I.―EARLY LIFE.
As long as this country has a religious history, so long will the names of Whitefield and the Wesleys be remembered. The true-hearted devotion to Christ of the former, and his intense love to perishing sinners often expressed by the melting of his soul in tears; the patient, unflagging zeal of the Wesleys in the work of their Master, Christ Jesus, have given to their names a fame which will not soon be forgotten, and which makes them appear as the rising of bright lights over the then almost heathen darkness of the land. Indeed, the brilliancy with which they shone has rather paled the luster of others living at that time,―true men, whose labors were incessant, whose persecutions were not light, and upon whose work the Lord set His seal of approval, by using it to turn many from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God. It would be a loss to forget these men; they are examples of those whose work is the work of faith, whose labor is the labor of love, and whose patience is the patience of hope. Such a man was John Berridge, and we believe it will not be without interest to give a little sketch of his life and labors.
Berridge was born at Kingston, in Nottinghamshire, on March 1st, 1716, being the eldest son of a rich farmer and grazier of that place. He was educated chiefly at Nottingham, the instruction given him being that which would render him fit for his father’s business. As part of his training, his father took him to markets and fairs with a view to his learning the price of cattle and other farm stock. In order to test the boy’s aptness for farming, Mr. Berridge would ask him to estimate the value of stock he wished to buy; the boy, however, was generally so far wrong in his estimates, that his father despaired of making him a farmer, and at last said, “John, I find you are unable to form a practical idea of the price of cattle, and therefore I shall send you to college to be a light to the Gentiles.”
Serious impressions were formed in John’s mind at a very early age. A youth known to John one day met him returning from school and asked if he should read to him out of the) Bible. John consented, but after this had been repeated several times, he began heartily to dislike the invitations of his friend. The reason will at once suggest itself to many now the Lord’s, who remember the time when they looked upon the Bible as the driest of books. Years afterward Berridge wrote the following words, which exactly apply to those early days: “Who can bear to be much in prayer, unless he finds divine communion in it, which is divine refreshment? And who will daily read the word of God, unless he finds it daily food? Take the food away, the Spirit’s application, and we soon grow weary of the Bible, and the spider weaves his web upon it.” But heartily as he disliked these Bible readings, he could not refuse, for he had already acquired the character of being a pious boy, and this he dared not risk losing. Thus, young as he was, he was a true Pharisee.
Not being able to decline the invitations, he attempted to avoid them. On one occasion, especially, he sought to do this. He had been to a fair, enjoying a holiday, and on his return, hesitated to pass his young neighbor’s door, but was noticed by the lad, who again invited John to read with him. He also asked if they should pray together. It was now that John began to learn that all was not right in his soul, or the worldly amusements of a fair would not have a greater attractiveness to him than reading and prayer. The result was, that he began to gather his schoolmates together for a like purpose.
At the age of fourteen, John got a step farther. He learned that he was a sinner, and that he must be born again before he could enter the kingdom of God. This was a great advance in his soul’s history, but he had not yet learned that the only way in which he could approach God was as a sinner seeking mercy by Christ Jesus. “I betook myself,” he says, “to reading, praying, and watching.” In another place he writes, “I saw, very early, something of the unholiness of my nature and the necessity of being born again. Accordingly, I watched, prayed, and fasted too, thinking to purify my heart by these means, whereas it can only be purified by faith. Acts 15:99And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. (Acts 15:9).” It will be readily understood that these self-inflicted penances in no way increased his happiness, earnest though he was. But they gave to him an appearance of piety and soberness which, in one so young, was very noticeable, and it gained the attention of a tailor who at times came to Mr. Berridge’s house on business. This man was, in religious things, of a kindred spirit to John, and as “birds of a feather flock together,” so a close acquaintance sprang up between them, and as often as possible they met together to read and pray, and to speak of those matters which so much concerned them. This was not an agreeable thing to John’s friends, who thought that a little religion was right enough in its place but considered that John was having too much. They attempted to break off the friendship, but without success. They resorted to threats, saying, that as the two were so closely attached, John should be bound as an apprentice to the tailor. Even this did not move him; the visits were still paid, and at last, believing that so much religion would unfit him for business, they reluctantly resolved to send him to college. Nothing loth, John consented to go, and after certain preparations, he left his Nottinghamshire home for Clare Hall, Cambridge, on October 28th, 1734, being then eighteen years old.
W J.