimate association with good men, at 
 their very best moments. To them he delighted to 
 expound his principles ; and, when his own glow of 
 feeling had infected their hearts, to carry them off, all 
 warm and inspired, to some scene of hallowed and 
 successful action. It will be easy to perceive how these 
 and the like causes operated on a mind naturally opeu 
 and susceptible. 
 
 Mr. Smith's manners, though plain, were kind and 
 inviting. His good-nature was unbounded ; and in his 
 conversation there was often a quiet, and harmless, but 
 shrewd humour, which gave to his remarks on human 
 nature an unusual vivacity. His relations of incidents, 
 principally those which respected the work of God, 
 were strikingly graphic, though no one had a greater 
 contempt for the stringing together of anecdotes, merely 
 for the purpose of amusement. Yet, with all the play- 
 fulness of his natural disposition, it was impossible not 
 to perceive that there was a constant and powerful under- 
 current of religious feeling; and he never allowed himself 
 to diverge from the most solemn, topics to a degree which 
 rendered his instant return to them either difficult to 
 himself, or harsh and startling to those who enjoyed his
 
 RET. JOHtf SMITH. 149 
 
 society. In this respect, his character was marked by a 
 perfect harmony. He was 
 
 " A creature not too bright or good 
 For human nature's daily food: 
 And yet a spirit still, and bright, 
 "With something of an angel light" 
 
 Mr. S. seldom refused an invitation to a tea-party, or 
 any social meeting of a similar kind. He was of the 
 opinion of a great man, that "parlour preaching" is a 
 very important part of the duty of a minister. Many were 
 the seals to his labours in this department of Christian 
 exertion, some of whom have already sat down with 
 Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of God. 
 His usual custom was, first, to give out a verse of a 
 hymn, and to engage in prayer. Then he proceeded to 
 inquire into the spiritual state of each in the room; 
 and, in general, the experience or wants of one or more 
 supplied subjects for suitable advice and for subsequent 
 intercession. Were I not afraid of swelling this work 
 to an improper size, I might relate many cases of this 
 kind. One will suffice. It occurred at the marriage of 
 one of our local preachers in the Nottingham circuit. 
 Having by direct inquiry ascertained that the sister of 
 the bride was seeking the Lord, Mr. S., in an earnest 
 and coucise way, pointed out God's method of saving a 
 sinner, and then called on all present to unite in prayer. 
 For more than an hour they importuned the throne of 
 grace, till that same Saviour appeared, who, in other days, 
 
 " Did not refuse a guest to be 
 At Cuuu's poor festivity ; " 
 
 and the bitter waters of penitence were exchanged for 
 the wine of the kingdom. In the same house, a few 
 weeks before, another member of the family had been 
 brought into the enjoyment of the Divine favour through 
 Mr. Smith's instrumentality. 
 
 In addition to those features of his piety which have 
 been already noticed, there were two others which par- 
 ticularly struck me. The first was his luminous insight 
 N 3
 
 150 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 into the invisible world. On this subject it is not for me 
 to dilate : the veil is on my heart ; nor are there many 
 Christians who are capable of estimating this part of 
 Mr. Smith's character. I take this opportunity, how- 
 ever, of confirming the remark of one of his friends, 
 " that he was able to judge of the state of those for and 
 with whom he interceded, by an influence perceptible to 
 his own mind." He had also a peculiar sense of the 
 agency of the powers of darkness, and of the resistance 
 they offered to the exertion of faith, and the consequent 
 salvation of men. Sometimes this was so impressive, 
 that he actually addressed them as if visibly present, 
 and, in a tone of solemn and mysterious but unwavering 
 confidence, defied their utmost efforts. He once, in 
 private conversation, expressed it as his fixed conviction, 
 that their motions were periodical. 
 
 In common with some other eminent Christians, he 
 enjoyed distinct intercourse with the blessed Three ; and 
 it was not unusual for him to commence his prayers in 
 public with adoration, severally and successively, of the 
 Persons in the Godhead, and acknowledgment of the 
 proper divinity of each. Nor was this species of distinc- 
 tion confined to the exordium of these addresses. Other 
 passages in his prayers were addressed to the Saviour and 
 the Spirit, as well as to the Father; and to these no one 
 who had spiritual ears could listen, without perceiving 
 that the mind of the speaker was engaged in clear and 
 distinct communion with the glorious Being on whom 
 he called. To this practical recognition of the mystery 
 of the Trinity, may possibly be attributed, in part, the 
 peculiar impressiveness which frequently accompanied his 
 administration of the ordinance of baptism. Such services 
 were often with him seasons of unspeakable unction. One 
 gentleman states, that the Divine influence which attended 
 the baptism of one of his children by Mr. S. exceeded 
 anything he ever witnessed. Another similarly memora- 
 ble incident, which has been mentioned to me, occurred 
 at New Basford, when Mr. Smith baptized one of the 
 children of Mr. H. Beoson. Having, with deep solem-
 
 RET. JOHN SMITH. 151 
 
 nity, dedicated the infant to the Father, and the Son, and 
 the Holy Ghost, he lifted it up towards heaven, as far as 
 his arms would extend, and with abundance of tears 
 presented it to the Holy Trinity. The impression upon 
 the crowded congregation cannot be described. 
 
 The second particular of which I proposed to speak, 
 was the style of Mr. Smith's devotions. I cannot but 
 ascribe the effect of his public and social prayers partly to 
 their shall I say? logical unity and connexion. This 
 was remarkable, and well worthy of imitation. He first 
 laid down certain premises in the most simple and per- 
 spicuous manner. For example, he would acknowledge 
 the purity and justice of God; and when the minds of the 
 people had accompanied him thus far, he proceeded with 
 many tears to confess and bewail their impurity, their 
 ingratitude, and rebellion. Then, turning to the Divine 
 compassion, he would, to use his own phrase, " fasten on 
 the truth of God," and plead some particular and apposite 
 promise. Thus would he carry to the throne the peni- 
 tence and faith of a thousand hearts, till the answer 
 descended like a mighty wind, and the priest himself 
 could scarcely stand to minister for the glory of the 
 Lord. But in all this there was a perfect coherence, 
 without anything of rhapsody or rant. His prayers 
 were specimens of reasoning which his congregation 
 could understand and feel; and, when their judgments 
 were convinced, it was scarcely possible for them to 
 resist the power of the ardent and vehement pleading 
 which succeeded. 
 
 Mr. Smith's reverence for the Lord's prayer was very 
 great; and in the use of it he was always impressive, 
 sometimes extraordinarily so. One occasion, in which 
 this was the case, will long be remembered by many who 
 were present. It was at a lovefeast in Nottingham. He 
 had prayed with unusual power, and, when he proceeded 
 to repeat the Lord's prayer, the effect was beyond con- 
 ception. Multitudes responded with peculiar fervour to 
 each petition, as it was pronounced, till he came to the 
 doxology, at each clause ot which he raised his voice
 
 152 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 and ascribed to the Almighty "the kingdom, and the 
 power, and the glory, for ever and ever," in a tone and 
 with an unction which fell on the congregation with 
 irresistible force. A glow of heavenly feeling pervaded 
 the whole assembly; many gave vent to their emotions 
 by bursts of tears, and some in irrepressible shouts of 
 praise. Others laid hold of the sacred words, repeating 
 them again and again even after he had ceased; and 
 whispers of "for ever and ever," mingled with sobs, 
 passed from one lip to another, till it appeared as if they 
 had been a spell, from which escape was impossible. 
 In fact, it was some time before the regular business of 
 the meeting could be resumed. 
 
 Another feature of Mr. Smith's character, which I 
 was not prepared to expect, was the vigour of his 
 understanding. I do not mean to say that he was, as 
 the phrase is commonly understood, an intellectual man: 
 but the calibre of his mind was considerable, and his 
 judgment remarkably sound. And here I cannot do 
 better than avail myself of the statements of that friend 
 of Mr. S. whose remarks have already so much con- 
 tributed to the illustration of his character. " As one 
 instance of the soundness of his judgment," this gentle- 
 man observes, " I might cite the high esteem in which 
 he held the character of Cecil, and the value he set 
 upon his ' Remains ; ' a work [which he frequently 
 quoted, which exerted no inconsiderable influence in 
 modelling his character, and] which is distinguished as 
 much by its sober and solid cast of thought, as by a 
 deep insight into men and things. His own mind was 
 eminently manly and judicious, and resembled, in several 
 respects, that of his admired author. No one can have 
 formed an adequate idea of the vigour of his intellect, 
 or, consequently, of the self-denial which was content 
 to forego the credit of it, who has not enjoyed the oppor- 
 tunity of frequent and familiar intercourse with him. 
 The topics to which he restricted himself were so few, 
 that, joined to his simplicity of manner, and exclusive 
 devotedness to one object, it is no wonder if, in their
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 153 
 
 reverence for his piety, many have overlooked his mental 
 superiority. I have known instances of this; nor should 
 I have been undeceived myself, if I had not afterwards 
 enjoyed for some time the opportunity of almost daily 
 intercourse with him. 
 
 " One indication of vigour and independence of thought 
 may be traced in language. As soon as any one ventures 
 to think for himself, instead of acquiescing in conclusions 
 thought out by others, there will be a healthiness, a 
 raciness, and even originality in his conceptions, which 
 will demand and create to themselves appropriate forms 
 of expression. The material may be the same in both 
 cases ; but in the former it has been melted down, and 
 delivered to you with the stamp of the individual mind 
 upon it. This was the case in no small degree with our 
 late friend, when speaking on that subject which most 
 occupied his thoughts and heart, the work of God; 
 many of the expressions employed by him being pecu- 
 liarly his own ; and yet such at the same time as imme- 
 diately recommended themselves by their fidelity to the 
 conceptions they were designed to express. Another 
 remark which I have to make refers to his use of single 
 words, or, to adopt the language of logic, simple terms. 
 Every one who has reflected much on the subject, is 
 aware of the confusion of thought which results from 
 an indiscriminate and careless use of words; and will 
 esteem it no slight proof of the strength of his mind, 
 that his conversation exhibited many instances of acute 
 discrimination in this respect. 
 
 " His collection of books was considerable [both in 
 theology and in general literature] : and he showed his 
 enlightened regard for knowledge, not only by setting 
 himself to inculcate on all who had leisure for it, the 
 assiduous improvement of their minds ; but by such a 
 spontaneous readiness to lend his own books to persons 
 in the humblest ranks of life, and when no motive, even 
 of courtesy, required it, as fully proved that his love of 
 knowledge, like everything else in him, was a principle. 
 
 "Of has style and diction in preaching, I will only
 
 154 MEMOIBS OP THE 
 
 add, that it was chaste and unaffected, simple, and per- 
 spicuous; and, on subjects which had much exercised 
 his thoughts, eminently vigorous and energetic. Clear 
 and acute in his conception of any subject, he was dis- 
 tinct and intelligible in his enunciation. In general, 
 his discourses were distinguished chiefly by their vivid 
 exhibition of the fundamental truths of the Gospel, and 
 an earnest and powerful application of them to the cases 
 and consciences of the hearers. Accordingly, they were 
 hortatory rather than didactic : characterized by the 
 force and persuasiveness of their appeals, rather than 
 by any regular exposition of doctrines or discussion of 
 principles. The spirit and power, rather than the talent, 
 of the preacher were seen and felt. But why do I 
 multiply words on such a subject? SALVATION the 
 end of preaching, and that alone was the object ever 
 present to his mind. He had no heart for anything that 
 did not tend directly to this result. He knew that the 
 truths necessary to salvation are simple and few in 
 number ; and that the great difficulty to a preacher is 
 not to make them clear to the apprehension, but to 
 bring his hearers under their influence and power." 
 
 " There was not to be found in Mr. Smith's system 
 of preaching," says Mr. Clarkson, " the gigantic mind 
 exerting its powers in a long connected chain of meta- 
 physical reasoning on the subject he undertook to 
 elucidate. Nor did his discourses shine with many and 
 various illustrations, furnished by a rich imagination, 
 on the great evangelical truths he was ordinarily accus- 
 tomed to exhibit.* Nor were they delivered with any 
 
 * He sometimes, however, employed, for the purpose of illustration, 
 some trifling incident, in rather a happy manner. Preaching, for 
 example, one evening, from John xiv. 21, he spoke of the delight 
 arising from God's manifesting Himself -to the souls of His people, 
 and added the following anecdote. When he resided at Windsor, 
 he said, he once had an opportunity of seeing His Majesty, George TV., 
 receive the sacrament. As the king walked down the aisle of the 
 Chapel Royal, he (Mr. S.) made a deep and reverent obeisance to 
 His "Majesty. The king, with his accustomed graciousness, bowed in 
 return ; and this slight ant of condescension, he remarked, filled him 
 with so great delight, that it was with difficulty he repressed the
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 155 
 
 studied graces of gesture and elocution. Yet if eloquence, 
 as defined by an eminent minister, be ' vehement sim- 
 plicity,' Mr. S. possessed its essence He was very 
 
 urgent on penitent sinners to come immediately to 
 Christ, and believe on His name." " God's short way 
 of salvation," he was wont to say, " is the best. He 
 will make it sure." " He was convinced," adds Mr. C., 
 " that it was easier for a penitent to lose hi* convictions, 
 and sink back into his former state of sin and darkness, 
 than for a believer to lose the saving grace of God ; and, 
 therefore, by the force of Divine argument, and the 
 ardour of holy importunity, he compelled sinners to 
 make haste to Christ for salvation. And thus 
 
 'He tried each art, reproved each dull delay, 
 Allured to brighter worlds, and led the way.' " 
 
 "Whenever I have had an opportunity of hearing him, 
 his discourse has been regular and systematized, and in 
 the most correct, simple, and unadorned taste. Some 
 short time before his last illness, he destroyed almost the 
 whole of his manuscripts, lest they should afford him any 
 sort of apology for inattention to the composition of his 
 sermons. I am therefore unable to offer the reader any 
 adequate specimens of his preparations for the pulpit. 
 The few skeletons which still remain, however, cursory 
 and meagre as they are, afford sufficient evidence of his 
 regularity and coherence in the treatment of his subjects. 
 He was accustomed to remark, that "thought only could 
 produce impression ; " and he was convinced that arrange- 
 ment and unity were necessary to give thought its proper 
 and intended effect. I am quite ready to admit, that 
 there were occasions in which his ardour led him away 
 from his preconceived plans; but in these cases he rarely 
 preached with his accustomed power, and the results by 
 no means encouraged a repetition of such irregularity. 
 
 At the commencement of his public addresses, Mr. S. 
 
 benediction which rose to his lips. "And, 0," said he, "if a 
 monarch's notice of one of his subjects thus affects him, how trans- 
 porting; must be the revelations of God to the heart of the believer !" &c.
 
 156 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 usually spoke with great calmness and deliberation, though 
 there was always an emphasis at the conclusion of his 
 sentences which intimated the inflexible conviction of the 
 speaker as to the truth and importance of the statements 
 which he was making. But when he thought he had 
 convinced the understandings of his audience, he broke 
 forth with a vehemence which I never saw equalled, and 
 addressed himself to their hearts and consciences, alter- 
 nately in terror and tenderness, determined, if possible, 
 to save some. To subjects of this latter class, his heart 
 often turned with an affecting abruptness. Sometimes I 
 have heard him denouncing sin, with words, and tones, 
 and gestures positively terrific, and then in a moment his 
 voice has faltered, and, with a burst of tears, he has pro- 
 claimed the boundless mercy of God, and the infinite 
 prevalency of the blood of Christ. " One of the most 
 striking instances of his power over a congregation," 
 says Mr. Calder, " I witnessed at Sheffield. His subject 
 was Rom. v. 8. I had heard him some years before 
 preach from the same words, but the difference in the 
 composition greatly surprised me. It was rich in senti- 
 ment, full of the most striking truths, while the mode 
 of exhibiting them was highly impressive and singular, 
 being sententious, pointed, and, I might say, amounting 
 to the epigrammatic. The first part of the discourse 
 dwelt on man's state as a sinner, needing the love and 
 pity of God. His descriptions of sin were awful ; but 
 when he came to point out its fruits, he was indeed 
 terrific. Then, having demonstrated that each individual 
 of his congregation was exposed to the torments of hell, 
 but for the interposition of the mercy of God, he abruptly 
 asked, in a melting tone, if they were not thankful that 
 they were out of hell ; and, weeping, added, ' If you 
 are not, I am ; but I believe you are ; and, as we all 
 feel alike, let us praise God together.' Then giving out, 
 
 1 Praise God, from whom all blessings flow,' &c., 
 
 he with his own finely musical voice pitched the Old 
 Hundredth Psalm tune. The effect was beyond all
 
 BEV. JOHW S3OTn. 157 
 
 description. Two thousand people rose to join him in 
 singing, and each person seemed to wish to turn aside 
 his face to hide the tear, and smother the swelling throb 
 of his heart. It was indeed a memorable scene, and 
 to many amounted to an era in the history of their 
 lives." 
 
 On the subject of revivals, Mr. Smith's opinions may 
 be expressed in a few words. He believed that they are 
 the results of the Holy Spirit's operation, and that faith 
 and prayer will certainly secure that operation, at all 
 times, and to an unlimited extent. The latter of these 
 principles, I suppose, is the only one likely to be ques- 
 tioned, though with what show of reason it is difficult to 
 conjecture. The terms on which the influences of the 
 Holy Ghost are granted are clear and unalterable : " If 
 ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your 
 children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give 
 the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him ? " Here is no 
 restriction, either as to the time or degree in which we 
 may expect our prayers to be answered. It is the pre- 
 sumption of unbelief alone, therefore, which can suggest 
 any other restriction than the wants of men, or the mea- 
 sure of their prayers. Nay, more, as if to anticipate all 
 objections, and silence all cavils, the promise is that we 
 shall receive whatsoever we ask in the name of Christ ; * 
 so that, unless it can be proved that no man can pray in 
 faith for the reviving influence of the Holy Spirit, it must 
 be admitted as one of the gifts which the veracity of God 
 is pledged to grant to the intercession of His people. Can 
 it for a moment be supposed that man's exposition of the 
 Divine promises can exceed in comprehension the bene- 
 volence of " Him who is able to do exceeding abund- 
 antly above all we ask or think ? " Is the atonement of 
 Christ so circumscribed in its validity, that it is within 
 the power of the lowest Christian daily to seek for 
 
 * A promise repeated, in various forms of expression, no less 
 than five times in Gospel history. See Matt. xxi. 22 ; John xiv. 
 13; xv. 16; xvi 23; and especially Mark xi. 23, 21; which com- 
 pare with Isai. Ixv. 24, and 1 John v. 14, Id. 
 o
 
 158 MEMOIES OP THE 
 
 blessings which it is unable to procure ? It is not to be 
 supposed. 
 
 But arguments in favour of Mr. Smith's views on this 
 subject are abundantly supplied by every analogy which 
 can be brought to bear upon the case. It is not to be 
 denied that, in answer to prayer, God will vouchsafe grace 
 sufficient for the sanctification of an individual believer, 
 or the awakening, repentance, and justification of an 
 individual sinner. He who questions this, makes all 
 intercession for spiritual blessings idle and profitless; and 
 he is confronted bythe evidence of thousands of examples, 
 in which immediate salvation has been procured by this 
 means. And if one soul can be saved in answer to prayer, 
 why not a hundred? All that is required in the latter 
 instance is a proportionate increase of the pleading of 
 faith. God cannot change : the principle upon which 
 prayer is answered in the one case, must be maintained 
 inviolate ; and, when brought to bear on the other, must 
 induce similar results. The mode of the Divine working 
 is dictated by sovereign wisdom, but the degree depends 
 on the faith of the church. God Himself determines 
 whether He will descend as the dew upon Israel, or as 
 the burning flame ; but it is for His people to decide 
 whether He shall come upon the single fleece, while the 
 rest of the floor is dry, or whether the whole of the camp 
 shall be surrounded and gladdened by the scattering 
 forth of angels' food. 
 
