The writer's thoughts and counsel to a pious preacher, on the awakenings in his congregation and extraordinary movements that have shown themselves.

The Hundred-and-thirty-ninth Letter.

The writer's thoughts and counsel to a pious preacher, on the awakenings in his congregation and extraordinary movements that have shown themselves.

Right-reverend, highly learned, Especially highly honored Mr. Preacher! In the grace, much-beloved friend and brother!

Your honored [letter] of the 13th of June has been in part somewhat late delivered to me; in part I have also been hindered by bodily weakness and other work, that I have not been able to answer you thereon sooner than today.

It is the truth, we have in so long a time not had opportunity to see one another personally: Nevertheless I have now and then heard of you and of the state of your congregation, have rejoiced with you over the good, have earnestly wished the Lord's blessing upon your person as upon the congregation; and in a word, I have found, absent, more affection toward you in my heart than then, when we knew one another personally. The Lord Jesus, the great chief Shepherd of His sheep, strengthen and bless you in your so important office, and furnish you with earnestness that is tempered with love, and with love that is directed by divine wisdom, to feed sheep and lambs for the Lord, and through grace (which the Lord would reach) to have oversight, that neither to the right nor to the left one go aside, Amen!

It is indeed God's hand and working by those awakenings there, wherefore one cannot thank the Lord enough: I doubt not of it in the least. For although not all blossom comes just to ripe fruit, yet one rightly rejoices when one sees much blossom. Some, who now and then in such things have been disappointed in their hope, will afterwards trust nowhere more, which is only the fruit of natural unbelief, wherewith even the pious can again be assailed. Whoever has experienced the wonder-power of divine grace upon his own soul, in thorough conversion and further working of the same, can no more shut the same in after men's sentences and thoughts; he receives the true love of the neighbour, which not only wishes the same all good, but also hopes all and believes all, where only the least seems to come forth. True, servants of Christ especially have need to ask for true divine wisdom, to be able to prove the spirits, whether they are of God? chiefly in these days: Only, where we have not full certainty, we must choose the surest, and rather twenty times smart for it, that we have missed in hoping all, than once, that we have gone wrong in judging all.

When I shall now, at your desire, communicate to you my unpresuming thoughts of the extraordinary movements there; I cannot deny that in my eyes as well those miss, who cry everything out as evil, as also the others, who exalt everything and in everyone so very high. One must indeed respect all that comes from God; but one can take a grace-working of God, e.g. the knocking, the first conviction, too high, and already hold it for the actual conversion and new birth, to one's own or others' harm. From in front one can hardly pass an infallible judgment on such extraordinary gifts; therefore you have, in my judgment, wisely reminded from the pulpit, that one should learn to know the tree by the fruits. Some such things (yet in some circumstances different) I have seen, which I believed to be deceit, where also the issue strengthened me in such opinion. Others I have seen, which I had for certain to believe came from a supernatural origin, or also otherwise had a good affecting and stirring of grace for their ground, yet left nothing special behind, at least not so as one had well hoped. With some it was the beginning of a true and remaining heart's- and life's-change, where by reason of the suddenness and greatness of such change (in that out of a Saul a Paul, out of a stone a child of Abraham, should become) the whole outer man was seized, grace overflowed even into the sensibility, and even upon other persons, and the new wine in those hitherto old bottles awakened so violent a fermenting. But one has also examples, that such things were good for a time, but did not remain good, because they were made too great by the souls themselves, or by others. One must therefore look mainly to the fruit, and always distinguish the essential, in conversion and in Christianity, from the extraordinary and accidental, without nevertheless also rejecting this: For in those times of the special and gracious visitation of God, when so at a place a special awakening goes forward, then God often lets something so special and wonderful come along with it, to awaken the attention of men, that (as happened on the day of Pentecost) the people run together, start, and through the noise come with into the press.

If I should further write you, after your desire, my unpresuming poor counsel in this matter, it is this:

In regard of the coarse world, or also of the blasphemers, I would declare myself as well publicly as privately, in words and in carriage, plainly and without shrinking, that I held with the despised little flock, and that I still esteemed God's sick better than the world's sound. Thereby you will receive boldness and grace before God and in your office; granted that also as a little reproach and trial followed thereupon, as befell Mr. Prof. N., only because he suspended his judgment in matters of the Inspiration that had spoken along in the church. I have read his Responsum and Species facti.

