INCIDENTS OF GOSPEL WORK
or
by
Charles Stanley
A Room Opened for Preaching.
Captain W.
Found out our ignorance.
Captain W. charged with error.
Testing him with Syllogisms proved my own folly.
A great change in the current of my course.
Visit to those who were gathered round the Lord
Jesus.
Gathered to the Lord’s Table
Led to read 2 Corinthians 1., but read by another.
Real Guidance of the Spirit.
My second start in preaching.
God blesses His Word, though we are ignorant.
Visited many Towns.
At this time, two of us opened a little room at
Sheffield, in Duke Street, for preaching the gospel.
The late Captain W. was then labouring in the service of
Christ in Sheffield. Hearing of this little meeting, he called on us, and
asked if he might preach the gospel in our little room. We gladly
consented. He set before us the living Person of "Christ meeting the
sinner at Jacob's well - meeting the woman just as she was. Christ did
not shun her, or tell her to go and reform her sinful character, before He
could speak to her, or save her. It was the Son of God saying to a poor
sinner, :"If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to
thee, Give me to drink, thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have
given thee living water." (John iv.10) I had never before heard
Jesus thus set forth by any preacher; but I found it was the same precious
Jesus, who had met me in that dark lane, and on that rainy night, and had
spoken peace to my troubled soul. The effect of this preaching, I doubt
not, has been felt by me ever since that night. It is a wondrous
revelation of how God can, and does, meet the sinner.
We soon found that, for the present, instead of preaching, we
needed close and continued study of the word of God. For eighteen months we
read together the epistle to the Romans; and for that period, I scarcely read
anything else but the Word of God. This has been a great blessing to
me. I must however, relate on incident that occurred at the commencement
of these readings. As almost everybody spoke of the errors of Captain W.,
I thought he must hold some; and, strange to say, the most precious truths he
sought to bring before us, I through my own ignorance, thought to be
errors. I have often noticed the same thing since. At that time I
had no little conceit of myself, and great confidence in logic. I thought the
best thing to do would be to prepare a number of syllogisms, bearing on the
points I judged to be error. An opportunity soon occurred, and, in answer
to a question from the Lord's servant, I let off a volley of syllogisms.
I shall never forget his kind, pitying look, as he clapped his hand on his
knee, and so quietly read the next verse. In that moment the Lord shewed
me what a fool I was, and all my trust in logic was for ever gone.
I now come to an event that turned the whole current of my
future course from that day to this.
I had heard that Captain W. and a few other Christians met
on the first day of the week to break bread, like the disciples, in Acts
xx. One Lord's day morning, I went to see what this could mean. I
found them gathered in an upper room, in Wellington Street, Sheffield. I
sat behind, and naturally looked for the pulpit. There was no pulpit, but
a table spread, or covered with a white cloth, and on it the bread and wine, in
commemoration of the death of the Lord Jesus. I then looked for the
minister, or president; there was no such person. All the believers gathered
were seated around the table of the Lord. A deep. solemn impression fell
upon me: "These people have come to meet the Lord Himself." I have no
doubt it was the Spirit of God that thus spake to me. It is impossible to
describe the sense I had, for the first time, of being in the immediate
presence of the Lord Jesus, according to that word, "For where two or
three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of
them." I could scarcely notice what was done, I was so overwhelmed
with the presence of the Lord. No one can have any idea what this is,
unless really gathered to His name. What a contrast to everything I
had seen before, and yet how simple! It was like going back to that which was
in the beginning of Christianity, before any priest was heard of to offer in
the church a sacrifice for the living and the dead. I was much surprised
to find, strange as this gathering together of Christians to break bread
appeared to me, that it was exactly what we find in scripture. Instead of
even a minister at the Lord's Table, I found the same simple liberty as
described in 1 Corinthians xiv.29-37.I was greatly struck with each worshipping
before the Lord, in dependence on the Holy Ghost. I felt that was my
place, deeply unworthy as I was of it. Well do I remember the thought,
"This is my place, if even it were to be a door mat, for these Christians
to wipe their feet on me."
After some weeks, I was named as one who desired to obey the
Lord, "Do this in remembrance of me;" and, through grace, I
took my place as one redeemed to God, at the Table of the Lord. Shortly
after this, I experienced one morning, whilst we sat in silent worship, what I
had never known before - the leading of the Spirit of God. It came as a gentle
whisper from the Lord, "Read 2 Corinthians, chapter i.;" and very
precious thoughts came into my soul on verses 3 - 5. I felt agitated, so
much so, that perspiration ran down my face and body. We had sat some
time in silence. I felt bid to rise and read, but had not courage to do
so. At length, Captain W., who sat at the other side of the room, arose and
said, Let us read 2 Corinthians i., and then he ministered the very thoughts
the Spirit had laid on my heart. This was how I first learnt the leadings
of the Spirit, in the midst of Christians gathered to Christ. This has
been a matter of frequent occurrence for these many years. Some instances
I shall relate. We cannot read the Acts without seeing that, after the
Holy Ghost formed the church, He was really present to guide the servants of
the Lord. I am persuaded it is our unbelief that hinders much more of His
distinct guidance now.
One thing that made me now slow to speak, was the continued
discovery of my astonishing ignorance of scripture. The more I studied
it, the more I discovered my ignorance. I suppose it is always so.
With a deepening sense of my ignorance, I will relate how I began again to
preach the gospel. A brother in Christ was over from Ackworth.
Before he returned home he said to me, "It is much impressed on my heart,
that you are to go back with me, and preach the gospel at Ackworth.
"What," I said, "I go and preach! nay, it will take me all my
life to unlearn what is wrong, before I can preach what is right."
He said firmly, "You will, I believe, go, and the Lord will bless the
word;" This was quite another thing. I dare not doubt that He
could bless His word. After prayer I went, and proved then and ever
after, that the Lord could, and would, bless His word.
This, then, was the second start to preach the Word, about
ten years after the first, when a boy of fourteen. Seldom, in those days, did
the Lord open my lips throughout the towns and villages of England, without
some soul being converted. Not that this appeared at the time, but I have
met them everywhere, ten, twenty or thirty years after. As I did not keep
a journal, it would be impossible to give an account in order of those
preachings, readings and conversations for forty-two years, in Sheffield,
Rotherham, and the villages all around; in Hull, York, Wakefield, Scarboro',
Malton, Whitby, Redcar, Newcastle, and around; in various parts of Scotland; in
Manchester, Rochdale, Oldham, Bury, Southport, Liverpool, Llandudno, Stafford,
Gnosall, Wolverhampton, Birmingham, Leamington, Banbury, Swindon, London, and
around; throughout Kent, Cheltenham, Malvern, Worcester, Gloucester, Bristol,
Clifton, Bath, Taunton, Exeter, Torquay, Plymouth. Then in the Eastern
Counties: Ipswich, Colchester, Needham Market Stowmarket, Bury St. Edmunds,
Norwich, Grimsby, etc., etc.,