 It is certain that God will convert the WOELD by the 
 agency of the Holy Spirit. Every Missionary Society- 
 goes upon the principle that this agency will be secured 
 to the efforts of the church, in answer to prayer. No 
 member of such a Society which is almost equivalent to 
 saying, no Christian can, therefore, without the grossest 
 inconsistency, deny that a smaller measure of Divine 
 influence will be granted upon the same terms. It is no 
 matter of doubtful disputation whether Christ shall indeed 
 have the heathen for His inheritance, and the uttermost 
 parts of the earth for His possession ; that is determined. 
 But, it seems, it is matter of great doubt and grave argu-
 
 RET. JOHN SMITH. 159 
 
 ment whether the covenant, which hereafter, in its ample 
 provision, is to embrace all the families of the earth, can 
 now be made available for a few hundred people in Great 
 Britain, whore the Gospel has been preached for centuries ! 
 There is no question whether the wilderness will become 
 a fertile field ; but it is very dubious whether the cham- 
 paign, already partially cultivated, can be at present raised 
 to any higher degree of productiveness ! The desolate 
 woman shall bring forth children, but the married wife 
 must be childless ! For remote events, our faith is 
 mighty ; but when it is called for to achieve any con- 
 siderable good now, we take refuge in some vague notion 
 of the Divine sovereignty, and refuse to avail ourselves 
 of the unlimited promise of the Spirit. 
 
 Nor is it any objection to Mr. Smith's views, that some 
 revivals have arisen where, so far as we could trace, there 
 previously existed no ardent spirit of believing prayer, 
 and where, in fact, there was every indication of a very 
 low spiritual condition. It would be strange reasoning 
 indeed, that because, in some cases, God had transcended 
 the express terms of His engagement, he would therefore, 
 in others, fall short of them. As well argue, that because 
 He, of his spontaneous compassion, gave His Son to die for 
 the sin of the world, He therefore will not fulfil the cove- 
 nant procured by His death ; or that, because He is found 
 of some who seek Him not, He will refuse to be found of 
 those who do seek Him. No : the argument manifestly 
 tends to the directly contrary conclusion. If God gave 
 His Son, He will with Him also freely give us all things. 
 If His grace comes to those who are comparatively in- 
 different about it, much more will it come upon those 
 who long after it; and if some revivals occur where 
 there is no importunate spirit of faith and prayer, it is the 
 more certain that, if such a spirit can be produced in the 
 church, a revival will succeed. 
 
 A spurious faith is to be distinguished from the genuine 
 
 and scriptural, first, by its want of success; and, secondly, 
 
 by its hurtful reaction upon its possessor. Now let 
 
 us, by these infallible indications, try that faith which 
 
 o2
 
 160 MEMOIBS OF THE 
 
 respects revivals. Mr. S. made experiment, and what 
 was the result ? In every circuit in which he travelled, 
 from the time he went to Brighton, it was productive of 
 great effects. God owned and honoured it, and that in 
 no common degree. And would this have been the 
 case, had it been a presumptuous interference with the 
 Divine prerogative ? which it must have been, if revi- 
 vals be a mere question of the sovereignty of God. Let 
 no man venture to impugn this order of faith, unless he 
 himself has tried it, and found it to fail. To him who 
 has in vain believed on the promise of the Spirit we will 
 listen, as a rational opposer of Mr. Smith's principles ; 
 but it is obvious that the mere assertion of any other 
 person is worth nothing in the argument. The only 
 question which remains, therefore, is, whether those 
 individuals and churches whose faith immediately respects 
 revivals are really less holy and prosperous than their 
 neighbours. The inquiry is not, whether a man may 
 neglect personal religion upon the plea of public duty : 
 this every one admits. But is the reaction of the faith in 
 question of spiritual prejudice to its possessors? Suppose 
 the case of two men, of similar character and condition in 
 other respects, who gave equal diligence to maketheirper- 
 sonal calling and election sure ; would he who prayed and 
 believed for a present revival of the work of God be an 
 inferior Christian to him whose benevolence was vague 
 and undirected, and whose prayers on the subject were 
 general and indistinct ? On the contrary, all experience 
 testifies that he would be very far superior. Indeed, it 
 must be so in the nature of things. A purely benevo- 
 lent longing for the present salvation of men must be of 
 God ; and this, if properly cherished, is, in its reaction, 
 nothing less than a revival of personal religion. Again 
 we say, let those who have made the experiment be the 
 witnesses. Would to God that all opposers of these views 
 would only submit them to the trial ! Were all Christians 
 daily to devote but a small portion of their time to inter- 
 cession on this particular subject ; were they resolved 
 to obtain, without delay, all that God has engaged to
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 161 
 
 bestow, both for themselves and others ; there would be 
 no moral enterprise too great to be achieved, no moral 
 hindrance too stupendous to be overcome. The day shall 
 arrive when this spirit shall prevail throughout the church, 
 and then "the Desire of all nations shall come, and I 
 will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of Hosts." 
 
 Holding these principles, Mr. Smith, of course, de- 
 cidedly rejected the popular maxim, in its common 
 acceptation, that " we must do our duty, and leave the 
 result to God." This is, on all hands, admitted to be a 
 correct rule in respect to temporal blessings, since for 
 them the Scriptures offer no unqualified promise. But 
 Mr. S. maintained, that while it is folly and presump- 
 tion to suppose that any success can attend the Christian 
 ministry except through accompanying Divine influence, 
 it is equally contrary to the reason of things to make 
 God responsible for that which He has put into our own 
 hands. In other words, as it is within the power of 
 the church to secure a certain measure of the Holy 
 Spirit's operation, it is irrational and unrighteous to im- 
 pute the absence of that operation to anything but the 
 want of effort and faith in the church. It is therefore, 
 he argued, for every Christian minister in part to decide 
 the measure of his own success : nor is it possible to avoid 
 this conclusion, if the foregoing reasoning be correct. 
 
 A few extracts from Mr. Smith's correspondence may 
 perhaps not be unacceptable to the reader in this place, 
 principally to illustrate the state of the work of God, in 
 Nottingham and its neighbourhood, during the years 
 1826-27." Oct. 7, 1826. I trust that there may be 
 many who, will actively concur with the Spirit. The 
 Spirit is grieved both with opposition and inaction. Some 
 scores have been set at liberty since I was at Cudworth, 
 and many have obtained clean hearts. During the feast- 
 week at Ratcliffe, I think about thirty souls found peace. 
 Last Tuesday, Mr. Hannah opened a chapel at Hyson 
 Green. In the evening, at the prayer-meeting, I think 
 five soiils were saved. Two years ago we had no societjr 
 in that place. Now we have fifty in society, and ten on 
 03
 
 162 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 trial ; and a chapel that will hold more than three hundred 
 people." " Feb. 21, 1827. God makes some little use of 
 me in awakening sinners, and in leading them to Jesus, 
 the sinner's Friend, for which I praise His name. Last 
 Sunday fortnight, at Arnold, eight or nine found peace 
 with God. At Granby, in the Grantham circuit, three 
 weeks ago, nine souls obtained pardon, and two were 
 cleansed. At Ruddington, in our circuit, about fifty have 
 joined the society within the last quarter, most of whom 
 have peace with God. The cleansing work is also going 
 on. This will secure permanency and give extension to 
 the church." " March 22. I am still choosing God for 
 my portion, and His good service for my employment. I 
 wish to be used much, and God to have all the glory. I 
 cannot, I will not, be easy without seeing effects. Nay, 
 I must not, I dare not, thanks be to God ! and I am 
 determined that He shall have all the praise. God is 
 working mightily among us. I think we have on trial, 
 this quarter, about four hundred and fifty. Labouring, 
 pleading men are increasing. God will stand to His 
 engagement : the work must go on. About a hundred 
 have begun to meet in class at Arnold during the last 
 quarter. The last time I was there, not fewer, I think, 
 than twenty found peace. God seems to be agitating 
 nearly the whole village. Lenton, which has long been 
 desert, is fresh and green : the society has been more 
 than doubled ; Burton, the same. At Bulwell, last Mon- 
 day night, my very dear father preached. Two were 
 cleansed from sin, and eight or ten found peace. On 
 Tuesday, at Old Basford, one obtained a clean heart, and 
 twelve or fourteen found peace. We had about eight 
 saved at Hockley chapel last Sunday night. Glory, glory, 
 be to God !" " April 24. At Old Radford, last Wednes- 
 day night, sixteen or eighteen obtained entire sanctifica- 
 tion, and eight were pardoned. At Halifax chapel, last 
 Sunday night, ten or twelve found peace ; and last night 
 two were pardoned, and one was cleansed. The work is 
 sure to go on; for God and we are agreed. Labour, labour 
 is absolutely necessary." " May 19. At Normanton, the
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 163 
 
 last time I was there, twelve found peace. The following 
 evening, I was at Wysal, in the Melton circuit. After a 
 mighty struggle, about twelve were saved. I heard this 
 week that in that place, last Sunday and Monday nights, 
 thirty were set at liberty. A short time ago, I saw nine 
 or ten saved at Epperstone, in the Mansfield circuit. Last 
 Sunday week, I was at Mount Sorrel, preaching for their 
 Sunday-schools. I think nearly twenty got liberty, and 
 some others were awakened. Glory be to God!" " July 
 1 1 . Last night, at Old Basford, many were pardoned, and 
 several cleansed. On Monday night at Bulwell, I suppose 
 between twenty and thirty were either pardoned or 
 cleansed. Our increase this year is about six hundred, 
 and we have about three hundred on trial. I have been 
 in the Loughborough and Derby circuits, and saw many 
 cleansed and pardoned." Mr. Smith's correspondence 
 supplies many other equally striking details of a similar 
 kind, which are only omitted from the fear of swelling 
 the work to an improper size. The following incidents, 
 however, seem worthy to be preserved. 
 
 Among others converted through Mr. Smith's instru- 
 mentality, in a country place of the Nottingham circuit, 
 was one of those persons who, even in their sins, appear 
 to be the subjects of peculiar providential care. He was 
 at the battle of Waterloo, and had two horses shot under 
 him, but himself escaped unhurt. Some time afterwards, 
 four ruffians assailed him, and, having beaten him severely, 
 left him for dead. He recovered, however; and the per- 
 sons who ill-used him were transported for the offence. 
 Only three days before he was awakened, he was fighting 
 in the streets of Nottingham, and had his shoulder dislo- 
 cated through a fall. In this condition Mr. Smith's 
 ministry was made the means of giving him to feel the 
 anguish of a wounded spirit. After he left the chapel, he 
 spent nearly the whole of the night in inexpressible 
 anguish ; and on the following morning, through the 
 directions and prayers of Mr. S., he was as a brand 
 plucked out of the fire, and made happy in the Divine 
 favour. That evening he led a person, who had been
 
 164 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 awakened at the same time with himself, to hear Mr. S. 
 at an adjacent village; where lie also experienced the 
 pardoning love of God. 
 
 A visit paid by Mr. Smith to the Newark circuit, in the 
 year 1827, is perhaps also worthy of record. On the 
 Sunday afternoon and evening he preached the anniver- 
 sary sermons for the chapel at Balderton, a village about 
 two miles from Newark. On the former occasion, the 
 congregation was so large, as to render it necessary for 
 the service to be conducted in the open air. At the out- 
 skirts of the assembly was a group of young men, who 
 appeared to have come to scoff. Mr. S. addressed them 
 in so solemn a manner, however, that they were overawed, 
 andinduced to listen with attention to the sermon. One of 
 them was cut to the heart by the truths which he had 
 heard, and not long after, in a love-feast at Nottingham, 
 made a public profession of having obtained pardon for 
 all his sins. At the tea-table the same afternoon, at or 
 about the time of taking tea, five persons entered into the 
 enjoyment of peace with God. During the evening ser- 
 vice, much Divine power was present ; but for some time 
 it was resisted, and, to use Mr. Smith's own words, "the 
 struggle was awful." At length, seven were awakened, 
 three of whom were set at liberty before the meeting 
 concluded. On the Monday evening, Mr. S. preached at 
 Newark, and there was a melting influence under the 
 sermon. A prayer-meeting followed; but nothing re- 
 markable occurred till about nine o'clock, when a woman 
 in the gallery uttered an exceedingly bitter and piercing 
 cry ; and, in less than two minutes, the awakening power 
 swept across the chapel, and all hearts seemed to bend 
 before it, as corn beneath the sickle. Up wards of thirty 
 persons were that evening converted to God, and several 
 were cleansed from all sin. The next morning at break- 
 fast, after some delightful pleading with God, six others 
 entered into the enjoyment of entire sanctification ; and in 
 the evening, at the prayer-meeting, fourteen penitents 
 were filled with that peace which passeth all under- 
 standing.
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 165 
 
 At a love-feast in Halifax-place chapel, Nottingham, 
 which Mr. S. conducted in the month of July, 1827, an 
 extraordinary Divine influence prevailed. There was 
 much good speaking; and toward the close of the meeting, 
 Mr. Taylor, a local preacher, who has since died in a 
 most triumphant manner, rose to relate his experience. 
 He said that he had once enjoyed the blessing of entire 
 sanctification, but, through unwatchfulness, had suffered 
 loss. With much feeling he added, that he was now 
 earnestly longing and waiting for the restoration of 
 this great privilege. Mr. Smith instantly started 
 from his seat in the pulpit, and cried, " The cleansing 
 power is on you now /" For a moment he hesitated, 
 it was but a moment, and he then exclaimed, while the 
 whole of his body quivered with emotion, " It is ; I feel 
 it in my heart!" The congregation then united in 
 thanksgiving and prayer; and in a short time the windows 
 of heaven were opened, and there was a rush of holy influ- 
 ence, such as by the majority of that vast assembly was 
 never before experienced. It seemed like a stream of light- 
 ning passing through every spirit. At one time, twenty 
 persons obtained the blessing of perfect love, and rose up 
 rapidly one after another, in an ecstasy of praise, to declare 
 that God had then cleansed their hearts from all sin. 
 
 The following incidents will exemplify Mr. Smith's 
 tact and courage in reproving sin : We were walking 
 together in the streets of Nottingham, and overtook two 
 men in conversation, just in time to hear one of them say, 
 " I'll be d d if I do." Mr. S. touched him on the 
 shoulder, and with a mingled air of severity and com- 
 passion said, in a low impressive voice, " It is a serious 
 thing to be damned ! " The man turned pale, and in- 
 stantly replied, " You are right, Sir; it is so." " Then 
 do not talk so fluently about it," returned Mr. Smith, and 
 passed on. One Satui-day evening, soon after he had 
 retired to rest, he was aroused by the outcries and execra- 
 tions of a number of persons, who had come into tho 
 street to decide a public-house quarrel. Mr. Smith threw 
 up his window, and with an overpowering voice exclaimed,
 
 166 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 " Who is that swearing and blaspheming the name of my 
 God ? I cannot allow such language in the ears of my 
 children." Then, slipping on his clothes, he hastily 
 mingled with the crowd, and began to remonstrate with 
 the combatants. Finding, however, that they would not 
 listen to him, he seized the more athletic of the two by 
 his arm, who, feeling the force of his grasp, cried out, 
 " You are too strong for me, Sir !" He then suffered 
 Mr. S. to lead him through several streets from the fray, 
 confessed that he was a backslider, and solemnly engaged 
 never to fight again. 
 
 During the time he was in Nottingham, he engaged to 
 accompany Mr. Alderman Carey to Alfreton, and preach 
 to the people there. Mr. C. states: "I wrote to my 
 friends there, requesting them (as it was my native town) 
 to join me in fervent prayer to the Lord, that He would 
 accompany His servant, and pour out His Spirit upon the 
 people. I believe they did so, and the Lord made the 
 visit a blessing. After dining at my brother's, we called 
 upon a good man who had been brought to God under 
 the ministry of the late John' Nelson. Mr. Smith was 
 greatly interested while the good man related the parti- 
 culars of his awakening and conversion. At the close of 
 the conversation, Mr. S., turning to the man's son, 
 (a young man in bad health,) said, ' Well, young man, 
 have you got salvation ? ' to which the young man re- 
 plied in the, negative. Mr. Smith then said, ' Well, do 
 you think God is able to save you ? ' The young man 
 replied, ' Yes, I do believe He is able.' ' Then do you 
 believe He is willing to save you ? ' ' Yes, I do.' ' And 
 do you believe God is willing to save you now?' The 
 poor young man said, ' Yes, I believe God, for Christ's 
 sake, is willing to save me now.' ' Then,' said Mr. S., 
 ' let us pray : ' and, falling upon his knees, he cried to the 
 Lord in an agony. The young man soon found Jesus, to 
 the joy of his soul. His affliction terminated in three 
 months after this change. He died most triumphantly, 
 shouting praises to God and the Lamb to the last. On 
 the same day that we visited the above young man, we
 
 BEV. JOHK S.UITH. 167 
 
 called upon a friend who had been a local preacher and 
 loader for more than thirty years. His daughter being 
 under some concern, Mr. S. proposed prayer : we kneeled 
 down, and continued in supplication until she found 
 peace with God. She continued a pious and consistent 
 member of society for ten years. Several years after 
 her marriage with Mr. Nuttal, draper, of Belper, she 
 sickened and died, a believer in Jesus Christ. Her 
 death was a most happy and triumphant one." 
 
 To several members of a large family residing in the 
 neighbourhood of Nottingham, Mr. S. had been rendered 
 very useful ; and the greater part of them were members 
 of the society. The mother, however, lived without any 
 sense of religion, and had a particular dislike to him. 
 Her pious children had frequently solicited permission to 
 invite him to the house, but this was strongly refused. 
 One Sunday morning, he ventured to call. The moment 
 she saw him, she said he seemed to look through her, and 
 she felt that he knew all that was in her heart. After he 
 had taken some refreshment, and while a hymn was sung, 
 she was smitten with deep conviction of sin ; and when 
 prayer was proposed, she was glad to kneel down, that she 
 might not be observed to weep. While Mr. S. prayed, 
 a peculiar Divine influence rested upon all present ; and 
 when another person began to pray, he went to her, and 
 said, " Well, Mrs. B., you feel yourself a sinner ?" "0 
 yes !" she replied. "And are j^ou willing to give up 
 your sins?" Wringing her hands in deep anguish, she 
 rejoined, " yes, Sir, I am." He then exhorted her 
 to believe on Christ without delay for present pardon. 
 She instantly cried, " Lord Jesus, I will believe ! 
 Lord Jesus, I do believe." She was at once filled with 
 a joy so extreme that, for a time, it seemed to overwhelm 
 her faculties : she immediately united herself to the 
 people she had once despised, and still remains an 
 example of God's abundant grace. 
 
