John now had great joy in knowing that his sins were forgiven. Other Christian friends helped him in his new life of following the Saviour and he began to study the Bible more. A burning desire began to grow in his heart. Surely he should tell others of this good news!
His good friend, George Whitfield, was already busy telling others. However, George was going about his preaching in a very strange way. He was not preaching in the fancy buildings that people call “churches”. He was preaching outside in the open air. George remembered that the Lord Jesus had also preached in this way. Before long as many as 20,000 people were coming to listen to him preach the gospel on a hillside.
No one in England had ever preached outside like this and John thought it was very strange. But George called him to come and help, so one day John himself preached the wonderful news that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.”
Three thousand people came to listen and when John saw how many were listening to God’s precious Word, he no longer thought it strange to preach outdoors. In fact, he began to do this every day, and thousands of people heard God’s offer of free salvation by faith in the Lord Jesus, and many were saved.