In regard of the awakened themselves, I would advise, to win and to keep their heart and trust by a friendly simple dealing in every possible way. If the souls have no heart and trust toward you, they can gain little or nothing with them; and conversely, if they bow themselves, if they yield themselves, if they make themselves servant of all, then they will, in and after God, become masters over their hearts. Bear with the self-willed, and give way a while; be longsuffering with the weak, the frail, and them that err, to steer them by degrees into the track. And O! when I come upon this point, then I can take you in hearty compassion, and wish you (together with others who labour at souls) nothing less than the patience and love of Christ, to feed sheep and lambs aright. For through severe and lordly dealings the preachers have made so many separatists. Yet, that I may not come off from the mark, it seems to me (when the souls only first have trust toward you) I would in particular seek gently to remind those who have the extraordinary movements: that indeed their matters and pretension were at bottom right good, and that you rejoiced with them over the grace shown; whether they might not however contain and moderate themselves a little in public church or before the people, for the sake of the disorder, and that the work of God might be founded so much the deeper, the less it were after this manner set on show. I would ask them, chiefly those who had so very joyful movements, laughter etc., whether they did not at times perceive in themselves stirrings of self-love and of self-pleasing, by reason of such things? and warn them friendly therefor, because otherwise the good would easily spoil, and entrance be given to the tempter. I would also use others, toward whom I believed they had trust, to give them such reminders, and gently hinder, that they be not too much lifted up by reason of the extraordinary things, but that in all only the essential of faith, of love, of prayer, of self-denial, in sum, of the heart's- and life's-change, be looked to. But what of the extraordinary things cannot be hindered by gentle friendly reminding, or, where the souls are not masters of themselves, to hold themselves in, there I would also let myself be held back by the fear of God from hindering anything, that I might not seem to quench the Spirit, 1 Thess. 5, and to want to set bounds to the Holy One in Israel. Ps. 78:41.

The like one already finds in the life-history of Luther, Höttinger, and of the famous Dominican Tauler, when once forty people remained lying as dead in the churchyard. About forty years ago just the like occurred in the Swiss Bernese territory, after the relation of the preacher there. Some years ago one named some people in France in scorn Convulsionaires, (i.e. people who have strong contractions from the cramp) with whom just the like may have gone forward. Some years ago the like also showed itself in Pomerania, which the late King in Prussia had investigated, and found correct. Of that which has passed in Nova Scotia, nothing to mention. But it is most noteworthy, that just now at the same time precisely such awakenings and extraordinary movements, agreeing with those there, also show themselves at Aalten, about six hours from Rees, lying in the Zutphen country, whereof the Reformed preacher N. there has this current year had an account printed at Zutphen, with approbation of the Theological Faculty at Harderwijk; from which I perhaps still extract some words, and here close, to show the likeness.

In regard of the magistrate you can well not otherwise conduct yourselves than as you after your writing have already done; at most the above-mentioned history out of your Tauler could also be held before the same. — —

Here you have then what has occurred to me in haste upon this matter. If I deal perhaps presumptuously, that a private person, as I am, seems to want to give counsel to a preacher standing in office; then at least be pleased to charge a part of the guilt of my presumption upon your humility, which has occasioned me thereto. Finally I greet you heartily, and commend you to divine government of grace and oversight. Jesus bless your person and family! He bless the hearts entrusted to you and your labour upon the same! Our life, our labouring, our speaking, happen ever more purely out of God, before God in Christ Jesus! Commending myself to your intercession I remain

Ew. Wohl-Ehrw. Mülheim, etc. etc. the 3rd of July, 1750.

German

Der hundertneununddreißigste Brief.

Des Schreibers Gedanken und Rathgebung an einen frommen Prediger, über die Erweckungen in seiner Gemeine und sich hervorgethanen außerordentlichen Bewegungen.

Wohl-Ehrwürdiger, Hochgelehrter, Insonders Hochgeehrter Herr Prediger! In der Gnade vielgeliebter Freund und Bruder!

— Opening lines of the original German. The complete transcription of all 605 letters appears in the forthcoming Encounter Press critical edition; Brief 1 is shown in full as a sample.

German text: public domain (1773–75 first edition / 1845 Gesammelte Schriften).