 In the beginning of the year 1828, Mr. Smith's health 
 began to decline. One day, when he was very unwell, a 
 person called and said he must see him, as he had come
 
 168 MEMOIBS OP THE 
 
 upwards of twenty miles for that purpose. His urgency 
 procured him admission to the chamber where Mr. S. 
 was confined to his bed, suffering at once from weakness 
 and pain. The man told him that he had been a back- 
 slider, and that, for some time past, he had been under 
 deep convictions of sin ; that he had sought the Lord 
 with many tears, and had fasted and prayed, but still 
 remained without comfort. "Yes," said Mr. S., "and 
 you may do so a long time, and be no better, unless you 
 believe God. You do not need to leave this room without 
 salvation. God would rather save you to-day, than to- 
 morrow. You may die to-day ; and, if you die unpar- 
 doned, you are lost for ever : but God wishes to save you. 
 He says it, and He means what He says." " But," said 
 the man, " if I should believe and not get the blessing ! " 
 " Do not meddle with God's business," replied Mr. 
 Smith. " But it is God that safes the soul, is it not ?" 
 " Yes : but it is not God's work to believe ; that's your 
 business. Do your part, man, and God will do His. Go 
 down on your knees, and ask God to save you at once." 
 He did as he was directed. Mr. S. then turned himself 
 in bed, and began to pray, but, finding that his strength 
 was gone, he stopped and said, ' ' "We cannot get a step 
 farther unless you will believe. How long is God 
 Almighty to wait for you ? " "I will believe," cried the 
 penitent, " I will believe : I cannot do wrong in believing. 
 I do believe." God answered in a moment, and filled 
 him with such joy that he literally danced on his knees. 
 "Did I not tell you," said Mr. S., exultingly, "that 
 God would attend to His own business?" The poor 
 fellow rose, kissed Mr. Smith's hand, and hurried home 
 in unspeakable delight. 
 
 The following is about the only notice of Mr. Smith's 
 personal experience, during the time he remained in 
 Nottingham, which I find among his papers. " Dec. 21, 
 1826. Yesterday I had a very signal baptism of the 
 Spirit, which had connected with it an assurance that the 
 body of sin was destroyed, and that God had full possession 
 of my heart. This assurance I retain ; glory be to God !
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 169 
 
 I feel indescribable pleasure in surrendering nay all to 
 Him. I have had to-day a very affecting view of the 
 shattered and miserable state of the world ; but I have 
 also had a very relieving view of the efficacy of the atone- 
 ment of Christ, of the power of the Spirit, and of the 
 covenant engagements of the blessed God. He willeth 
 that ALL should be saved, and come to the knowledge of 
 the truth. I have a strong desire that I may be better 
 fitted for the good service of God, that I may be em- 
 ployed much, and that He may get all the glory. Amen. 
 My body has been out of order, but my faith has not 
 wavered. God is mine, and I am His ; glory be to God ! " 
 Mr. H. Beeson, of Sheffield, gives the following account 
 of a visit paid by Mr. S. in April, 1829, to a dying back- 
 slider in that town: " J. W. was the son of pious parents, 
 and a child of many prayers and admonitions. He had 
 at one period of his life known the power of Divine grace ; 
 but he had unhappily turned aside from following the 
 Lord, and for a number of j-ears had persevered in his 
 rebellious course, when it pleased the Lord to afflict him : 
 or, as Mr. S. used to say, ' God took him aside to re- 
 monstrate with him.' His friends became very assiduous 
 in their attention to his spiritual interests ; but such was 
 the carnal obstinacy of his heart, that he appeared rather 
 annoyed than profited. Several weeks passed ; his disease 
 was making tearful progress; he began to yield, was 
 brought into bitterness of soul, and in this state Mr. 
 Smith found him. He said that he was very unhappy ; 
 that he had been seeking the Lord, but had not obtained 
 mercy. Mr. S. seemed to feel a deep sympathy for 
 him, and inquired whether he rested on Christ for 
 salvation. He replied that he did. ' Well then, God 
 accepts you in Christ, and God accepts you now in 
 Christ,' said Mr. Smith ; repeating the declaration again 
 and again with much emphasis.* He spoke and prayed 
 
 * Was not this goin? too far ? Doubtless, God accepts all who 
 truly "rest on Christ lor wil vation ;" and tlus must have been the 
 meaning of Mr. Smith. But muiiy profess so to "rest," to whom 
 his words would be inappropriate. All is right in the sequel. 
 
 I
 
 170 MEMOIE.S OF THE 
 
 for nearly an hour; and, while he was pleading the 
 promise, ' I will heal their backslidings,' &c., the man 
 was clearly set at liberty ; and, notwithstanding his weak- 
 ness, he rose up in bed, and shouted the praises of God 
 with such energy, that his voice overpowered the voices 
 of all present. In this happy state of mind he continued 
 for three weeks, and then, while 
 
 ' His last faltering accents whisper' d pndsf,' 
 
 he sweetly fell asleep." 
 
 At the Conference of 1828, Mr. Smith was compelled 
 to become a Supernumerary. His constitution was so 
 broken up, that it was manifest his life could be prolonged 
 only by, at least, a partial cessation from labour. It was 
 with great reluctance that he submitted to this arrange- 
 ment ; but of its necessity he had in himself evidence 
 too palpable to be resisted. He therefore took up his 
 residence at Beeston, a pleasant village a few miles from 
 Nottingham ; and it is proper to be recorded, that a hand- 
 some provision was made for him from the circuit-funds, 
 and that his friends were assiduous in supplying every 
 alleviation of his affliction which was within their power. 
 Yet with all the consolations which faith can command, 
 and friendship afford, the situation of a Supernumerary is 
 deeply painful. To Mr. Smith it was peculiarly so, and 
 his mind was often exercised by powerful temptation, and 
 deeply depressed. He could not be prevailed upon to 
 remain entirely in a state of inaction when he was at all 
 able to labour. That degree of relaxation which he allowed 
 himself, however, was materially serviceable to him ; and 
 throughout the year his health gradually improved. I 
 subjoin a few extracts from his letters at this period. 
 
 Prom Barnsley, where he was staying for the benefit 
 of his health, he thus writes to Mrs. S. : "Sept. 11, 
 1828. I am very glad that you are rising in your soul. 
 There is no substitute for intercourse with God. With- 
 out Divine communications, the soul droops, and dies, and 
 becomes a corrupt thing. But with what life, and beauty, 
 and blessedness God can impregnate the soul ! Yes ;
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 171 
 
 before the mighty energy of God the Holy Ghost, every 
 thing that is foul and corrupt is driven, and from the 
 indwelling Spirit spring love, joy, peace, &c. Let us, my 
 dear, pray on, and pray hard. God will not disappoint 
 ' a feehle worm that trusts in Him.' I thank you for the 
 help of your prayers. You have my poor prayers, and 
 shall have them. Notwithstanding much unfaithfulness, 
 1 believe it possible for us to live to God as we never have 
 lived. Let us try. God's blessing, His peculiar blessing, 
 is always connected with entire devotedness to Him. It 
 will also be an inheritance to our children. that the 
 blessed God would send us speedy and appropriate help ! 
 I am in a fair way to come about again. Most likely I 
 shall long be a delicate man with respect to bodily health. 
 This may be the best for me. This I know ; God can- 
 not err, nor can He be unkind. Glory be to Him ! 
 With a peculiar sense of the value of your affection, and 
 wishing that you and your charge may dwell under the 
 shadow of the Almighty, I am," &c. 
 
 Under the date of Dec. 26, 1828, he thus writes: 
 " My soul has fast hold on God. He is mine, and I am 
 His. I have had, of late, some very gracious Divine com- 
 munications. I am looking for brighter, more penetrating 
 and soul-transforming manifestations of God. I want, 
 ' beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord,' to be 
 ' changed into the same image from glory to glory, even 
 as by the Spirit of the Lord.' The grand adversary has 
 laid hard at me, but God has pitied me and rebuked him. 
 Disorder is retiring from my body : health and vigour 
 are returning. With caution on my part, God seems 
 disposed to build me up again. Much prayer has been 
 made for me in this circuit, and in other places. God 
 has heard and regarded. I am thankful. I mean to use 
 my returning health for God and for souls. He will help. 
 You are aware that I have commenced preaching again ; 
 and God is pleased to connect His soul-saving power 
 with me. ... I have raised a class, which meets in our 
 house. God owns it. The first night, a local preacher, 
 who has come from Shepton-Mallet, got a clean heart ; 
 P2
 
 172 MEMOIRS OP THB 
 
 the second, four obtained pardon ; the third, two others ; 
 the fourth, two more ; and last Wednesday night, five 
 were cleansed, as was another who came into our house 
 just as we were commencing family- worship. Glory, 
 glory be to God ! The cleansing God still lives and 
 works. My wife is tolerably well, and happy in God. 
 Ellen is under a Divine influence. What a pleasing 
 thought it is that our children are the Lord's ! We must 
 try to prevent the devil from making any use of them in 
 the world. The provisions of the Gospel are sadly over- 
 looked and neglected. The promise is to us and to our 
 children. We will try that they may be a holy seed. 
 May the Lord help you and me to claim the grace which 
 
 is provided and offered in Christ I am loaded with 
 
 the kindness of the people in this circuit. I trust God 
 will reward them. My prayers they shall have. You 
 and yours have my prayers and tears. I am, dear 
 brother, yours," &c. 
 
 "March 17, 1829. MY VERY DEAR FATHER, A 
 few weeks ago, I spent upwards of a fortnight in London. 
 I had liberty beyond my expectation in preaching at 
 Hinde-street one Sunday night, from, 'As I live, saiththe 
 Lord, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked,' &c. 
 The strong power of God was among the people. One 
 woman cried out while I was preaching, and a general 
 burst was anticipated. This, however, did not take 
 place, perhaps through not going to prayer at the time. 
 A great multitude stayed at the prayer-meeting. Many 
 were powerfully wrought upon, and it was supposed 
 about thirty were saved. Glory be to God ! On Wed- 
 nesday I and brother M'D. went to Woolwich. I 
 preached in the evening from, 'Ask, and ye shall re- 
 ceive,' &c. D. and I returned to London that night; but 
 we afterwards learned that the pardoned and cleansed 
 amounted to sixteen. Mr. Reece engaged me for Queen- 
 street, the following Sunday night. I had special liberty 
 from, ' This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all accept- 
 ation,' &c. There was much of the cutting power of 
 God among the people. According to a previous arrange-
 
 BET. JOHN SMITH. 1 73 
 
 mcnt, I commenced the prayer-meeting from the pulpit. 
 Tsot fewer than fifteen hundred people stayed. The 
 praying men then came forward well : several got liberty; 
 the high praises of God were sung, &c. Mr. Reeee 
 marshalled the meeting until after ten o'clock, and then 
 requested all who were in distress to retire into the 
 vestry. It was supposed that not fewer than forty were 
 saved that night. Glory he to God ! You would not be 
 much surprised at this, were you to hear their mighty men 
 pray. 0, what straightforward believing in God! What 
 powerful wrestling ! On the Wednesday following, I 
 preached at Charles-street, a favourite place of mine, from 
 ' Wilt thou be made whole ? ' It was crowded, and again 
 the Lord Jesus displayed His royal power and mercy in 
 saving souls. The pardoned and cleansed, I understand, 
 were not fewer than thirty. Glory be to God ! By this 
 time my body was shorn of its strength, and I was glad 
 to seek rest by returning to Nottingham. In different 
 places, in our own circuit, I have seen several saved. To 
 God be all the glory ! Amen, and amen." 
 
 " July 2, 1829. I preached at Sheffield, according to 
 appointment, to a large congregation ; and there was a 
 powerful influence connected with the truth of God. I 
 should think twelve or fourteen hundred stayed to the 
 prayer-meeting. Many were in distress, and a goodly 
 company either found peace or were cleansed from sin.* 
 I preached out of doors at Chilwell, a few days afterwards : 
 three or four were awakened, and have since joined the 
 society. On Whitsunday, we had a good day at J^ew 
 Basford. Five found peace in the evening. They are 
 going on well there. I was at Hickling, in the Melton 
 circuit, a short time ago. Many were in distress, and 
 five found peace. The week before last I went to Clau- 
 son, where we had a very signal time ; a crowded chapel, 
 much power under the sermon, and, after some powerful 
 struggling in the prayer-meeting, fifteen or sixteen were 
 saved. We had one saved at our class last Tuesday 
 
 This was the service which ilr. Calder describes, pp. 156, 
 157, above. 
 
 p3
 
 174 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 night. So, you see, the Lord is still working among us. 
 ' Jesus, ride on, till all are subdued.' Through mercy, 
 we are all tolerably well in health, and we are determined 
 to try to get and diffuse more of God." Then, in allusion 
 to his temporal circumstances, he adds, " I would rather 
 break stones on the road, than pass another such a year 
 as the last. I like to earn my bread, and that has some- 
 times made me labour when I ought to have rested. But 
 I hope God will smile after bruising me a little. I am, 
 dear father," &c. 
 
 " July 21, 1829. For many weeks I have been la- 
 bouring hard, and I have stood it well. Many seals have 
 been given to my ministry, and to the agonizing prayers 
 of God's people. Frequently four, five, six, have been 
 saved in an evening; several individuals in families- 
 Last Sunday I was at Hockley, perhaps for the last time . 
 numbers went away who could not get into the chapel. 
 The mighty power of God was among us. It is said that 
 not fewer than thirty were saved. Last night I was at 
 New Basford : such floods of heavenly influence I have 
 seldom witnessed. Many were saved." 
 
 On Easter Sunday evening of this year, Mr. Smith 
 preached at Hockley chapel, and, having commenced a 
 prayer-meeting, went into the vestry, intending imme- 
 diately to return home. A poor man followed him, and 
 with an expression of extreme disappointment, exclaimed, 
 "What ! are you going ? " " Yes," said Mr. S. : "what is 
 the matter with you?" "0, 1 am a miserable man, Sir!" 
 "Are you a backslider?" "Yes, I am; and I am a 
 miserable man ! " "Do you wish to come back ? do you 
 want to be saved again ? " "I am come on purpose ; and 
 now you are going." " Go into the chapel, and get upon 
 your knees," said Mr. Smith, "and I will be with you in 
 a few minutes." He did as he was directed, and, when 
 Mr. S. went to him, he found him in an agony of distress, 
 exclaiming, " There never was such a sinner as I am." 
 " You deserve hell," said Mr. S. " That's true," replied 
 the other, with a deep groan; " I do indeed." " 0, man ! 
 God will not allow you to remain in this distress. He
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 175 
 
 says, ' I will heal your backslidings, and I will love you 
 'treely.' Do you think God tells lies?" "No." "Then 
 He will do it, will He not ?" The penitent laid hold on 
 the truth, and was instantly delivered, and filled with a 
 joy as extreme as had been his previous anguish. The 
 same evening a poor woman went up to the communion- 
 rails, taking with her two others. She said, " This, Mr. 
 Smith, is my daughter, and this other is my son's 
 wife : they both want salvation." God gave them also the 
 desire of their hearts; and several others were also 
 saved. 
 
 Mr. Smith's health being sufficiently restored to enable 
 him to resume his regular labours as an itinerant preacher, 
 he was appointed, in 1829, to the Lincoln circuit, under 
 the superintendence of the Ilev. W. Clegg. On the last 
 Sunday which he spent in Nottingham, he preached the 
 anniversary sermons for the Sun day-schools^ and, after the 
 evening service at St. Ann's chapel, upwards of twelve 
 persons obtained peace with God. On the Monday 
 evening, he delivered a farewell discourse at Halifax- 
 place chapel. The congregation was very large ; and, at 
 the prayer-meeting which followed, not fewer than twenty 
 entered into the liberty of the children of God. Among 
 these was a woman who had a persecuting husband. She 
 had once enjoyed the Divine favour, but had suffered 
 her domestic troubles so far to prevail over her faith and 
 diligence, that for some time she had lost the evidence of 
 her adoption. On this evening she went up to the form 
 usually appropriated to penitents, and, kneeling down, 
 resolved not to rise till the Lord again lifted on her the 
 light of His countenance. In a short time, the Comforter 
 returned to her heart ; and, with a face wreathed with 
 smiles, she was retiring, when she caught a glimpse of a 
 man who had just obtained a similar blessing. It was 
 her husband. She rushed into his arms, and fainted. 
 It afterwards appeared that each of them was ignorant 
 of the other's coming to the chapel. The power of God 
 laid hold of the ungodly man's heart during the sermon ; 
 and just at the time that his wife received the renewed
 
 176 MEJIOIES OP THE 
 
 assurance of the Divine favour, lie also entered into the 
 enjoyment of peace in believing. 
 
 Such was the closing scene of Mr. Smith's regular 
 ministry in a circuit most tenderly endeared to his own 
 heart, and in which his name will long be remembered 
 with deep emotions of gratitude and reverence. Of his 
 usefulness during the four years of his residence here, 
 it is impossible to form an adequate estimate. A gentle- 
 man intimately acquainted with the circuit, and in every 
 other respect qualified to form a correct calculation, states 
 it as his opinion that there are now in its societies not 
 fewer than four hundred persons who were converted to 
 God through Mr. Smith's immediate instrumentality. 
 And if, to this extraordinary number, we add those cases 
 in which his ministry was powerfully blessed to neigh- 
 bouring circuits, and the other instances in which he was 
 in a still more extended though less palpable and direct 
 way, the instrument of good in his own circuit, we have 
 an amount of spiritual service to the church, as the result 
 of one man's labour, such as, in so short a period, has 
 very rarely been surpassed. Upon the supposition that 
 his principles were really incorrect, and his modes of effort 
 unscriptural, the marvellous character of his usefulness is 
 strikingly enhanced. What must have been the might of 
 that piety which, in spite of fundamental and practical 
 error, achieved an incalculable mass of good ! What the 
 energy of that faith which, with such serious hindrances, 
 succeeded in bringing down heavenly influence so exten- 
 sive and powerful ! Nay, rather, we are compelled to 
 say, blessed is the error which tends to lead such multi- 
 tudes to the knowledge of the truth ! honourable is the 
 heresy which establishes countless believers on their 
 most holy faith ! sacred is the extravagance which from 
 every side calls wandering sheep to the fold of Christ! 
 and happy, thrice happy, is the man who, with the 
 brand of error, heresy, and extravagance affixed to his 
 character at the human tribunal, returns to God to be 
 enshrined and exalted, as a radiant and spotless star, for 
 ever and ever !
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 177 
 
 XIV. 
 
 LINCOLN. 18291831. 
 
