His Ordination and First Public Engagements
Baxter was induced, by the advice of his friend Berry, to accept the head mastership of a newly endowed grammar school at Dudley, Worcestershire. He was the more ready to accept this situation, as it would afford him an opportunity of preaching in that unenlightened neighborhood. He applied for ordination to the Bishop of Winchester, which, after examination and subscription, was duly administered. He, moreover, received the bishop’s license to teach in the school at Dudley. In a subsequent period of his life, he dedicated his treatise on “Self denial” to his friend Colonel Berry, whose character had undergone a considerable change. The following passage from his dedicatory letter describes his views and feelings oil entering the ministry, and his obligation to his friend and adviser. “You brought me into the ministry. I am confident you know to what ends, and with what intentions I desired it. I was then very ignorant, young, and raw. Though my weakness be yet such as I must lament, I must say, to the praise of the great Shepherd of the flock, that he hath, since then, ofTord me precious opportunities, much assistance, and as much encouragement as to any man that I know alive. You know my education and initial weakness were such as forbid me to glory in the flesh; but I will not rob God of his glory to avoid the appearance of ostentation, lest I be proud of seeming not to be proud. I doubt not but many thousand souls will thank you,
LIFE OF BAXTER.
when they have read that you were the man that led me into the niinisiry.”’
“Being settled in the new school at Dudley, I there preached my first public sermon in the upper parish church, and afterwards preached in the villaires about; and there had occasion to enter afresh upon the study of Coii/ornUi’u for there were many private Christians thereabouts that were non-conformists, and one in the house with me. And that excellent man, Mr. William Fenner, had lately lived two miles off, at Sedgley, who, by defending conformity, and honoring it by a wonderfully powerful and successful way of preaching, conference, and holy living, had stirred up the nonconformists the m-ire to a vehement pleading of their cause. And though they were there generally godly honest people, yet they were smartly censorious, and made conformity no small fault. And they lent me manuscripts and books which I never saw before; whereupon I thought it my duty to set upon a serious impartial trial of the v. hole cause.
‘’In the town of Dudley I lived in much comfort, amongst a poor tractable people, lateh’ noted for drunkenness, but commonly more ready to hear God’s word with submission and reformation than most places where I have been, so that having, since the wars, set up a monthly Ipcture there, the church was usually fts much crowded within, and at the windows, as ever I saw any London congregation; partly through the great willingness of the people, and partly by the exceeding populousness of the country, where the woods and commons are planted with narlers, scythe-smiths, and other iron laborers, like a continued village.
To the eaactmenls of the established cUurcU.
“When I had been but three quarters of a year at Dudley, I was, by God’:? very gracious providence, invited to Bridgnorth, the second town of Siiropshire, to preach there, as assistant to the worthy pastor of that place. As soon as I heard the place described, I judged it was the fittest for me; for there was just such employment as I desired and could submit to without violating conscience, and some probability of peace and quietness.
“But the people proved a very ignorant, dead-hearted people, the town consisting tcKj much of inns and ale-houses, and having no general trade to employ the inhabitants, which is the undoing of many large towns. So that though, through the greatniercyof God.my first labors were not without success in the conversion of some ignorant and careless sinners to him, and were over-valued by those that were already regardful of the concerns of their souls, yet they were not so successful as they proved afterv.’ards in other places. Though I was in the fervor of my affections, and never any where preached with more vehement desires of men’s conversion, yet, with the generality, applause of the preacher was most of the success of the sermon Which I could hear of; and their tippling, and iil-company, and dead-heartedness quickly drowned all.”
Though a friend to episcopacy, yet the omission of some required ceremonies, together with his refusal to take the “et cetera” oath, (binding him never to give his consent toalter the government of the church in particulars not distinctly defined,) had nearly occasioned his expulsion from the ministry, and the loss of his liberty, if not, in his weak and infirm state of health, of life itself. Indeed, some of his accusers threatened hrm with “hanging” if he did not comply. God, how-LIFE OF BAXTErw.
ever, in whose hands are the hearts of all men, changed the purposes and restrained the malice of his adversaries. He continued to preach at Bridgnorth a year and three-quarters, in the uninterrupted enjoyment of liberty, which, says he, “I took to be a very great mercy to me in these troublesome times,”
He says, The long parliament, among other parta of their reformation, resolved to reform the corrupted clergy, and appointed a committee to receive petitions and complaints against them; which was ho sooner understood, but multitudes in all countries came up with petitions against their mmisters.-’
“Among all these complainers, the town of Kidderminister, in Worcestershire, drew up a petition against their minister. The vicar of the place they represented as utterly insufficient for the ministry; presented by a papist; unlearned; preaching but once a quarter, and that so feebly as exposed him to laughter, and showed that he understood not the essential articles of Christianity; as one thai frequented ale houses; had sometimes been drunk, &c.
“The vicar, knowing his insufficiency, and hearing how two others in this case had fared, desired to compound the business with them, which was soon accomplished. Hereupon they invited me to them from Bridgnorth. The bailiff of the town, and all the feoffees, desired me to preach with them, in order to a full determination. My mind was much to the place, as soon as it was described to me, because it was a full congregation, with a most convenient temple; they were an ignorant, rude, and revelling people for the most part, who had need of preaching; and yet had among ihern a small crnnpany of converts, humble godly, and of good conversation, and not much hated
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by the rest, and therefore the fitter to assist tneir teacher: but above all, because they had hardly ever had any lively, serious preaching among them. For Bridgnorth had made me resolve that I would never more go among a people that had been hardened in unprofitableness under an awakening ministry; but either to such as never had any convincing preacher, or to such as had profited by him. As soon as I came to Kidderminster, and had preached there one day, I was chosen, without opposition; for though fourteen only had the power of choosing, they desired to please the rest. And thus I was brought, by the gracious providence of God, to that place which had the chief of my labors, and yielded me the greatest fruits. And I noted the mercy of God in this, that I never went to any place in my life, among all my changes, which I had before designed, or thought of, much less sought, but only lo those that I never thought of, till the sudden invitation surprised me.”