THE KING’S BUSINESS
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the first Baptist minister I ever heard; and though Bridlington is twenty miles from Scarborough, yet I have several times walked thither on a Lord’s day morning, heard preaching twice, and walked back again to Scarborough the same day, with pleasure to my soul, being greatly refreshed with the Word of God. In the year 1767, Mr. Gaukrogers, Bap tist minister of Shipley, removed from that place and came to Bridlington, and settled as pastor of that church, an4 by him I was haptized at Bridlington, June 8, 1767; and I was the first which he baptized there; and the same day I returned to Scarborough, and I can truly say that I went on my way rejoicing; and the next Lord’s day I was received as a member of that church. Soon after that five more were baptized and re ceived into the church; we were now six in number at Scarborough; and in the same year, we took a large upper room and got it licensed, and we met together in it every Lord’s .day for the worship of God. Here I read the Scriptures, gave out the hymns, and prayed, and another read a sermon. About this time the brethren at Scarbor ough began to press upon me to preach to them, saying it would be a much greater means of drawing hearers than reading. After some thought about it, and prayer to God, I consented to their request, and preached from John S:39, “Search the Scrip-, tures.” This was my first attempt; when I had done, one of the members took me by the hand and said, “Brother, we take this as a beginning of your ministerial la bors amongst us here." But this I would not .consent to till I had consulted the pastor of the church to which we belonged, and he being informed of it, came over to Scarborough and would have me to preach that he might hear me, which I did to a few friends in a private house; and when I had done, he advised me to go over to Brid lington and exercise my gift before the church, -that if approved of, I might be sent out to preach according to the order of the churches. Accordingly I went, be ing accompanied by one of the brethren
whom he did foreknow, he also did pre destinate to be conformed to the image of his Son. Moreover, whom he did pre destinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified; and whom he justified, them he also glorified; and who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principali ties, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come; nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to sepa rate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus vour Lord” (Rom. 8:29, 3C, 33, 34, 38, 39). “For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance” (Rom. 11: 29). By these passages of Scripture, .with many others of the same nature, I was satisfied in my mind that the doctrine of free grace was the doctrine ©f the Bible, of the people of Christ, and of the apostles., I now began to speak my mind in my class meeting, but my class leader very warmly opposed me, and said my notions were very dangerous, and if I stayed in the society I might do.a great deal of harm, and that it was his opinion that it would be better for me to leave the society; I told, him I would, and so I left my connection with that people, and the greatest part of them left me, and hurt mfe very much in my temporal circumstances, but it all turned to my advantage in the end. In the same year, 1766, four or five more left the Methodist society, being convinced of the doctrines mailed Calvinistic, being according to the Scriptures, and we united ourselves together, and first began our meeting in a private house, for reading/ singing and prayer. In this year we got acquainted with some of the members of the Baptist church at Bridlington, which was there without a stated pastor; on which account Mr. Crabtree, pastor of the Baptist church at Bradford, came to Bridlington to supply that church for a Sabbath or two, and we went to hear him preach. He was
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