 MR. SMITH commenced his public ministry in Lincoln 
 on Sunday morning, August 30, by a powerful and 
 characteristic sermon from John xvi. 24 : " Ask, and 
 ye shall receive, that your joy may be full." On the 
 evening of the same day, he preached, I believe, from 
 Job xxii. 21 : "Acquaint now thyself with Him, and 
 be at peace," &c. In both these discourses, he gave his 
 hearers distinctly to perceive the order of his preaching. 
 " Whoever discredits my Master," said he, in one of 
 them, " I do not. His promise is, 'Where two or three 
 are gathered together in My name, there am I in the 
 midst.' Jesus is here. Glory, glory be to God !" He 
 thus speaks of the results of his early labours in this 
 circuit, in a letter to a friend : 
 
 " Oct. 21, 1829. I am rather strong to labour; I 
 am disposed to labour. I have plenty to do ; and the 
 best of all is, God is with me ! I had been told that the 
 Lincoln congregation consisted of very still sort of people, 
 who were incapable of excitement, &c., &c. Caution, 
 caution would be necessary. Well, pondering took place 
 in my mind. The result was, I will strike the first Sun- 
 day. I did so: execution was done. God saved four; 
 and He hus saved, I should think, at least fourscore since 
 in Lincoln. Hallelujah ! Hail to the Lord's Anointed ! 
 The royal diadem belongs to Him ! We will crown Him 
 Lord of all ! The floods are coming ! Many drops, some 
 showers, have already descended. How refreshing ! But 
 the floods are coming! If our people continue in ago- 
 nizing, believing prayer, which has fast hold of them 
 at present, and why not? nothing can stand before 
 them. Satan will fall as lightning from heaven. Hard- 
 ness, levity, carelessness, and profanity are as chaff 
 before the wind. God has risen from His holy habitation, 
 and speaks salvation in every direction. What an honour
 
 178 UEJIOIES OF THE 
 
 to be one of His attendants ! to be one of His heralds ! I 
 cry out, He is coming ; and often, He is here ! His royal 
 presence is known by His bounty distributed, pardons in 
 great numbers, the frequent healing of backsliders, clean 
 hearts : filled spirits go away rejoicing, and the arrows 
 stick fast in the hearts of the King's enemies. With 
 tears, and cries, and groans, and rejoicings, I say, 
 
 ' Live for ever, wondrous Xing, 
 Born to redeem, and strong to save ! * 
 
 Good luck to Thee ! ride on, win, subdue, conquer, 
 triumph, have the glory for ever and ever ! What ! do 
 tears of joy fill your eyes, and do you say, ' Amen, my 
 God ! let there be a sweeping work ! and strengthen his 
 body?' 0, my brother, I have just had to wipe away 
 my tears at the thought of your praying for me body 
 and soul. Thank you, thank you! Well, when we 
 shake hands on the banks of the river, we will sing, 
 ' Hallelujah to the Lamb ! ' I should like to enter into 
 particulars, but, for want of room, I cannot go back far. 
 Only some who were thought to be the most unlikely to 
 get salvation have been saved, such as proud high-spirited 
 young men, &c. But what is all this before the omni- 
 potent Spirit, whose work it is to save ? From four to 
 twenty have been saved at one meeting in Lincoln, again 
 and again. An uncommon stir there is in many parts of 
 the circuit, and persons from nine to seventy-six years 
 of age are among the saved. Last Sunday, I was at 
 Bassingham. I preached at half-past one, from, ' Create 
 in me a clean heart,' &c. We then had a good lovefeast. 
 Just as I was about to give out a verse, and commence a 
 prayer-meeting, a fine young man got up, and told us that 
 he had some time ago lost a clean heart, but that he had 
 been powerfully acted upon again during the sermon, &c. 
 I was on the point of speaking to him, when he said, 
 ' God cleanses me again !' It went like electric fluid. I 
 said, 'Now you see the cleansing power of God is in the 
 chapel: you that want a clean, heart may have one.' One
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 179 
 
 man exclaimed, ' I have got it;' and looking round, added, 
 ' You may all have it.' We began to pray, and the meet- 
 ing did not conclude till I went to preach at six o'clock. 
 I was told that thirty-three obtained entire sanctification, 
 and many were pardoned. In the evening, the strong 
 power of God was present. I suppose towards thirty 
 were pardoned, and many cleansed. Glory be to God ! 
 I went on Monday to Besthorpe. Seventeen found peace, 
 several were cleansed, and others in distress. Yesterday 
 morning, I saw two cleansed, and one get into liberty. 
 These are days of grace. It is God's will that they 
 should continue. Hallelujah ! On Monday night, at 
 the prayer-meeting in Lincoln, four or five and twenty 
 were saved. Expectation is high, and God will not fail. 
 Love to the praying men." 
 
 One of the young men, to whom allusion is made in 
 the foregoing extract, had been accustomed to attend the 
 chapel for some years ; but, as he himself confessed, he 
 listened to sermons in general, merely as he would have 
 doue to the rehearsing of a play. Mr. Smith's ministry, 
 however, he could not treat thus. Spite of himself, it 
 compelled him to reflect; the terrible denunciations of sin, 
 and the accompanying representations of perdition, with 
 which it occasionally abounded, produced the most lively 
 alarm in his mind; and he did not rest till he was brought 
 to the knowledge of salvation, throtigh the remission of 
 sins. Another individual, of similar age and character, 
 occasionally went to the chapel to oblige some pious 
 friends ; but evinced, in the most unequivocal way, his 
 thorough scorn for religion and its professors. A sermon 
 by Mr.-S. powerfully wrought upon his mind; but, being 
 naturally of a reserved disposition, he concealed his feel- 
 ings for several days. His distress, however, became so 
 great, that he could no longer attend to his business. He 
 retired to his room, and was there overheard by a Christian 
 relative, uttering his anguish before the Lord. She went 
 to him : his agony was so great, that she feared his reason 
 would leave him, and the struggle was protracted and 
 awi'ul. At length, the sacrifice of Christ was presented
 
 180 MEMOIliS OF THE 
 
 to Ms mind: " If He will save sinners," he cried, " can 
 I, may I, hope that He will save me ?" As if in distinct 
 reply to this inquiry, there was immediately applied to 
 his mind the promise, " Him that cometh unto Me, I will 
 in no wise cast out." He laid hold of it, and was filled 
 with gladness and thanksgiving. These two young men 
 have already been made useful in the church of God. 
 May the) r , with fidelity and perseverance, follow those 
 " who through faith and patience inherit the promises!" 
 Nov. 4, 1829, he writes to his friend Mr. Alderman 
 Carey: " God is with us ; yes, He is mightily working. 
 Not a week passes without some being pardoned or 
 cleansed. Last Sunday afternoon, at the prayer-meeting 
 after the sacrament, about twelve found peace ; three 
 more at night, ten others on Monday. Last night I was 
 at Saxilby: three found peace, six obtained clean hearts. 
 To-day I have seen one cleansed, and two pardoned. I 
 say to our friends in Lincoln, that if they will only 
 stick to it, if they continue in agonizing and believing 
 prayer, there will be such a work in Lincoln as was 
 never witnessed. Glory be to God ! Forty-five were 
 proposed [one evening] to receive notes on trial, besides 
 many more who have begun to meet in class. We have 
 begun to confess the sins of the people, to plead the 
 blood of the covenant, and the promise of the Spirit. 
 The business, I trust, will be continued : the Lord will 
 not fail. In many places in the circuit, God is working. 
 Local preachers, leaders, and members, are trusting God 
 for a full salvation ; they are also labouring for souls, 
 and many sinners are awakened and turned to God. 
 The set time to favour our Zion is come. Hallelujah ! 
 Does your heart warm ? and do you say to your wife, 
 'Hear, my dear?' I know you will rejoice with us. 
 Come soon, and see and hear for yourself. A bed, some- 
 thing to eat and drink, &c., you shall have; and if 
 Mrs. Carey can come, our pleasure will be heightened. 
 You are among some others in the Nottingham circuit 
 whose kindness loads us : and your faces will, I expect, 
 kindle a fire that will melt us, because of what is past.
 
 KEY. JOHN SlUTIT. 181 
 
 "Well, a cup of cold water will not be forgotten. You 
 and yours are dear to me. My prayer shall go to heaven 
 for you. Nottingham is dear, very dear, to me. I hope 
 to see it soon. I shall be glad some morning to surround 
 the family-altar with you and your family." "Henry,* 
 live to God!" 
 
 A few days after Mr. Smith's arrival at Lincoln, he 
 was made instrumental of good in a case of obstinate 
 and protracted unbelief. The person who was the 
 subject of it had. been repeatedly visited by pious indi- 
 viduals ; but every argument employed by them had 
 failed to produce any effect upon his mind. Mr. S. 
 readily entered into a view of his stats : and, having 
 remarked that there was much Satanic influence ope- 
 rating on his spirit, prayed several times, till at length 
 the trembling penitent ventured to cast his soul on the 
 atonement, though be still remained without much 
 sensible comfort. Subsequently, he gave way to doubt, 
 and again was brought into total darkness ; but, through 
 Mr. Smith's instructions, he had acquired such views of 
 the way of faith, and the simplicity of evangelical salva- 
 tion, that he speedily recovered what he had lost. His 
 comfort increased ; and, at a lovefcast a short time after- 
 wards, he stated these facts, and testified that he could 
 then rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 
 
 In January of 18bO, Mr. Smith visited Nottingham, to 
 preach in behalf of the Tract Society in that place. The 
 following is an extract from a private memorandum written 
 at the time : " My object in going to Nottingham is 
 the glory of God, in, 1. The awakening of sinners; the 
 bringing of penitents to Christ, that they may be par- 
 doned, accepted, adopted, and regenerated. 2. The 
 restoration of poor backsliders. 3. The entire sancti- 
 fication of believers ; their support and comfort under 
 trouble and temptation ; and their being filled with all 
 the fulness of God. 4. Begetting and increasing, in God's 
 people, concern for the salvation of souls in general, and 
 
 * Mr. Carey's second son ; at that time a pious youth, a member 
 of our society, and now a useful class-lender. 
 
 Q
 
 182 ME7iIOIRS OF THE 
 
 of sinners in Nottingham in particular. Every soul in 
 Nottingham was called into being by the blessed God, 
 and has been preserved and redeemed by Him ; and it 
 is God's will that each should be saved. For the getting 
 and cultivating sympathy for souls, consider that they 
 are, 1. immortal; 2. accountable; 3. capable of bliss or 
 pain extreme ; 4. naturally corrupt ; increasers of cor- 
 ruption in themselves, and propagators [of it in others] ; 
 also, that they are acted upon injuriously by men and 
 devils. God pities them, and bids them welcome to the 
 blessings of His house ; Christ died and intercedes for 
 them ; the Spirit works upon them, and is ready to 
 furnish still more powerful influence ; but they must use 
 the means of God's appointing, actively concur with the 
 Spirit, or perish everlastingly. They are our brethren ; 
 we have access to them in person or by proxy. We are 
 capable of acting upon them. A Divine influence is 
 connected with every Christian. God and Christ require 
 it of us. We have power with God for them. Their 
 state must be looked at with as much particularity as 
 possible. The atonement must be believed for them ; 
 promises of the influences of the Holy Spirit must be 
 seized and pleaded for them ; their hardness, profanity, 
 pride, carelessness, will give way; and it will appear 
 that God is with Zion, making her ' a sharp threshing 
 instrument, having teeth.' Individual pleading in this 
 way will do much ; united pleading will do more. Who 
 will come up to the help of the Lord against the mighty ? 
 Allow not the work to flag ; stick to it. Personal piety 
 will improve, and there will be accessions to the church 
 of Christ, &c. Who is sufficient for these things ? No 
 one, but the man whom God fits for the work. Lord, 
 help me /" Mr. Smith's labours at Nottingham, on this 
 occasion, were greatly blessed ; and, among other cases 
 of his success, there was one meeting which he con- 
 ducted, in which not less than forty souls obtained the 
 pardon of their sins. In his correspondence, he speaks 
 of the Sabbath which he spent with his Nottingham 
 friends at this time .as a day never to be forgotten.
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 183 
 
 Meanwhile, in his own circuit, the work of God greatly 
 prospered. Writing to a friend, in the month of March, 
 he says : "0, how the Spirit has been poured out upon 
 this circuit ! It is spring in nearly every place. The 
 wilderness has become a fruitful field ; the desert, as the 
 garden of the Lord. I think it certain that more than 
 five hundred have been added since Conference. Whatmay 
 we not expect? for we have many men in full action." 
 
 Almost all the neighbouring circuits appeared, in a 
 larger or smaller degree, to share this holy influence. 
 Some of them were visited by Mr. Smith himself: and 
 individuals from others, who had been blessed through 
 his instrumentality in Lincoln or its immediate vicinity, 
 returned to their several places of residence, carrying 
 with them a portion of his ardour, and becoming in their 
 turn the partakers of his success. Thus the word of the 
 Lord had free course and was glorified, to a degree rarely 
 if ever known in that county. Mr. F. Eggleston, one 
 of the local preachers at Newark, gives the following 
 account of a visit paid by Mr. S. to that circuit : " In 
 March, 1830, we gave him an invitation to preach our 
 anniversary sermons for Newark and Bennington chapels, 
 I offering to supply his place at Besthorp on the Monday 
 evening. His letter on that occasion I have before me. 
 ' I intend, God willing,' he writes, ' to stay over the 
 Monday, according to your request respecting Benning- 
 ton. Our friends at Besthorp will, I doubt not, be very 
 glad to see you. I will thank you, as opportunity may 
 serve, to caution the friends at Newark against looking 
 too much to man. We must not forget that all good 
 flows from God, and that He will not give His glory to 
 another. May the blessed God hold me in His right hand, 
 and use me for His glory ! ' His labours were singularly 
 owned of God on that day. After preaching in the even- 
 ing, I requested him to leave the chapel, and I would 
 conduct the prayer-meeting. He reluctantly retired for 
 a time. The altar-rail was surrounded with penitents 
 crying for mercy, and several found peace with God. 
 I attended for him at Besthorp, and, when I returned 
 Q 2
 
 184 MEMOIBS OF THE 
 
 on Tuesday morning, I found a blessed change in my 
 own family. My eldest daughter and my apprentice 
 who is now on the Lincoln plan as an exhorter had 
 found mercy. Mr. S. spent the day with me ; and such 
 a day, he declared, he had not spent since he was born. 
 His soul seemed filled with glory and with God. He 
 wept, he prayed, and shouted aloud, ' Glory, glory be to 
 God ! ' Sometimes, as if holding intercourse with the 
 Triune God, he for a few moments appeared abstracted ; 
 and then, bringing his mind among us, he said, ' Come, 
 brother E., let us praise God.' A favourite verse was 
 sung, we prayed together, and then entered into con- 
 versation respecting the prosperity of Zion. Many 
 penitents found their way to our house that day, that he 
 might pray with them. Their anxiety that of return- 
 ing backsliders, and of others who had found peace to 
 see him was such, that, until he entered the coach to 
 return, he had constant employment. He appeared to 
 carry with him the spirit of his Master wherever he went. 
 We have a great number," Mr. E. adds, "who are 
 members of our society at Newark, who are indebted, 
 under God, to John Smith as their spiritual father ; and 
 there is scarcely a society in the circuit which does not 
 contain one or more of his spiritual children." 
 
 In the month of June I had an opportunity of spend- 
 ing half an hour with Mr. S., as I passed through 
 Lincoln. I found him, as usual, absorbed in his great 
 work. He related to me, with much delight, many 
 pleasing instances of the power of grace which had 
 recently occurred in the circuit; and, among others, 
 mentioned one place in the country, at which, a few 
 evenings before, between twenty and thirty souls had 
 been set at liberty at a prayer-meeting. I was parti- 
 cularly struck with his powerful expressions on tho 
 subject of the Divine benevolence, and more especially 
 with the last sentence which he uttered before I took 
 my leave of him : " If God will not save men, it is no 
 business of ours;" a truth deeply momentous and 
 interesting; since human exertions for the salvation of
 
 KEV. JOHN SMITH. 185 
 
 souls arc only rational on the ground of the surpassing 
 and infinite willingness of the Almighty. 
 
 In the character both of his preaching, and of the 
 success which attended it, Mr. S. exceeded the expecta- 
 tions which had been entertained by the friends at 
 Lincoln, before his coming among them. On this subject, 
 the following testimony of a respectable member of the 
 society is appropriate and forcible ; and it is here inserted 
 the more readily, because it goes strongly to confirm the 
 views supplied by the preceding pages on the topics to 
 which it alludes : " He was not merely the means of 
 filling our chapel and class-books with the poor, to whom 
 the Gospel, and (may I not say ?) Methodism peculiarly, 
 has been sent ; but with many of those, also, whose 
 education and powers of mind were such, that they 
 required something more than excitement. Mr. S. 
 never preached a sermon, that I heard, in which there 
 was not powerful, close reasoning, connected with the 
 impassioned appeals of one who felt deeply and keenly 
 the dangerous state of many of his hearers. Nor was it 
 only to the unconverted part of his hearers that his 
 sermons were addressed. He fully displayed the way of 
 salvation from all filthiness of the flesh and the spirit. 
 He was not one of those from whose ministry, although 
 rejoicing in its success, calm and experienced Christians 
 would retire, when personal profit was desired. No; 
 without a dissenting feeling, his ministry was attended 
 with delight by all our members ; and perhaps the change 
 produced upon us, as a church, was as visible as our 
 increase of members gained from the world. It is often 
 said of those who, like Mr. S., earn to themselves the 
 honourable title of 'revivalist,' that they are fitted for 
 only one department of the work of God, and that other 
 talents are required to build up the church. However 
 this may be the case with others, it did not apply to 
 him. To many, whose names are fresh in my recol- 
 lection, he was useful not only in conveying light to 
 their minds, and healing to their consciences, but also in 
 directing them to the acquisition of knowledge and general 
 a 3
 
 186 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 information, that they might thus be employed more use- 
 full}- and influentially for God and their fellow-creatures." 
 
 The subjoined instance of Mr. Smith's spiritual dis- 
 cernment is supplied by the writer of the foregoing 
 extract: A sick woman in Lincoln was visited by him. 
 She was under considerable concern for her spiritual con- 
 dition, but the advices which she had previously received 
 appeared to have produced no salutary effect upon her 
 mind. It was difficult to conjecture what prevented her 
 from entering into the enjoyment of the Divine favour; 
 but manifestly there was some material hindrance. 
 Mr. S. conversed with her cursorily, and then, becoming 
 thoughtful, for a while sat in silence. At length he 
 said, "But have you not at some time known the grace 
 of God, and proved unfaithful ?" With some hesitation 
 the woman confessed that this was the fact. " then," 
 said Mr. S., " you must take your right character before 
 the Saviour: you are a backslider; you must come to 
 God as such, and He will receive you." He then prayed 
 with her, and she was enabled to exercise faith in the 
 promises adapted to her state. She was filled with peace 
 and joy, and shortly after her spirit returned to God. 
 Mr. S. was a perfect stranger to her character at the time 
 of his visit; and the friend who accompanied him, and 
 who gives the relation, had not the slightest idea of the 
 real state of the case. 
 
 Mr. Clarkson relates the following examples of the 
 success which, about this time, attended Mr. Smith's 
 labours in private. The latter is inserted as an illustra- 
 tion of his faithful and searching method of dealing with 
 sinners : Mr. S. was one evening at the house of a friend, 
 and among the company was a young lady, the daughter 
 of an eminent and exemplary deceased member of the 
 society. He addressed her on the subject of religion, 
 and inquired whether she wished to go to heaven. She 
 replied in the affirmative, but added that she thought she 
 might succeed in arriving there without meeting in class, 
 &c. " But that was not the way your father went," said 
 Mr. S. "No," she rejoined, "it was not." "Then,"
 
 KEV. JOHN SMITH. 187 
 
 said he, "you are wiser than your father; " and, after 
 some further remarks, he added, " The Lord has hold of 
 
 you, Miss ." The next day she met him in the 
 
 street, and asked permission to come to his class. He 
 inquired the reason of her wish. With much emotion 
 she replied, that his conversation the previous evening 
 had made an impression on her mind so deep, that she 
 could not rest in her present state : she was resolved, 
 she said, to go to heaven the same way as her father. 
 She attended the class, and shortly afterwards entered 
 into the enjoyment of the salvation of the Gospel. 
 
 In one of the country places of the Lincoln circuit, 
 resided an aged man who had employed the whole of his 
 life in folly and sin. He was at length indisposed, and 
 declined rapidly. In fact, it was manifest to himself, and 
 to those around him, that his race was nearly terminated. 
 Mr. Smith heard of him, was much affected by his 
 condition, and resolved to visit him. When he entered 
 the house, the old man was seated by the fire, bowed down 
 by the united influence of infirmity and disease, and 
 looking anxious and disconsolate. Mr. S., in an ele- 
 vated tone, abruptly exclaimed, " Well, you are going 
 to die!" "Yes," replied the other. "And then to 
 hell ? " said Mr. Smith. " I suppose I am," was the 
 answer. "Why, you have been a great sinner!" "I 
 have been a very bad one, and I deserve hell," rejoined 
 the aged transgressor. " But God will save you," added 
 Mr. S. : " come, let us pray about the matter." They 
 had scarcely engaged in prayer for half an hour, before 
 the old man obtained the pardon of all his sins. Filled 
 with transport, and forgetful of his weakness, he went 
 out, and invited his neighbours to come in, and hear the 
 wonderful tale of God's mercy to him. Mr. S. then 
 commended him to the attentions of two pious persons 
 resident in the neighbourhood ; and a little while after- 
 wards he had the satisfaction of hearing that he had died 
 happy in the love of God. 
 
 A respectable class-leader of the Lincoln society has 
 supplied me with au account of a visit which, in the early
 
 188 MEMOIES OP THE 
 
 part of this year, he and Mr. Smith paid to a sick person ; 
 and which, as somewhat resembling the preceding narra- 
 tion, is inserted in this place. The individual had heen 
 the engineer of a steam-packet, and, from what I can 
 gather, a very profligate sinner. He appears to have 
 had some serious impressions from the time that he was 
 taken ill ; hut these were matured and rendered indelible 
 by a dream which he had a few days before Mr. S. called 
 on him. He imagined that he saw four of his children, 
 who died in their infancy. They appeared very beautiful, 
 and unspeakably happy. But when they passed the 
 foot of his bed, they assumed a severe aspect, and, look- 
 ing frowningly on him, exclaimed, " Where we are, you 
 can never come." He awoke in extreme agitation; 
 strong convictions of sin seized upon him ; and his past 
 life, in all its defilement and rebellion, rose in vivid 
 array before his conscience. His medical attendant, 
 finding him in great distress, begged Mr. Smith to visit 
 him. When Mr. S. and his companion came into his 
 room, they found him half sitting up in bed, crying ear- 
 nestly, "Lord, have mercy upon my soul!" "Amen!" 
 said Mr. Smith. " Lord, save my soul!" "Amen!" 
 "Just now extend Thy mercy to me." "Amen, my 
 God !" "Canst Thou pardon such a wretch as I am ? " 
 " 0, man," cried Mr. S., " you are in a desperate condi- 
 tion : how long have you been thus ? " The man told him, 
 adding, " Sometimes, I think God will save me ; and at 
 other times it is suggested to me that there is no mercy 
 for such a wretch." Mr. S., in his simple and forcible 
 way, then expatiated on the love of God, the fulness of 
 the atonement, and the infinite willingness of Christ to 
 save all who come to Him. "Do you believe God is 
 able to save you ? " he inquired. The penitent replied 
 in the affirmative. " yes," said Mr. S., " He would 
 much rather save than damn you. Come, let us pray." 
 Having prayed himself, he called on his companion; 
 and, while the latter was engaged in intercession, he 
 strove to induce the distressed sinner to cast his soul on 
 Christ : " You deserve hell ; you deserve hell," he said.
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 189 
 
 "Hell is too good for me," cried the other. "But, 
 glory be to God," continued Mr. Smith, " you are out of 
 hell, and may still be kept out of it. Now try and pray 
 for yourself." He did so, Mr. S. at every interval urging 
 him to take hold of the Lord Jesus. Hope began to beam 
 on his mind ; and his efforts for salvation became more 
 resolute and confident. Mr. S. kneeled once more, and 
 wrestled with God in mighty agony, till the trembling 
 penitent was enabled to cast himself fully on the atone- 
 ment. He then rose up in bed, and cried, " I see Him; 
 He died for me ; He is my Saviour, nailed to the cross for 
 me and my salvation. I do believe in Him ; yes, I do 
 believe that God, for Christ's sake, has pardoned all my 
 sins." His burden was all removed, and he united in 
 singing the praises of that " God from whom all bless- 
 ings flow." He was afterwards partially restored to 
 health ; but he still maintained his confidence, and for a 
 short time walked worthy of his high calling. It then 
 pleased God to take him to Himself. "Is not this a 
 brand plucked out of the fire ? " 
 
 But, while Mr. Smith's labours in public and private 
 were thus attended by the prospering blessing of heaven, 
 his own constitution gradually gave way to exertions so 
 disproportionate to the critical state of his health. The 
 duties of the Lincoln circuit, even as he found it, would 
 probably, at this period of his life, have proved too 
 severe for him, especially as at first he had not many to 
 co-operate in his plans : but now, augmented as the 
 societies were, and requiring, as of course they did, 
 increased attention and effort, no result could have 
 been rationally anticipated, but that which actually took 
 place. It was with some difficulty that he was prevailed 
 on to remain in the circuit a second year ; and, when he 
 at length consented, it was probably with the hope that 
 the assistance of a third preacher, which it was determined 
 to call in, would afford him some relief. This, however, 
 did not prove to be the case : the growing claims of 
 country societies, which it was thought had before been 
 inadequately met, actually increased the proportion of
 
 190 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 labour assigned to each preacher. It is not for me to 
 dispute the propriety of this arrangement. There are 
 cases in which, for the accomplishment of some great end, 
 human life is deservedly held cheap, and the sacrifice of 
 the most eminent men, though for the moment deeply 
 to be regretted, is, in the event, amply compensated by 
 the magnitude of the good which their death achieves. 
 Whether the present was one of those cases, I do not 
 take upon me to determine. Whether that consideration 
 was shown to Mr. Smith, which so valuable a character 
 deserved ; and whether some sacrifices might not have 
 been made, which would have tended to the prolongation 
 of his life, are questions which I leave to the decision 
 of those more fully informed on the subject. 
 
 From the Conference of 1830, Mr. S. frequently found 
 his public duties painfully oppressive. His health con- 
 tinued to decline, till it was past human remedy. Had 
 he desisted from all exertion some months before he was 
 compelled to do so, there might have been a hope that 
 he would rally again. But the die was cast : the elasti- 
 city of his constitution was destroyed, and that fatal and 
 flattering distemper, which had before threatened him, 
 was now to fix its envenomed and triumphant dart in 
 his debilitated frame, to be no more withdrawn. Before, 
 however, we terminate the history of his public life, we 
 must avail ourselves of the few remaining incidents or 
 characteristics which friendship has gathered up, or 
 which his own correspondence can supply ; which, how- 
 ever comparatively insignificant in themselves, become 
 in their actual situation unspeakably dear and affecting, 
 because the last. Happy is the man who knows not 
 the volume of melancholy meaning comprised in this 
 one word. 
 
 The Conference of this year was held at Leeds. Mr. S. 
 attended it, and preached several times with much power 
 and considerable success. To one of these occasions he 
 thus alludes in a letter to a friend : "At the Conference, 
 one Tuesday morning, the floods came down. Many 
 were pardoned ; many were cleansed. At the glorious
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 191 
 
 coming down of Jehovah, the noise of the people was as 
 the sound of many waters. It required strong measures 
 to get order, but it was secured, and God stayed and 
 worked signally and clearly. His hand was seen and 
 adored. He will stand by His own plan. His good 
 pleasure is to save." Finding, however, that he was in 
 danger of injuring himself at Leeds, he retired to Cud- 
 worth, before the Conference concluded. Here he 
 preached once, and several souls were given to his 
 ministry. A gracious work began in the village from 
 this time. Writing to his father, a fewmonths afterwards, 
 he thus speaks on this subject: " The tidings of your 
 prosperity at Cudworth gave me great pleasure. Only 
 stick to the work, and then this is a must le. There 
 should be no flagging : in order to this, IcngtJiened 
 meetings generally should not be encouraged. If you 
 mind, you may have a sweeping work this winter. 
 Try!" 
 
 On the first Sunday that Mr. S. preached at Lincoln, 
 after the Conference, seven persons were converted to God, 
 and in general the circuit continued to present gratifying 
 indications of prosperity. At the September quarterly 
 meeting, sixteen hundred members were reported being, 
 after all deficiencies arising from deaths, apostasies, 
 and removals had been supplied, about half as many 
 again as twelve months before. Under the date of 
 Sept. 24, Mr. S. thus writes to Mr. Calder, in reply to an 
 invitation from the Missionary Committee at Leeds : 
 " Such is the state of my health, that I must not leave 
 my circuit for some considerable time. Indeed, at 
 present, I am taking rest. My windpipe is the failing 
 instrument, and Mr. Harvey is trying his ability to 
 mend it. ... God is smiling upon us in this circuit still. 
 Our people have stood well during the harvest : a good 
 omen this. Expectation, too, is rising. I suppose you 
 will join with me in saying heartily, I am sure God will 
 not fail. No ; it is the good pleasure of His goodness 
 to save. Let us take fast hold of God's good will to 
 man. Strong exhibitions of the superabounding goodness
 
 192 jiEiroms OF THE 
 
 of God do much execution, and desponding man needs 
 them. I love you much, and I should like you to have 
 much fruit. Give my kindest love to your sweet family. 
 My heart warms with good wishes for them, and tears fill 
 my eyes while I am thinking of them. They are dear to 
 me, as well as to you. Tell them so, and that we must 
 have them to love the Saviour. I forget not the kindness 
 of Mrs. C. during the Conference. My Christian love to 
 her. Praying that God may hold you in His right hand, 
 and employ you in saving many, many souls, I am," &c. 
 
 Shortly after this, Mr. S. spent some time at Notting- 
 ham, for the recovery of his health, and appeared to 
 derive much advantage from the change. In conse- 
 quence of taking cold on his return, however, he was 
 again laid aside. In a letter dated Oct. 22, he says, 
 " Ever since Conference, I have been under my work. 
 I have not been able to attend to it without considerable 
 pain, almost continually. At present, I am taking rest. 
 My body is sadly shaken ; but I believe it will be repaired 
 again. God is doing us much good in the circuit. It is 
 quite spring with us. Many labouring men have been 
 made. Why do we dwell upon earth but to get and 
 diffuse God? Appropriate labour always tells. Labour 
 we must use. I intended being in London this month, 
 but it is over : my health has interfered. An idle or a 
 resting man I could not be in London. Safety is con- 
 nected with staying at home. I have had to say No, to, 
 I should think, near twenty requests since Conference, 
 to visit other circuits. This has been painful, because 
 God has used me in this way. I must and do submit. 
 Much of the steel has been forced from my body: I 
 still hope it will harden." 
 
 After passing a i'ew weeks in rest at his native village, 
 Mr. Smith returned to Lincoln, sufficiently recovered to 
 resume his beloved employment. To his father he thus 
 writes immediately afterwards : "Dec. 10. You will be 
 glad to learn that I got to Lincoln without taking any 
 cold. I have taken my full work ever since, except one 
 sermon. Two souls found peace on the first Sunday
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 193 
 
 evening at Lincoln, and I have had some very gracious 
 seasons in the country; some good has been done. I 
 stand my work better than I anticipated ; and I trust, 
 with care, that I shall be able to go through my labours 
 with tolerable ease. I think I shall not do wrong to say, 
 ' health, thou sweetener of the blessings of life, return 
 and stay with me and mine ! ' But I can say, through 
 mercy, as heartily, ' May all the dispensations of Divine 
 providence be sanctified to me and mine !' God is doing 
 me much good ; and I mean to aim at His glory, and 
 the salvation of souls. May I be favoured with His 
 heavenly guidance ! Amen. ... A few weeks ago, two 
 young women came to see their sister at Skellingthorpe, 
 and God converted them. They went home, and requested 
 permission to pray with their parents : conviction seized 
 the mother ; she came to see her daughter at S., and 
 returned happy in God. The father came in great distress, 
 and he also was set at happy liberty. A few months 
 before, I saw the husband of the sister set at liberty. 
 God, you see, is blessing families. Glory be to Him ! " 
 In the spring of 1831, there was a slight improvement 
 in Mr. Smith's health, and strong hopes were enter- 
 tained, both by himself and others, that he would once 
 more be fully restored to his former vigour. Under the 
 date of April 9, he thus writes to a friend : "Your 
 kindness to me has far exceeded mine to you. In many 
 things you are formed to excel me. I kuow you will 
 receive my recommendation to sing, ' 0, to grace how 
 great a debtor ! ' Through the tender mercy of our 
 God, I and my family are at present in tolerable health. 
 "We have had some afflictions, but, thank God ! they 
 have given place to sweet rising health, which we receive 
 from our heavenly Father as no small good. Health 
 and strength to labour fit me well. I like labour in 
 myself and others." Then, after having stated that 
 one hundred and forty members were reported on trial 
 at the preceding quarterly meeting, exclusive of many 
 persons under sixteen years of age, and that the circuit 
 was in a state of great financial prosperity, he adds, 
 
 E
 
 194 MEMOIES OF IHE 
 
 " Opposers of revivals are very unwise. Salvation has 
 its appurtenances. Let us get souls saved, and we shall 
 not lack other things. . . At P we have a remark- 
 able work. I was there six weeks ago. At the prayer- 
 meeting, seven got liberty. I was much concerned for 
 the family that kindly received and entertained me, and 
 had been concerned for some time. They were not 
 saved, and seemed far off. I was distressed in my closet 
 next morning about them, and went to breakfast in a 
 pensive mood, pondering and pondering what to do. 
 While we were at breakfast, the leader's wife came in, 
 and said, ' Seven got liberty last night, and your char- 
 woman was one.' Mrs. S., my hostess, said, ' She saved ? 
 she is as much saved as I am ! ' I said nothing. The 
 woman came in to breakfast, and after reading I said, 
 ' Well, some say that you got your sins forgiven last 
 night ; did you ? ' ' No, Sir.' ' Then you are not happy.' 
 'No, Sir.' 'Do you wish to be saved?' 'Yes, Sir.' 
 'When?' 'Now, Sir.' 'Then God and you are 
 agreed. Well, Mrs. S., how long is God to wait for 
 you ? ' ' I do not know, Sir. I do not think that either 
 I or any body else can come to God for salvation unless 
 something particular come upon them.' ' Of course, the 
 fault is God's, then,' said I. 'Now, I assure you, you 
 are wrong ; for God would have saved you long ago. 
 Your conduct is telling God that He is a liar. We must 
 pray.' The charwoman and Mrs. S.'s daughter cried 
 aloud for mercy. They soon found peace. ' Now, 
 Mrs. S., what will you do?' She shook as if she had 
 four agues upon her, and cried for mercy, till God saved 
 her. I then went to the master. He said he could not 
 believe. I prayed : he then said, ' I can, I can believe.' 
 We arose, and praised God for liberating the four. I 
 was at the place this week, and they all stand. I believe 
 not fewer than fifty have been brought to God there in 
 a very short time. Upwards of twenty were saved that 
 week. Glory be to God. ... I am going to Leeds to- 
 morrow week. Get your class to pray for me." In a 
 postscript he mentions a lovefeast which had recently
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 195 
 
 been held at Lincoln, " the fruits of which were about 
 twenty souls pardoned or cleansed." 
 
 On the 17th of April, Mr. S. preached the anniversary 
 sermon for the Leeds old chapel ; and on that occasion 
 his ministry was rendered useful to many of his congre- 
 gation. In consequence of travelling outside the coach 
 on his return to Lincoln, he took a severe cold. After 
 a day's rest, however, he went into the country and 
 preached. On the following evening he attended a 
 Missionary meeting, and, though unwell, enjoyed the 
 opportunity exceedingly. On his road home he remarked, 
 " It was a blessed time : the meeting was full of inspira- 
 tion." Indeed, everything connected with Christian 
 Missions was to him the subject of deep interest. He 
 carried to the platform those strong and absorbing prin- 
 ciples which, in the pulpit, he so successfully laboured 
 to render prominent and impressive ; and though his 
 speeches had not usually either the enlivenment of 
 anecdote, or the sparkle of wit, they had what was far 
 better, and more in consonance with his real character 
 the gushing of intense compassion, the expression of 
 mighty faith, and the accompaniment of plentiful unction. 
 The topics on which he commonly dwelt were, the naked 
 deformity of Heathenism, its avowed and audacious de- 
 fiance of God, with the fulness of the Divine compassion, 
 and the certainty of the triumph of Christ, as displayed 
 and ensured in the promises of the Scriptures. From 
 their birth, his children were enrolled as subscribers to 
 the Missionary Society; and it was pleasant to remark, 
 how the first workings of their infant compassion acquired 
 direction and expansion from their father's conversation 
 and habits. A correct judgment of the spirit of a house- 
 hold may often be formed from the manners of children ; 
 and it may exemplify the impressiveness of Mr. Smith's 
 principles to add, that one of his little girls, when very 
 young, (as if the range of human vice and sorrow had 
 been too bounded for her benevolence,) was once over- 
 heard lisping her prayers for the salvation of the arch- 
 enemy of God and man. 
 
 B 2
 
 196 MEMOIES OF THE 
 
 The above was the last Missionary meeting which 
 Mr. S. was permitted to attend. The next day he found 
 himself veiy unwell, and for more than a week after- 
 wards did not attempt any public duty. On Sunday, 
 May 1st, however, he could not be dissuaded from en- 
 deavouring to fulfil his appointment at Lincoln. He went 
 from his bed to the chapel, at the hour of the morning 
 service, and in great weakness, and much pain, once 
 more laboured to enforce that comprehensive promise, 
 on which he had often before expatiated with such power 
 and success> "A new heart also will I give you, and a 
 new spirit will I put within you : and I will take away 
 (he stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an 
 heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you, 
 and cause you to walk in My statutes, and ye shall keep 
 My judgments, and do them." (Ezek. xxxvi. 26, 27.) 
 It was with the utmost difficulty that he proceeded 
 with his discourse ; and, at its conclusion, he told the 
 congregation that he felt so ill as to be quite incapable 
 of addressing them in the evening. He then closed 
 the service, and retired from the pulpit. This was his 
 last sermon. 
 
 XV. 
 LINCOLN SHEFFIELD, &c. 1831. 
 
 SEVERAL circumstances conspired to render the last 
 six months of Mr. Smith's life a season of severe trial. 
 Debility and pain his natural fortitude might have 
 enabled him to endure ; but to be cut off from his 
 beloved occupation, to be subject to the continual alter- 
 nations of hope and fear, and to have to contemplate 
 the suspense and anxiety of a beloved wife, and of other 
 dear friends, this was indeed sorrow ! The painful 
 interest of his present situation to those who loved him, 
 can only be estimated by such as have watched the
 
 REV. JOHN SMIin. 197 
 
 desolating progress of disease on the objects of their 
 warmest regard, and have ultimately seen the tomb close 
 on their hopes, and repel their assiduities. His singular 
 excellencies, of course, gave intensity to these emotions. 
 It was under such an impression, that at the time of a 
 former illness, his venerable father exclaimed, " 0, how 
 glad should I be to die for thee !" "For a good man, 
 some would even dare to die." But no; the "good 
 man" was now to endure his own suffering and privation ; 
 and as he had before instructed others how to conflict 
 " with spiritual wickedness in high places," and to keep 
 themselves " unspotted from the world," he was now to 
 give the example of " suffering affliction with patience," 
 and to teach us "how to die." 
 
 The dealings of God with His people, in the last scenes 
 of life, are very varied, and often not a little mysterious. 
 Yet, as a general rule, it may, I think, be remarked, 
 that the abounding of Divine consolation and joy is in 
 an inverse ratio to the strength of their faith. To those 
 whose faith is weak, and whose piety generally is imma- 
 ture, it seems necessary that there should be communi- 
 cated an unusual degree of the comforts of the Holy 
 Ghost. Were the case otherwise, the solemnity of their 
 situation, and the mystic awe of that state into which 
 they are about to enter, would probably so oppress their 
 spirits, that it would be little less than a miracle for 
 them at all to maintain their confidence in God. Hence 
 their minds are graciously withdrawn from those over- 
 whelming contemplations, to which they would otherwise 
 naturally revert ; and they are often so filled with the 
 joy and triumph of hope, as to forget everything but the 
 glory which, in its fulness, is about to be revealed in 
 them. They earnestly desire to depart and to be with 
 Christ. How many instances can those recall, who are 
 familiar with the sick chamber and the death-bed of 
 individuals who, though "all their life-time subject to 
 bondage" through the fear of death, have at last gone 
 down to the grave, not merely without a cloud, but with 
 the effulgence of heaven beaming on their spirits ! Nor 
 K 3
 
 198 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 is it too much to imagine that this merciful arrangement 
 is intended, not solely for the advantage of the dying 
 saint himself, but partly, also, for the solace and encour- 
 agement of survivers. God thus removes from the minds 
 of bereaved friends that bitterest aggravation of their 
 sorrow, uncertainty as to the final destiny of those whom 
 they mourn. At the same time, He thus declares to the 
 church, not only that He will not break " a bruised reed," 
 nor quench " the dimly burning flax," but that, in the 
 case of those who have tremblingly but sincerely cast 
 themselves on the atonement, He will "send forth 
 judgment " to final, certain, and triumphant " victory." 
 On the other hand, there are saints to whom these 
 extraordinary communications are not necessary. As 
 therefore there is always a fitness, without profusion, in 
 the Divine dispensations, such persons spend their last 
 hours in that elevated calmness which has usually cha- 
 racterized their Christian experience, without the glow 
 of feeling and the singular joy which God vouchsafes to 
 some others. Nay, not unfrequently the enemy carries 
 the battle to the gate. They have conflicts, sharp and 
 severe, even to the close of life ; nor are they permitted 
 to exchange the shield of faith for the garment of con- 
 quest, till it has again and again quenched darts of the 
 wicked one more thickly multiplied, and more fiercely 
 fiery, than were ever before hurled at them. But death 
 to them has long lost his terror, and he cannot now re- 
 invest himself with it : in a less mature period of their 
 experience, eternity was the object of their unmixed hope, 
 and it cannot now be viewed with apprehension ; they 
 are more than conquerors, through Him who hath loved 
 them. No assurance of their final safety is required by 
 their surviving friends, or by the church, beyond the 
 fidelity and elevation of the piety of their lives : and even 
 if they be cut off suddenly, if they " die and make no 
 sign," there is nothing of saddening uncertainty cast over 
 the minds of those who knew and loved them on earth, 
 and who still remember and bewail them . The ill-manned, 
 crazy, and scarce sea-worthy bark must have daylight
 
 HEY. JOHN SMITH. 199 
 
 and fair weather to enable her to get into the harbour; 
 but the gallant frigate, with a crew of practised hands and 
 unconquerable hearts, under the direction of an unerring 
 pilot, with her guns bristling from her decks, and the 
 invincible flag nailed to her mast, may successfully at- 
 tempt the entrance in the darkness of midnight, with a 
 swelling sea, and in the face of an enemy.* 
 
 Mr. Smith's experience, during his last affliction, 
 appears to have been marked by considerable variety. 
 He had no fears of death, no apprehensions of eternity ; 
 but he had seasons of strong conflict. ISTor was he 
 privileged by those revelations which have often shed 
 unspeakable rapture on the souls of inferior Christians, in 
 the like circumstances. His spirit generally rested with 
 calm confidence in God, and more than this was not 
 necessary either to himself or his friends. None who 
 knew him could entertain any anxiety as to his final 
 safety ; and had he, like the venerable Bramwell, been 
 suddenly snatched away, all our mourning for him would 
 have been mingled with "sure and certain hope." In 
 his actual state of mind, however, he was fully alive to 
 whatever aggravations of affliction his circumstances 
 might present ; and I cannot but allude to the anxiety 
 which he felt respecting the Lincoln circuit, as one 
 which, it is to be feared, tended materially to increase 
 the virulence of his disease. Some of his appointments 
 were kindly supplied by local preachers ; but no arrange- 
 ments were made by which the claims of the country 
 societies could be regularly and permanently met. This 
 was to Mr. S. a source of continual uneasiness, at a 
 time when it was of the last importance that his mind and 
 
 * Since the above was written, I have met with a remark of tlio 
 celebrated Arnauld, which illustrates the same subject in a some- 
 what different way. " He used often to say," it is remarked by the 
 authoress of the Select Memoirs oj Port Royal, "that ' the death-bed 
 of young converts is generally most bright; because their newly 
 acquired sense of the mercy of God in some sort dazzles their eyes 
 from steadily beholding His holiness : ' and he mostly added, ' The 
 experienced Christian has too solid a view of the mercy of God in 
 Christ, not to rejoice ; but he has too exalted views of the holiness 
 of God, not to rejoice with, trembling.' " Memoirs, vol. i., p. 244.
 
 200 ME3IOIES OP THE 
 
 body should be kept in a state of perfect quietness. 
 Whether such a provision could have been made, my 
 acquaintance with the subject does not enable me to 
 determine. I can only state the fact, and that I do with 
 a regret as deep as it is unavailing. 
 
 Mr. Smith's disease, in the first place, was an affection 
 of the mucous membrane of the windpipe : it terminated 
 in real and rapid pulmonary consumption. No com- 
 plaints, probably, are more fluctuating than disorders of 
 the lungs, and of the adjacent organs : none so frequently 
 excite hope, or so certainly blast it. Nothing, it is well 
 known, is more common than for patients labouring 
 under them, even to the last few days of their lives, to 
 suppose that they are actually amending ; and it will not 
 therefore appear surprising that the subject of these pages 
 cherished the hope of recovery to a period which, in 
 another case, might have appeared irrational. Yet his 
 was not a selfish love of life. If he spoke with earnest 
 desire of the removal of disease, it was that he might pro- 
 secute the great work of saving souls ; and with a mind 
 unchanged by weakness, and unsubdued by pain, he 
 maintained " the ruling passion strong in death." 
 
 The following is an extract from a letter written by 
 him to his friend Mr. Herbert, of Nottingham, soon after 
 he terminated his public labours: "May 12, 1831. 
 0, Sir, I did myself and you wrong, in not uttering my 
 thoughts and feelings to you, on the death of your sweet 
 little Anne. My mind was completely thrown to you ; 
 it lingered with you. I wept, I prayed for you, and, 
 strange to say, I rejoiced. I said, Well, he has another 
 attraction in heaven ! These strong and pensive feelings 
 gave way to something, which I do not now remember ; 
 and what I had fancied a letter never reached you. 
 Forgive me. Defectiveness seems to be a constituent 
 of my character, and mixes itself prominently with my 
 proceedings. Little fineness of spirit comes out of me. 
 . . . .What a blessed thing it is to have fast hold of God'a 
 concern to save man ! " 
 
 In the beginning of June, the district-meeting was held
 
 REV. JOHN surra. 201 
 
 at Horncastle. It was to be preceded by the Missionary 
 anniversary, in the services connected with which, it had 
 been arranged that Mr. S. should take some part. This 
 of course was impracticable, and, without doubt, it 
 would have been prudent for him to avoid every species 
 and degree of excitement. His wish to meet his brethren 
 once more, however, was so strong, that he could not be 
 prevailed upon to absent himself from the district- 
 meeting. On Tuesday, June 3, therefore, he left home ; 
 but when he arrived at Horncastle, he found himself so 
 extremely unwell, that after a day's rest he returned to 
 Lincoln. He had taken a iresh cold : his cough was very 
 much increased ; he laboured under an almost insupport- 
 able languor; and, on the whole, his symptoms were much 
 more alarming than at any previous period of his illness. 
 Besides the medical gentleman who ordinarily attended 
 him, a physician was now called in ; who, however, held 
 out very encouraging assurances of his recovery. To 
 Mr. Herbert, June 8, he thus writes: "The doctors 
 pronounce me improving. But I am low. When I shall 
 resume my labour is quite uncertain." And then, as if 
 forgetful of his own critical condition, he adds, " Go on, 
 man ! God is with you. He will be with you to the 
 end ; and I hope to hail you on the banks of the river, 
 and with you sing of salvation," &c. 
 
 About this time Mr. S. was seized with violent inflam- 
 mation of the passage leading to the lungs. The most 
 decisive measures were immediately resorted to. Forty 
 leeches were applied to the chest, and were succeeded by 
 cupping-glasses, and a large blister. These, with the 
 use of calomel internally, produced the desired effect ; 
 and Mr. S. began again slowly to amend. To his father 
 he thus writes, June 14th : " I am still ill, but have a 
 turn for the better. ... I am in the hands of God; good 
 hands ! He is with me, giving me peace and rest of soul, 
 and a hope that in a while I shall make known, with 
 power, His will to the sons of men. I thank you for 
 your prayers." July 1, writing to the same, he says, 
 " I am yet on the shelf, an awkward place forme ; but
 
 MEMOIKS OF THE 
 
 perhaps it is the best place for me. God knoweth. I 
 wish His will to be done. His will is best .... I think 
 our circuit is in a good state, from accounts at our 
 quarterly meeting. Thanks be to God." In reference 
 to his next year's appointment, he remarks, "What 
 God will do with me, I know not ; nor am I anxious 
 about it. All will be well." This was Mr. Smith's 
 last letter to his parents. 
 
 Yet, although he himself was happily delivered from 
 anxiety, it became a question of interest whether he 
 would be able to undertake the regular labours of a 
 circuit after the approaching Conference. Through a 
 considerable part of the month of July his health so 
 obviously improved, that he was himself very sanguine on 
 the subject. His medical attendants, also, upon being 
 consulted, stated that if he would submit to be perfectly 
 quiet for a short time longer, and spend a few weeks at 
 the sea-side, the southern part of the kingdom they 
 particularly recommended, it was probable, by the time 
 his services were required, that he would be quite fit for 
 the duties of an ordinary circuit. This, of course, was 
 very cheering ; and Mr. S. proposed immediately to set 
 off for Brighton. To this step there were several ob- 
 jections. The distance was considerable. Mrs. S. was 
 in circumstances which rendered it impracticable that she 
 should attend her husband; and, most of all, it was to be 
 feared that in Brighton he would be peculiarly liable to 
 excitement, and exposed to temptations to exertion, as, 
 indeed, the sequel unhappily proved. All these objec- 
 tions, however, were overruled, and on Friday, July 15, 
 Mr. S. left Lincoln. Upon his arrival at Brighton" he 
 thus wrote to Mrs. S. : "More than half of my jourtrey 
 to London I stood well, but the rest was attended with 
 subduing weariness. I, however, arrived safe, and had a 
 few hours' sleep. I was so unwell on Sunday, as not to 
 allow of my going to chapel. On Monday, for ease and 
 safety, I started for Brighton : there would have been 
 no end to talking, &c. My journey outside the coach 
 greatly refreshed me. But I still feel the effects of the
 
 KEV. JOHN SMITH. 203 
 
 overcoming weariuess. I took a warm bath yesterday, 
 which produced a powerful effect on my shoulders, &c. 
 I rather confidently expect much good from bathing ; 
 but I must give it a fair trial. I intend to bathe every 
 other day." In his second letter to the same, dated July 
 28, he says, "I am, I think, substantially better. ]\ly 
 cough is greatly mitigated ; I sleep better ; my appetite 
 is tolerable, and I can walk pretty well ; but I perceive 
 that strength comes but slowly. I have had some diffi- 
 culty in escaping danger from visiters. I am obliged to 
 be rather rough, but it is a must be. One soul has been 
 saved, and another cleansed ; yet it rather shook me. I 
 have made a stand, such as I know you would applaud, 
 if you knew all about it. I am rather singularly beset, 
 almost wherever I go." 
 
 I know not how readers may be affected in perusing 
 the foregoing lines, but to me they are unspeakably 
 melancholy. I do not, at any time, claim for Mr. 
 Smith the praise of prudence respecting his own health : 
 there can be no doubt, indeed, that he was a self-sacri- 
 ficed man. But there was now no one near him who had 
 friendship enough to lay upon him, in God's name, the 
 strong arm of restraint. When he was at home, he was 
 forbidden even to conduct the family worship. His only 
 chance of life was in being kept perfectly still. Exer- 
 tion was suicide : and to many of his friends it must 
 ever be matter of deep regret, that, at every risk, he was 
 not at this time shut out from all excitement, and com- 
 pelled to remain in complete retirement. The results 
 soon showed themselves. In his third and last com- 
 munication tohis family from Brighton, he says, " Some 
 time ago, I was looking forward with pleasing antipipa- 
 tion to the time when we should again be placed in a 
 circuit, and I resume my labours. But last week a 
 dreadful bowel complaint seized me, devoured my strength, 
 and reduced me to feebleness itself. It seemed to have 
 subsided, and I fancied health was again springing ; but 
 a second slight attack dashed my hopes to the ground. 
 I was so perplexed in my mind respecting my appoint-
 
 204 MEMOIES OF THE 
 
 ment, that, if possible, to get something like satisfaction, 
 I consulted Dr. King, an eminent physician in Brighton. 
 He seems to understand my case well ; and he says that 
 there is no chance for the recovery of my health, unless 
 I abstain from all vocal exertion in preaching and pray- 
 ing, and as much as possible in conversation, for at least 
 three months. I am now attending to his prescription, 
 and have already derived some benefit, I think. But I 
 am exceedingly weak. I have communicated these tidings 
 to Mr. Clegg. I expect to sit down. I have requested 
 to be put down for Sheffield, that I may have opportuni- 
 ties of breathing my native air, and consulting Dr. Dawe. 
 I intend leaving Brighton next Tuesday or AYednesday, 
 and, God willing, seeing you at the close of next week. 
 Hanging upon Jesus, and commending you and the 
 children to His sympathy and care, I am," &c. 
 
 In accordance with the wishes of the friends in that 
 circuit, Mr. Smith was appointed by the Conference to 
 Sheffield East, as an effective man, with the hope that a 
 short time would render him actually such. He left 
 Brighton, as he proposed, on Tuesday, A.ugust 9 ; and 
 after resting in London, Northampton, and Nottingham, 
 he arrived in Lincoln on the Saturday of the same week. 
 As he passed through Nottingham, his friends were 
 deeply affected by the alteration in his appearance. He 
 was pale, emaciated, and oppressed by extreme debility ; 
 and they too certainly foreboded that they should see his 
 face no more. On the day he spent there, a large party, 
 among whom were the preachers, dined at his friend Mr. 
 Herbert's. Mr. S., overcome with languor, was reclining 
 on the sofa, when the Rev. H. S. Hopwood, then super- 
 intendent of the circuit, who had for some time been 
 subject to sudden attacks of a disease which he every day 
 expected to prove fatal, said to him, " "Whether, do you 
 think, you or I will go first ? Shall we either of us live till 
 next Conference ? " Mr. S., with that deceitful hope so 
 characteristic of his complaint, replied, that his constitution 
 was not yet broken up, and that he expected he should re- 
 cover. He died about a fortnight before Mr. Hopwood.
 
 KEV. JOHN SMITH. 205 
 
 After resting in Lincoln for a few days, Mr. S. and 
 his family removed to Sheffield. He hore the journey 
 better than had heen anticipated. " When he arrived in 
 Sheffield," says the Eev. Alex. Strachan, " the disease 
 under \vhich he had for some time laboured a disease 
 unquestionably induced by extraordinary exertion had 
 made a deep impression on his constitution. The friends 
 in Sheffield, believing that, should he remain there, it 
 would be impossible to restrain him from public and 
 active duties, and justly inferring, from his extreme 
 debility, that the least exertion would not only extinguish 
 all rational hope of ultimate recovery to health, but also 
 speedily terminate his life, kindly urged upon him the 
 necessity of retiring into the country, to his father's house 
 at Cudworth, where he was likely to derive benefit from 
 his native air, and to enjoy uninterrupted repose. In 
 this instance he yielded to the wishes of his friends, and 
 I had the pleasure of seeing him at his father's on the 
 morning of Sunday, August 28, 1831. I found him in 
 bed, apparently inclined to sleep, and but the shadow of 
 what he had been. He instantly recognised me, and sat 
 up. But, alas ! the keen glance of his eye, and the bold 
 expression of his countenance, were gone. The eyes 
 were dim and deep in their sockets, while the face was 
 exceedingly thin and pallid. ' My dear brother/ said he, 
 ' since we last met, I have experienced the goodness and 
 severity of God : but in patience I have possessed my 
 soul. You are expected to preach here this evening : 
 may God come with you ! 0, how I should rejoice to 
 lift up my voice once more in the sanctuary of my God ! 
 but you see that I am confined here as His prisoner. 
 "\Vt-ll, God is with me, and I must not complain. The 
 sinners of this village have been much upon my mind, 
 ever since I obtained mercy myself ; and wherever I have 
 been stationed they have had an interest in my prayers. 
 The time to favour them is surely come. May many of 
 them receive the message of salvation which you are come 
 to deliver.' After proposing several questions relative to 
 the state both of his body and his mind, to all which ho 
 9
 
 206 MEMOISS OF THE 
 
 replied with, his usual frankness and candour, I prayed 
 with him. In prayer, I expressed strong confidence in 
 the sufficiency of Christ's atonement to justify the un- 
 godly who believe in Him ; in the willingness of God to 
 sanctify the unholy who continue in the faith ; in the 
 competency of providence and grace to preserve the soul, 
 thus sanctified, ' blameless, unto the coming of our Lord 
 Jesus Christ ;' and concluded with especial reference to 
 his condition. During prayer he frequently said, ' Glory 
 be to God ! ' but, when I was rising from my knees, he 
 gave free utterance to the strong and lively feelings 
 which he had been endeavouring to suppress. He took 
 up the above topics, and enlarged upon them in the most 
 animated manner." 
 
 To Mrs. S., who, by family circumstances, was com- 
 pelled to remain at Sheffield, he addressed a shert note, 
 August 29, in which he says, " Dr. Dawe and Mr. Hare 
 came yesterday, and very minutely examined my lungs. 
 The doctor rather exultingly said, ' All is right.' You 
 will unite with me in thankfulness for this. I said, 
 ' But I fear the membrane is terribly diseased.' He 
 replied, 'Never mind, we will put it to rights.' The 
 blister on my throat has done its work well. Let us 
 look to Jesus." 
 
 Mr. Smith's mind, at this time, seems to have been in 
 a state of delightful tranquillity. He was filled with 
 grateful resignation to the will of God ; and, though his 
 sufferings Avere often very severe, no murmur or complaint 
 ever escaped his lips. The attentions of his friends he 
 acknowledged with peculiar sweetness ; and the whole of 
 his piety exhibited a mellowness and maturity, which 
 seemed like the pluming of the angel- wing of his spirit 
 for the region into Avhich he was about to enter. The 
 day after his arrival at Cudworth, he was especially happy. 
 He said to his Mends, " If the Lord have a little more 
 work for me to do, and I think He has, I shall be restored 
 to my family and the church of God : " adding, " What 
 blessed lessons have I learned in this affliction ! " The 
 word of God became increasingly dear to him ; his soul
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 207 
 
 Beemed to long for its blessed truths, as a parched land 
 for the refreshing shower. The Scriptures, he used to 
 say, were the food of his soul. On one occasion, he 
 expressed himself as peculiarly delighted with the first 
 chapter of St. Peter's First Epistle, which his sister had 
 just read to him. " 0," he remarked, " the word of God 
 is such a comfort to me ! " Then observing his mother 
 weeping, he said, "Mother, why do you weep? all is 
 right : praise the Lord ! " At another time, when in 
 severe suffering, she exhorted him not to be so anxious 
 about recovery, but to yield himself fully into the hands 
 of God. " Bless the Lord ! " he replied, " I have done 
 that : I still give myself to Him : He is my portion." 
 
 Often in the night for he was very wakeful the 
 voice of his thanksgiving sounded sweetly through the 
 house ; and many were the seasons of delightful intercourse 
 with heaven which he and his pious father enjoyed while 
 others slept. His soul dwelt in the repose of love and 
 peace. In his experience, there was nothing of the tumult 
 of rapture ; there were none of those bursts of ecstatic 
 joy, of which we sometimes hear in such cases. And 
 herein we cannot but recognise the arrangement of Divine 
 wisdom. In the scenes of active life, his principles and 
 labours had often been deemed extravagant. He was 
 now cut off, not only from all external, but also from all 
 internal, excitement. There was nothing to interrupt the 
 calm examination, the sober deliberate testing, of his 
 personal experience, and his methods of exertion in the 
 church. Had his principles been unsound, they now 
 would have certainly failed him. In the severe scrutiny 
 of the hours of sickness, and of ebbing life, when all that 
 tends to warp the judgment is done away, and with no 
 extraordinary revelation of ravishing joy to withdraw his 
 thoughts from the subject, he was qualified, more fully 
 than at any former period, to form a calm and candid 
 opinion of his past life, and to afford, to those who ques- 
 tioned the correctness of his views, the most decisive 
 evidence which the nature of the case would admit. But 
 he never wavered ; no shade of suspicion that he had bec-n 
 82
 
 208 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 wrong appears ever to have darkened his spirit. On the 
 contrary, he distinctly mentioned those opinions and 
 modes of action in which he had been considered singular, 
 as subjects which, at this time, called forth his special 
 gratitude to God. They had before proved themselves 
 practically beneficial ; and they now not only could bear 
 a dispassionate view, but proved also sources of consola- 
 tion in weakness, in suffering, and in death. 
 
 " On my return to Cud worth, a fortnight after my first 
 visit," Mr. Strachan remarks, " he informed me that 
 during my absence he had been alternately better and 
 worse in health, elevated and depressed in mind; but that 
 for several days past his strength and spirits had returned 
 in a surprising degree, and that a short time, he believed, 
 would complete his recovery, and enable him to resume 
 his labours in the pulpit. His appearance certainly in- 
 dicated a change for the better ; but it was equally evident 
 that the wound which his general health had received was 
 too deep to be healed in so short a time as he supposed. 
 I expressed a doubt as to his ultimate recovery, and asked 
 him how he could reconcile the extreme anxiety which he 
 felt, in reference to the final issue of his affliction, with 
 that perfect submission to the Divine will which he pro- 
 fessed to enjoy. He replied, ' I have many reasons for 
 wishing to regain my former strength, but none weighs 
 with me so much as a desire to improve the opportunity 
 that would thus be afforded for saving souls.' He then 
 remarked on the various methods adopted by the mercy 
 of God to bring sinners to repentance; illustrating these 
 methods by examples that had come within the range of 
 his own observation. He described some of the plans 
 which he himself had employed to revive, extend, and 
 perpetuate religion among the people in the different cir- 
 cuits in which he had travelled ; exalting, however, above 
 all prudential means, the ministry of God's word, and 
 meetings for social prayer. On another occasion he gave 
 me a brief narrative of his experience, from the com- 
 mencement of his Christian profession ; from which it 
 appeared that his path had been ' as the shining light,
 
 EET. JOHN SMITH. 209 
 
 that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.' He 
 alluded with peculiar emotion to the time of his admis- 
 sion into full connexion, at the London Conference in 
 1822. 'It was,' he said, ' a time never to be forgotten. 
 I look back with great satisfaction, I assure you, on the 
 entire surrender which I then made of myself to God. 
 This act of self-dedication is well described in those 
 comprehensive and expressive lines: 
 
 Take my soul and body's powers ; 
 
 Take my memory, mind, and will; 
 All my goods, and all my hours, 
 
 All I know, and all I feel ; 
 All 1 think, or speak, or do ; 
 Take my heart, but make it new ! 
 
 From that day to this, I have been enabled to serve God 
 without fear. Return unto thy rest, my soul ; for the 
 Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee. On that evening,' 
 continued he, ' a remark was made by one of the young 
 men, which produced a deep impression upon my mind, 
 and has been of immense importance to me. Brother S., 
 in describing the manner of his justification, observed that 
 while wrestling with God for the pardon of sin, he obtained 
 such clear and believing perceptions of the atonement of 
 Christ as constrained him to exclaim, God, if all the 
 sins of all the individuals in the world were charged to 
 my account, here is a fountain in which I could wash 
 them all away in an instant. AVith these words, the 
 Spirit presented before my mind the atonement of Christ 
 in all its infinitude of merit and efficacy, and filled my 
 soul with the love of God.' 
 
 " While conversing, one day, on the necessity of con- 
 stant communion with God, in order to our personal 
 happiness and the success of the ministry ; the difficulty 
 of discharging, with uniformity and fidelity, the important 
 duties of self-examination and self-denial ; and our prone- 
 ncss to lukewarmness and self-deception; I used an ex- 
 pression [inadvertently, of course] which conveyed to 
 his mind the idea that I doubted the sincerity of his 
 motives, and the soundness of his faith. He took no 
 S3
 
 210 MEMOIBS OF THE 
 
 notice of it at the time ; but afterwards, while engaged 
 in prayer, I happened to use the same expression, when 
 he rose up, and, with one of those piercing looks which 
 he always assumed when under excitement, said, ' Lord, 
 Thou knowest all things, and Thou knowest that I love 
 Thee. Living and dying, I am Thine. Were I to 
 depart now, I should go to glorious happiness. My 
 heart is fixed, God, my heart is fixed : I will sing and 
 give praise.' After pausing for a few moments, he said, 
 ' My dear brother, as I felt a little drowsy at the time, 
 and heard you indistinctly, it is possible that I mis- 
 understood you.' 
 
 " Returning from the country one Sunday evening, I 
 called, and found him very feeble, but sitting by the 
 parlour-fire, and truly ' in the Spirit on the Lord's day.' 
 Numerous friends had visited him in the course of the 
 day, some of whom he faithfully warned to flee from 
 the wrath to come, and others he exhorted not to rest 
 satisfied without ' a clean heart.' We united in prayer, 
 and felt it good to wait upon the Lord. Soon after I 
 left, his father arrived from a neighbouring village, where 
 he had been preaching. While engaged in family wor- 
 ship, their expectations were raised and their faith won- 
 derfully strengthened, so that the service was prolonged, 
 and each person present pleaded for some special mani- 
 festation of God's condescension and love. In a short 
 time, their prayers were turned to thanksgivings and 
 hallelujahs. It seemed as if they had been suddenly 
 ' raised up together, and made to sit together in heavenly 
 places in Christ Jesus,' or that the full tide of heaven's 
 glory was poured forth on their souls. Mr. Smith, men- 
 tioning these circumstances when we met, observed that 
 on that night he believed that the sanctifying power of 
 God penetrated every part of his nature, expelled every 
 degree of evil, and filled him with perfect love." 
 
 I subjoin extracts from his last two letters to Mrs.S. : 
 " Sept. 19. Dui-ing the last week, I was somewhat 
 alarmed by a rather violent attack of inflammation in my 
 left lung. Leeches were applied without giving me any
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 211 
 
 relief at all : but the application of blistering-ointment, 
 which worked mightily, has caused it to retire, and 
 enabled me to breathe freely, without any pain in my 
 chest, except what is occasioned by the prodigious sore- 
 ness of the outside. Glory be to God ! This morning 
 the glorious light of the sun caused the fields (which I 
 could see as I lay in bed) to smile, and the sounds of 
 the cattle were such music in my ears as I have not 
 heard for a very long time. When the doctor was last 
 here, I saw from his manner that he believed me to be 
 much better . I expect he will begin to build me up 
 immediately : I have great confidence in his skill, and 
 God's blessing upon it. The prayers of God's dear people 
 are an inheritance to me. May His abundant blessing 
 be poured upon them, for their kindness to me and 
 mine ! God signally blesses me in my soul. Prayer is 
 offered up here for you, my dear, and for the family ; 
 and it will continue to be offered up. Do not droop, my 
 dear. Despondency bites the body. Look steadily at 
 our kind, and loving, and chastising Father. He will 
 help you. I feel much for you. Give my love to the 
 children, and tell them it will help to make me better if 
 they are good, and I hear of it." 
 
 " Sept. 24. MY DEAR ELLEX, I invite you to join me 
 in giving warm thanks to the blessed God, for His great 
 kindness to me. This is the third day I have been down 
 stairs, and I am much better to-day than on either of the 
 preceding [days]. The doctor was here yesterday, and 
 seemed very much pleased with my state. I said, ' Sir^ 
 I feel it is life from the dead.' ' Bless the Lord, my 
 soul ! ' The Lord has blessed me exceedingly in body 
 and in soul. He has again and again richly baptized me 
 with His blessed and Holy Spirit, and called forth from 
 me songs of thanksgiving. I have had some most 
 delightful seasons in thinking on His most blessed word. 
 It is exceedingly sweet to my taste. I shall be more a 
 Bible man. My dear, we must unite in giving ourselves 
 to God, and His good word, and He will help us in this. 
 "NVe must try to have every room in our house perfumed
 
 212 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 with God. AVe will be fully His. I long to exhibit and 
 offer to the dear people in the Sheffield circuit the sal- 
 vation of God. Well, wait a little, and then ! Hallelujah 
 to God and the Lamb ! Amen. My heart warms, while 
 I am writing, with love to God, and universal love to 
 man. Do you not catch a little of the holy flame, my 
 dear? God will restore comforts to many who have 
 mourned for me. Give my kind love to my beloved 
 colleagues. My lovely children tell, father loves them 
 much, and it will give him great pleasure to learn that 
 they are good." 
 
 Yet, while Mr. S. was thus hopefully anticipating his 
 recovery, as indeed were his friends also, his disease was 
 actually making rapid progress. A few days after the 
 foregoing was written, hectic fever fixed on his brain ; 
 and, with some short intervals, he was for several weeks 
 afterwards under the influence of delirium or stupor. 
 The following memorandum was written about this time, 
 and betrays, as the reader will perceive, a slight wandering 
 of mind. The manuscript gives affecting evidence of the 
 writer's physical weakness. It is blurred and blotted ; 
 the handwriting is very tremulous, and many of the words 
 are mis-spelt. Yet there is in it a glow of feeling not 
 unworthy the last literary act of a right hand which was 
 about for ever to " forget its cunning." I give it entire, 
 only correcting the errors in orthography, &c. 
 
 " In my dear and honoured father's house, at Cudworth, 
 near Barnsley, about a yard and a half from the spot 
 where God, in His endless mercy, set my soul at Gospel 
 liberty, and adopted me into His heavenly family ; 
 having just recovered from a painful and protracted afflic- 
 tion, by the skill of Dr. Dawe, and his assistant Mr. 
 Hare ; I feel exceedingly grateful to both of them, for 
 their prompt, constant, and kind attention to ine, during 
 my stay at Cudworth for the good of my health. 
 
 ' ' Never had I so penetrating [a sense] of the importance 
 of an over-ruling and beneficent Providence superintend- 
 ing, directing, and controlling all things among the sons 
 and daughters of men, for the honour of His adorable
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 213 
 
 name, which is a strong tower, into which the righteous 
 runneth and is safe. The upspring and spontaneous 
 language of my heart is that of the Psalmist, Psal. ciii. 1, 
 and that of Isai. xii. ; also of Mr. C. Wesley's hymns 
 on the 322d, 358th, and 360th pages of the large hymn- 
 book used in our chapels ; and, finally, of all who have 
 hcen brought out of deep and bitter waters, restored to 
 the bosom of a most lovely and beloved family, with the 
 delightful anticipation of being better fitted for God's good 
 service. I wish to be eminently a minister of the Spirit. 
 Christ says, ' Without Me ye can do nothing :' also, ' It 
 is the Spirit that quickeneth : the flesh profiteth nothing.' 
 Well ; ' I will circumcise thy heart :' ' Ask, and ye shall 
 receive, that your joy may be full.' ' If ye then, being 
 evil,' &c. 'What things soever ye desire,' &c. 'But let 
 him ask in faith,' &c. 
 
 " I purpose visiting Leeds, Nottingham, and Northamp- 
 ton ; partly, on business ; partly, for the establishing of 
 my health ; and, finally, for the gratification of conversing 
 with some of the excellent of the earth on Divine subjects: 
 that our spirits may be refreshed together ; that they may 
 see the exceeding and abounding kindness of the blessed 
 God, to one of the most unworthy, worthless, and unfaith- 
 ful creatures among the progeny of man ; but one whom 
 the Triune God is intensely concerned to bless with a 
 present, a free, a full, and everlasting salvation, in sharing 
 inHis own ineffable and endless bliss, in Hiseternal heaven. 
 Who is a god like unto our God ? (None in heaven, or 
 upon earth ;) who has set His heart on man, and mani- 
 fested His intense interest for his present, constant, and 
 everlasting happiness, as ought, and must, and will fill 
 angels and men with delightful astonishment, admiration, 
 and gratitude, through endless ages. Glory be to the ever- 
 blessed and Triune God, for ever and for ever! Amen 
 and amen. So says John Smith, from the very bottom 
 of his heart, which is warm with universal love, love to 
 God and universal man. It is the deep and strong, and, 
 he trusts and hopes, will be the constant and lasting wish 
 of his heart, to get and diffuse as much of God in the
 
 214 MEMOIRS OF THE 
 
 world as he can. Who is sufficient for these things? 
 No one, but the man whom God fits for the business. 
 But nothing is too hard for the omnipotent God, who has 
 promised to be with them that seek to promote His glory 
 upon earth. I will try, for one, by the help of God. 
 May I be graciously helped by Divine strength, without 
 which all human efforts, however splendid and con- 
 spicuous, must be for ever in vain. My trust is in a 
 promise-keeping God, whom I wish to adore and enjoy 
 through endless ages. I hope and wish to adore among 
 angels, and archangels, and all the redeemed of the 
 Lord. This glorious consummation I ardently long to 
 be realized. May God put forth His strength !" " 
 
 Mr. Smith's state was now so alarming, that it was 
 thought necessary to send for Mrs. S. She was deeply 
 affected to find him in a condition of extreme weakness, 
 both of body and mind. When she went to his bedside,, 
 consciousness revived for a moment, and, with a smile 
 illuminating his still expressive countenance, he said, 
 " This is what I have long wished to see." Upon being 
 asked if he knew who it was, he replied, " Yes, it is my 
 dear wife." He immediately relapsed into stupor, and 
 it was nearly a week before he was again sensible. He 
 then expressed some anxiety about his dear children, 
 and begged Mrs. S. not to protract her stay. On the day 
 following, therefore, she returned to Sheffield. During 
 nearly the whole of his delirium, he imagined himself 
 occupied in the duties which he had so much loved. He 
 was almost constantly engaged in preaching, praying, or 
 praising God. One morning, after having been delirious 
 during the night, he began to sing with extraordinary 
 sweetness. He had always been remarkable for the taste 
 and music of his singing ; but never before had it sounded 
 so rich and melodious. Both the words and the tune were 
 unknown to those who heard them , and it seemed as if 
 he were preparing to assume his place in the chorus of 
 a world of peerless and immortal harmony. 
 
 Before this time, he had had strong conflicts " with 
 principalities and powers, and the rulers of the darkness
 
 REV. JOHJff SMITH. 215 
 
 of this world." On one occasion, he requested that he 
 might be left alone for some time. When his father 
 returned to the room, he said, "Father, I have had a 
 mighty conflict with the powers of darkness ; but, praised 
 be the Lord, He has delivered me. I have come off 
 ' more than conqueror,' through the blood of the Lamb." 
 He then broke forth in an animated strain of praise. But 
 it was now, while his physical powers were oppressed 
 with fierce disease, and his mind generally was weak and 
 wandering, that the foe was permitted to make the most 
 terrific and the last attack. Yet, though fever raged in 
 his veins, and his body was tossed and writhed in frenzy, 
 his soul was enabled to collect its energies for the shock, 
 and, as nearly as could be recollected, he thus addressed 
 his spiritual assailant :* 
 
 " Thou art a devil ! How thou didst become one, I 
 do not know ; but God did not create thee so. The blessed 
 God cannot be the author of evil. God made thee an 
 angel of light ! Thou didst not keep thy first estate ! 
 Thou didst become a devil; but how I do not know : but 
 thou art a devil now ! It pleased the blessed God to 
 create man a happy creature, and place him in paradise ; 
 and thou hadst the impudence to go to paradise and 
 tempt our first parents to sin against the blessed God. 
 They hearkened to thy suggestions, disobeyed the com- 
 mand of God, fell into transgression, and brought down 
 the curse of God upon themselves and their posterity. 
 It pleased the blessed God to send His Son Jesus Christ 
 to die for the sin of man. And I am John Smith 
 was born at Cudworth, in Yorkshire, of pious parents, 
 who brought me up in the nurture and admonition of 
 the Lord. But I was a bad lad was led captive by 
 thee, and loved my sins. I caused my parents much 
 grief: they prayed mightily to God in my behalf, 
 with many tears. It pleased the blessed God, of His 
 infinite mercy, and in answer to prayer, to connect 
 
 * My informant vouches, in general, for even the verbal accuracy 
 of his report of this extraordinary address.
 
 216 MEMOIBS OP THE 
 
 His Holy Spirit with me ; to convince me that I was a 
 miserable sinner, in the road to hell, and under His 
 curse. I resolved, through grace, to leave my sins. I 
 sought the Lord in my distress : He heard my prayer : 
 I was encouraged to believe on Jesus : God was pleased 
 for the sake of Christ to pardon all my past sins, and to 
 put His love in my heart, and to grant me the witness 
 of His Holy Spirit that I was adopted. 
 
 " And I believe that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is 
 a Divine Person, equal with the Father ; and that it 
 pleased God the Father, of His spontaneous kindness, 
 unsolicited, to send His Son into the world. And I 
 believe that Jesus Christ became incarnate, and was born 
 of the virgin ; that He was a man of sorrow, and ac- 
 quainted with grief; that He lived three-and-thirty years 
 in this our world ; that He died a shameful and accursed 
 death upon the cross; that it pleased the Father to 
 bruise Him for the sin of man ; and that He rose again 
 from the dead on the third day. Death had no power to 
 hold Him, and He triumphed over tlwe and all thy 
 power : and He ascended into heaven ; sat down on the 
 right hand of the Father, to make intercession for man ; 
 and all power in earth and heaven is committed into His 
 hands. And I believe that He, by His sufferings and 
 death, made a full and sufficient atonement for the sins 
 of the whole world, and purchased for mankind the Holy 
 Ghost. And I believe that God is pleased, in answer to 
 the intercession of Jesus, to connect the Holy Spirit 
 with every soul of man, with saving purpose and inten- 
 tion, in order to bring them to Christ for salvation. And 
 I believe that there is salvation for all who apply. The 
 blessed God is unwilling that any should perish. And I 
 come by faith to Jesus Christ. I believe that His pre- 
 cious blood avails for me, and I cast my soul upon Him : 
 I rest upon His atonement ; and I defy thee, Satan ! 
 Thou art a malignant being, the enemy of God and man ! 
 and Thou art seeking to destroy me ; but I defy thee \ 
 I commit my soul to Jesus, and I defy thee ! Thou canst 
 not hurt ! In the name of Jesus, I defy thee, Satan !"
 
 EEV. JOHN SMITH. 217 
 
 This remarkable contest with his spiritual adversary 
 continued from ten o'clock at night, until three in the 
 morning, with loud and distressing cries, moans, and 
 prayers. Much of the address to Satan, particularly the 
 former part, was repeated many times ; for whenever an 
 interruption occurred, either in his own mind or from 
 without, he recommenced it ; nor would he cease, till he 
 had delivered it throughout, in an unbroken form. His 
 voice was as strong as it had ever been known ; and his 
 body was so violently agitated by the agony of his mind, 
 that it was with difficulty that the united strength of 
 five men detained him in bed. It was unutterably 
 distressing to behold him, and to hear him, many times 
 successively, crying in the most pathetic tone, " Jesus! 
 
 Jesus! Je e sus ! help!" At length 
 
 deliverance came ; the enemy was overcome ; peace 
 returned ; and there is reason to believe that from this 
 time his heart was uninterruptedly glad in the light of 
 the Divine countenance. 
 
 After having spent about six weeks at Cudworth, 
 Mr. S. was removed to Sheffield. He still entertained the 
 hope of recovery : several of his friends endeavoured to 
 cherish a similar expectation, and held a weekly prayer- 
 meeting for the specific object of intercession on this 
 subject. But the decree had gone forth, sanctioned and 
 sealed by infinite wisdom and mercy ; and it was irrevo- 
 cable. Mr. H. Beeson, an attached and kind friend of 
 Mr. S., was one of those who watched with him during 
 some of the last nights of his life. In a conversation with 
 Mr. B. upon the various orders of intellect, he said of 
 himself, " I am a minister of the Spirit. Soul-saving is 
 my business. God has given me a heart for it. I will 
 go on in His name, and believe for effects." Of his 
 labours in the Lincoln circuit, he remarked, " I was 
 always anxious to get as much business done as possible ; 
 so I worked while God was working, and His arm was 
 made bare in many places." He added, " I ought to 
 have given over preaching three months before I did ; " 
 and, after some further observations on the same subject,
 
 218 MEJfOIKS OP THE 
 
 he broke forth, " Hallelujah to the blessed Jesus ! I 
 have not had one pain too much, not one stroke too 
 heavy. All is right. God can do without me." 
 
 This last remark Mr. S. repeated several times to 
 persons who visited him. He appeared to apprehend 
 that an undue value and dependence had been placed 
 upon his labours ; and his trembling sensibility for the 
 honour of God led him thus to endeavour to check a 
 feeling so erroneous and sinful. Nor was this fear with- 
 out reason. It is indeed a difficult thing to give all the 
 respect which they appear to demand to the zealous and 
 successful efforts of a minister, without in a measure 
 losing sight of Him through whom alone the most 
 splendid capacity and the most perfect devotedness can 
 avail anything. To us it seems very desirable that the 
 lives of such men as the subject of these memoirs should 
 be prolonged ; but, ! it is of infinitely higher moment 
 that God should have the undivided homage and depend- 
 ence of his church. When therefore the creature is 
 made the object of a confidence which wholly belongs to 
 the Creator, and the accomplishments and successes of a 
 minister are regarded with an unscriptural complacency, 
 it is an act of mercy to all parties to withdraw such an 
 individual from the sorceries of an idolatry which may go 
 far to charm away his own simplicity, and which already 
 encroaches on the awful circle of the Divine glory. Thus 
 many ministers of distinguished promise have been 
 snatched away in the bloom of life and of service ; and, 
 in the blank of desolation which succeeds, the hearts of 
 God's people have turned, in an exemplary degree, to 
 honour that Hand which, while it smites, is ready to distil 
 the healing balm, and pour the full tide of reviving 
 power. 
 
 It was not till the last week of his life, that the truth 
 broke on Mr. Smith's mind; and he felt that he was now 
 to die. But it was no shock to him : his spirit did not 
 for a moment quail in the solemn certainty. He rested 
 confidently on Christ, and calmly awaited the end. To a 
 kind friend who attended him, he said, "It appcai-s I shall
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 219 
 
 die." "Yes, Sir," was the reply: "there is no other 
 prospect." ""Well," rejoined Mr. S., "God can carry 
 on His work without me." He continued, "I Avant more 
 prayer," and bogged his friend to pray with him. " What 
 shall I pray for?" returned the other; "for I cannot 
 pray for your life." " Pray," said Mr. Smith, " as the 
 Spirit shall direct you. 'Prayer,' as Mr. Bramwell once 
 remarked, ' always brings one out on the right side.' " 
 They then prayed together, and the Lord blessed the soul 
 of His afflicted servant. At another time, he said to one 
 of his medical attendants, with his accustomed prompt- 
 ness of expression, " Shall I die, doctor ? " Observing that 
 Dr. Young hesitated, he added, " You need not fear to 
 tell me : I am not afraid." Mr. "Wild, his other medical 
 friend, observed, " You must keep your mind constantly 
 fixed on eternal things;" to which Mr. S. answered, 
 " My mind is constantly fixed there." f 
 
 The friend to whose communications this work has 
 already been so much indebted, remarks: "The pros- 
 pect of meeting in heaven with "Wesley, and Whitefield, 
 and Fletcher, and Bramwell, and Nelson, and others, 
 whom he loved for their distinguished excellence, was 
 peculiarly dear to his thoughts, and often furnished matter 
 for enlargement and glad anticipation in his acts of 
 .devotion. The thought of not recognising the saints in 
 the eternal state never appeared to have any place in his 
 mind ; as it is, in fact, one of those refinements which 
 busy speculation has built upon the silence of Scripture 
 respecting subjects which are only not distinctly enun- 
 ciated, because nothing but the credulity of unbelief 
 could have ever called them in question. ' I3y faith, when 
 he was dying, he gave commandment concerning his 
 bones,' that they should lay them beside those of his 
 friend Nelson ; thus attesting not only his assured hope 
 of a joyful resurrection, but of a glad recognition, also, 
 of him whom he had known and loved on earth." 
 
 To a person who visited him, he said, "Mind your 
 business, and take care of your family ; but, above all, 
 see that you keep the love of God in your soul. Be 
 T 2
 
 220 MEMOIBS OP THE 
 
 firm ; and let nothing for a moment lead you to think of 
 giving up your class, or declining any exertion in behalf 
 of the cause of God." To a young man whom he believed 
 to be called to the ministry, he said, " Do, my brother, 
 be diligent; play the man; play the man." Of his own 
 experience and feelings, he remarked, "I rest in the 
 atonement ; I am hanging on the cross of Christ ; this is 
 my only hope." To .one of his colleagues, he said, " All 
 is clear. I have had some success in my labours, but my 
 happiness does not result from that ; but from this, I 
 have now hold of God. I am a very great sinner, and 
 am saved by the wonderful love of God in Christ Jesus. 
 I throw my person and my labours at His feet." 
 
 When, on one occasion, Mrs. S. was speaking of his 
 being about to be removed from her, he replied, with 
 solemn and tender emphasis, " The widows and the father- 
 less in Israel are God's peculiar charge." At another 
 time, observing her extreme emotion, he would not rest 
 satisfied without a promise from her that she would claim 
 the special consolations promised to those in her circum- 
 stances. One evening, when it was thought that he was 
 about to enter into rest, she came to his bedside, and 
 inquired, " My dear, do you think the Lord is about to 
 take you home ? " " Not just yet, perhaps," he replied. 
 Then clasping his hands, and lifting up his eyes towards 
 heaven, he exclaimed, in the most impressive tone, " I 
 commend to the care and protection of the Triune God 
 my dear wife. May she be supported and consoled. I 
 commend to the same God my Ellen Hamer Smith;" 
 and then proceeded to name all his dear little ones sepa- 
 rately, and to place them thus solemnly under the chai'ge 
 of a faithful and 'merciful God. He continued, " This 
 body I give to be committed to the dust, in sure and cer- 
 tain hope of a joyful resurrection to eternal life, through 
 our Lord Jesus Christ. This immortal spirit I commend 
 into the hands of Him who gave it." He then appeared 
 exhausted, but in a short time revived again. 
 
 The salvation of souls was almost constantly the sub- 
 ject of his meditation and intercession. One day, when
 
 BEV. JOHN SMITH. 221 
 
 he supposed himself alone, he was obviously engaged in 
 fervent mental prayer ; and at length he broke out, 
 " Glory be unto our God ! Glory be unto our God ! 
 "What god can deliver like unto our God ? " Then extend- 
 ing his arms, while his countenance was lighted up with 
 joyful confidence, he exclaimed, " Glory be to God ! 
 Sheffield circuit shall rise ! Sheffield circuit shall rise ! 
 Sheffield circuit shall rise ! " a prediction which, during 
 the succeeding year, was most happily fulfilled. 
 
 On Thursday, November 3d, the Rev. Messrs. M'Lean 
 and Holgate visited him ; and, while they engaged in 
 prayer, a heavenly influence filled the room. Prayer was 
 turned into praise ; and although Mr. S. was in the last 
 agony, his spirit caught the strain, and an expression of 
 sacred joy lighted up his pale countenance. When prayer 
 was ended, he beckoned Mr. M'Lean to him, and laboured 
 for several moments to give expression to something 
 which he wished to say. After a repetition of unsuc- 
 cessful efforts, he abandoned the attempt as hopeless, and, 
 condensing what he had purposed saying into the fewest 
 possible terms, and concentrating his whole strength to 
 the single effort of expressing them, he exclaimed, with 
 an energy almost equal to his former self, " You said, 
 Praise God ; and I said, Amen" This was the last articu- 
 late sound that he was heard to utter. It was the sealing 
 of the volume ; the closing testimony of an unwavering 
 spirit, the echo of which he was to catch from myriads 
 of immortal and redeemed intelligences, in a world 
 where the song shall never languish, nor the festival ever 
 terminate. In the course of the morning, the medical 
 gentlemen called. Mrs. Denton, an affectionate friend, 
 who was present, followed them out of the room. ])r. 
 Young then told her that it was probable that Mr. S. 
 would not live an hour longer. Upon her return, he 
 beckoned to her to tell him what they had said. For a 
 moment she was silent. She then replied, " In less than 
 an hour, Sir, it is likely that you will be in eternity." 
 A heavenly and triumphant smile played on his emaci- 
 ated face ; he turned his head on his pillow ; and, about 
 
 T3
 
 222 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 a quarter before ten o'clock, -while several of his friends, 
 in an attitude and spirit of prayer, commended his soul 
 to God, he entered the realms of eternal praise. 
 
 His remains were deposited in the vault which encloses 
 those of his friend Mr. Nelson. In the same place lies 
 the body of his youngest infant, who, in the early part of 
 the year, was called from this world of trial, to mingle 
 with the "angels" who "do always behold the face of 
 our Father which is in heaven." Thus with the dust of 
 his ministerial father at his side, and of his kindred ac- 
 cording to the flesh at its feet, his body (sanctified in life 
 and death, and precious and reverend even in decay) 
 reposes till the Conqueror of the grave shall kindle it to 
 immortal beauty, and crown it with everlasting honour. 
 
 The intelligence of Mr. Smith's death was received by 
 his numerous friends with every expression of lively 
 emotion. Funeral sermons on the occasion were addressed 
 to large, attentive, and deeply-affected congregations, in 
 Sheffield and Leeds, by the Rev. F. Calder ; in Lincoln, 
 by the Rev. T. H. Squance ; and in Nottingham and its 
 vicinity, by the Rev. Messrs. T. Harris and W. H. 
 Clarkson. Several of these services were attended by the 
 special presence and blessing of God. May the good im- 
 pressions thus produced prove permanent and indelible ! 
 
 The epithet REVIVALIST employed probably, in the 
 first place, as a merely playful distinction has now- 
 become the serious designation of that class of men to 
 which Mr. Smith belonged. It is not, I think, a happy 
 appellation. To say nothing of its barbarism, it has too 
 often been associated with a spirit of partisanship ; and, 
 by men who differ from those it is intended to describe, 
 is sometimes used as a term of reproach. Yet it is at 
 least proper for those who sustain it to inquire whether 
 that reproach be altogether unmerited. Do they make 
 the word of God the subject of diligent study, and is it 
 exclusively the rule of their labours ? Are they ambitious 
 to be mighty in the Scriptures, and do they endeavour 
 to infuse the taste for scriptural research into the minds
 
 REV. JOHN SMITH. 223 
 
 of those who are, through their instrumentality, converted 
 to God ? Do they strive to repress that factitious excite- 
 ment which is almost invariably attendant upon real 
 revivals, which tends to provoke the prejudices of other 
 sincere Christians, and to confound the work of the Spirit 
 with mere passionate and momentary emotion ? Does the 
 scriptural character of their own piety manifest itself by 
 continual exertion for the salvation of men, or are they 
 only fervent occasionally, and by fits ? Is their zeal an 
 essential attribute of their Christianity, or is it a quality 
 which they can sometimes, without much regret, lay 
 aside till a more convenient opportunity ? Are they will- 
 ing, in all humility, to sit at the feet of those whom they 
 believe to be taught by the Spirit, or are they self-seek- 
 ing and self-opinionated ? Do they ingenuously admit 
 the excellencies of other Christians, or is their temper 
 exclusive and censorious ? These, and the like queries, 
 involve the accusations usually brought against this very 
 useful class of Christians, by those whose opinions and 
 labours are dissimilar from their own. Let such as bear 
 the name of revivalists, or desire to attain the character 
 supposed to be implied in it, candidly inquire how far 
 they merit these accusations. The example of one to 
 whom, in general, they may honourably seek a resem- 
 blance, is sketched in these pages; and, though the outline 
 is faint and inadequate, it is yet sufficiently distinct to 
 show how fully, and by what means, he shunned many 
 of those errors from which some who partially resemble 
 him are supposed not to be entirely free. 
 
 Men of sanguine temperament are not generally 
 qualified to attain distinction. They do not possess 
 sufficient body and depth of character. Hence, when, 
 as in Mr. Smith's case, we find a Christian of this class 
 truly eminent, it is important and interesting to inquire 
 what causes foreign from the native elements of his own 
 mind conspired to support the impulses necessary to ex- 
 cellence. To excite persons of this character to action 
 in the first place, is easy : the difficulty is to give their 
 motives a regular and increasing power. It may readily
 
 224 MEMOIRS OP THE 
 
 be shown, that the duties to which they are naturally the 
 least disposed tend most fully to this result ; and these 
 undoubtedly axe, the calm, scrutinizing, and meditative. 
 Mr. Smith was unusually assiduous and diligent in his 
 closet ; and in this fact, I think, is to be found the ex- 
 planation of his steadiness, uniformity, and consequent 
 eminence, both as a Christian and a minister. It was 
 thus that he was made the subject of those penetrating 
 discoveries which continually urged him to action. It 
 was thus, also, that he was brought into those deep and 
 painful exercises which rendered his experience and his 
 principles so solid and established. Here it was that he 
 made those daring experiments of faith, by the repetition 
 of which, in society, he succeeded in drawing down such 
 uncommon blessings from on high. He had a thousand 
 times watched the fire of heaven play around his sacrifice 
 in solitude : it was not for him to doubt that the sign 
 would be repeated before the eyes of all Israel, though 
 the altar and the offering were alike surrounded by the 
 waters of indifference and unbelief. 
 
 To be more particular, however : Persons of the class 
 to which allusion has just been made, are not only likely 
 to be betrayed into rashness and precipitancy, but they 
 are also peculiarly disposed to be satisfied with what is 
 crude in doctrine, and superficial in experience. Mr. 
 Smith's enlightened piety, and well-digested principles, 
 appear to have especially resulted from his continual and 
 prayerful research into the Scriptures, and his perpetual 
 recurrence to them. Nor is it too much to say, that no 
 person of this character can attain a maturity of Christian 
 virtue, or an extensive degree of scriptural usefulness, 
 who does not constantly and peculiarly make the Bible 
 the subject of humble and devotional study. " You must 
 search and dig into it," said Mr. S. to one of his friends, 
 "as the miners do for treasure in the bowels of the 
 earth." He who is most active in the church, has need 
 of the largest measure of scriptural knowledge and un- 
 derstanding. "Without this, as ballast, he will never be 
 able to bear up against the varying winds to which lie is
 
 REV. JOHK SMITH. 225 
 
 continually exposed, or even to take advantage of the 
 favouring breezes with which heaven may swell his sails. 
 
 Yet let me not be understood to propose Mr. Smith as 
 a perfect example. To admit that his character was not 
 without alloy, is only to allow that he was a man, and, as 
 such, liable to error and frailty. I readily grant that he 
 was sometimes wanting in prudence ; but it was a rare 
 thing indeed for that want to injure any but himself. His 
 modes of exertion in some cases, also, even if perfectly 
 justifiable in him, cannot be proposed as a safe example 
 for others. Indeed, it should be remembered, that what- 
 ever has been rationally questioned in the conduct of a 
 man of such acknowledged excellence, becomes doubly 
 doubtful in the behaviour of those whose spiritual attain- 
 ments are but low. Yet when we speak of his spirit, of 
 its tenderness, its sympathy, its humility, its ardour, its 
 devotion, its resolution, and itsheavenliness, we feel that 
 we are on secure ground. Here no cold qualification is 
 required : it is indeed a bright example ; it is truly worthy 
 of imitation ; and those who were most perfectly ac- 
 quainted with it be their differences of opinion upon 
 other matters what they may will cordially unite in 
 the desire that it may prove powerfully and increasingly 
 influential. 
 
 He has returned to Zion with singing. It is our pri- 
 vilege to follow him in our contemplations. We are not 
 only called to profit by the example of distinguished saints 
 while they remain on earth, but also to accompany them 
 in spirit; to that land of perfection, whence everything of 
 infirmity and error, whence the possibility of lapse or decay, 
 is for ever removed. Our faith is invited to listen to their 
 solemn songs, and to anticipate their holy joy. As 
 objects in nature, which, when minutely inspected, are 
 in many respects coarse and unsightly, in the distant 
 landscape are softened into perfect beauty ; so are our 
 recollections of the departed faithful to rise on our spirits 
 in fair and unsullied vision. All that was worthy of our 
 esteem, here, we are to contemplate as now expanded and 
 sublimed; all that was earthly and questionable, as shaken
 
 226 MEMOIES OP THE EEV. JOHN SMITH. 
 
 off for ever. "We are to witness their love, woke up to un- 
 dying and rapturous ardour; their zeal, enkindled in a 
 pure,untrembling pillar of ascending flame ; their praise, 
 multiplied by the echoes of countless spirits, pure and 
 ethereal as themselves ; their intellects, with unwearied 
 wing expatiating over eternity, and finding new matter 
 for wonder and adoration in every line of light which 
 radiates from the throne : and then, when our thoughts 
 are ravished with the glorious and pure scenes which 
 present themselves to our faith, we are to kneel before 
 our Father and their Father, and, lifting up holy hands 
 and a sincere heart, to breathe forth the comprehensive 
 and mysterious prayer, " Thy will be done in earth, as 
 it is done in heaven." 
 
 LOMDOK ; PKIN'IED BX WILLIAM .NICHOLS, 46, HOXTON-SQUARE.
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
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