Chapter L: Tyerman (5)

In the letter just given, he complains of the silence and reserve of Charles Wesley. At the very time, however, Charles was writing to him; and, three days afterwards, Ingham addressed to him the following reply, full of the Christian fire of the first Methodists:—

“OSSET, NEAR WAKEFIELD, _October 22, 1737_.

“MY DEAR BROTHER,—Your letter is just come to my hands. I
rejoiced over it, because it came from you. I was afraid you
had been almost lost; but, since I see you are desirous to make
full proof of your ministry, I greatly rejoice. Blessed be the
Lord, who, by His grace, preserves me from falling, amidst the
deceitful and alluring, bewildering temptations of worldly
preferment. May He still continue His loving-kindness towards
you! May He thoroughly settle and establish you! May you have
power to overcome the world, the flesh, and the devil, and,
like a brave soldier, manfully to fight under Christ’s banner!
May your one desire of living be for Christ’s sake, and the
gospel!

“I have no other thoughts but of returning to America. When the
time comes, I trust the Lord will show me. My heart’s desire
is, that the Indians may hear the gospel. For this I pray both
night and day.

“I will transcribe the Indian words as fast as I can. I writ to
Mr. William Delamotte three weeks ago. If he did not receive
the letter, it miscarried. I wish you could inform me, that I
might write again.

“I have just now been talking to Mr. Godly, curate of Osset.
(You know, I believe, that he is misnamed.) I was all on a
tremble while I talked to him, and for a good while after. He
took my reproof very uneasily. But, however, he trembled as
well as me. I have lent him ‘The Country Parson’ to read; and,
since he went away, I have been praying for him in agony. I
seem to be full of hope, as if God would turn his heart; and O
that He may! One of the wickedest women in all Osset is turned
since I came down; and, I believe, she will make a thorough
convert. She says, she is sure God sent me to turn her heart.
To His holy name be all the glory! There is another poor soul
too here, that is under the most severe agonies of repentance.
Cease not to pray for these, and the rest of your Christian
friends at Osset, who pray constantly for you.

“Last Sunday, I preached such a sermon at Wakefield church as
has set almost all about us in a uproar. Some say, the devil is
in me; others, that I am mad. Others say, no man can live up to
such doctrine; and they never heard such before. Others, again,
extol me to the sky. They say, it was the best sermon they ever
heard in all their life; and that I ought to be a bishop.

“I believe, indeed, it went to the hearts of several persons;
for I was enabled to speak with great authority and power;
and I preached almost the whole sermon without book. There
was a vast large congregation, and tears fell from many eyes.
To-morrow, I preach there again.

“Every day, I undergo several changes within me. Now I am
under sufferings, sometimes just ready to sink; then again
I am filled with joy. Indeed, I receive so much pleasure in
conversing with some Christians here, that I have need of
sufferings to counterbalance it. Last Saturday night, we were
sixteen that sat up till after twelve. We have to meet again
to-night, after the rest are gone; and we shall pray for you,
and the rest of our Christian friends everywhere. You would
think yourself happy to be but one night with us.

“Give my sincere love to Mr. Hutton’s family, whom I never
forget. Are they all well? The Lord bless them all! Greet
brother Whitefield. My heart will be with you on the seas, and
everywhere. Never be discouraged.

“Yours sincerely and affectionately,

“B. INGHAM.”[73]

On May 24, 1738, Wesley, by simple “trust in Christ alone for salvation,” received “an assurance that Christ had taken away his sins.” This, to him, was a new experience; but, perhaps, not to Ingham. It is a well-known fact, that, Peter Böhler, who was now on his way to the Moravians in Georgia, was of the utmost service to Wesley in teaching him the doctrine of justification by faith only. Besides this, both Wesley and Ingham had been brought into close communion with the Moravian bishop, David Nitschmann, and his Christian fraternity, during their voyage across the Atlantic. In Georgia, also, they had met with the Moravian elder, the Rev. August Gottlieb Spangenberg, a man of high position among the Brethren. The result of the whole was, that Wesley and Ingham, on June 13, 1738, embarked for Germany, principally for the purpose of becoming better acquainted with the Moravian churches in that country.

They were accompanied by John Toltschig,[74] one of the fugitives, who fled to Hernhuth, from the fierce persecution in Moravia, in 1724; who became one of Ingham’s co-evangelists in the county of York; and was a man of great influence among the English Moravians. At Ysselstein, they had an interview with Baron Watteville, who had been a fellow student of Count Zinzendorf, and became a Moravian bishop. On the 4th July, they reached Marienborn, the residence of Zinzendorf, where they remained a fortnight. Whilst here, Ingham, in a letter to Sir John Thorold,[75] London, observed:—

“The worthy count is occupied day and night in the work of the
Lord; and, I must confess, that the Lord is really among the
Brethren. Yesterday, a boy of eleven or twelve years of age
was baptized; and such a movement of the Holy Spirit pervaded
the whole assembly, as I have never seen at any baptism. I
felt that my heart burned within me, and I could not refrain
from tears. I saw that others felt as I did, and the whole
congregation was moved. The Brethren have shown me much
affection; they have taken me to their conferences, and have
not left me in ignorance of anything concerning their Church. I
am much pleased with my journey.”

Ingham was pleased with the Moravians; and the Moravians were pleased with him. In fact, Ingham was preferred to Wesley, and was admitted to partake of the holy communion, while Wesley was rejected. The reasons assigned for admitting Ingham were, (1) that he had already shown an inclination to leave the English Established Church, and to join the Brethren; and (2), “that his heart was better than his head.” The reasons for rejecting Wesley were, (1) he was “_homo perturbatus_; (2) his head had gained an ascendency over his heart; (3) he claimed to be a zealous English Churchman, and they were not desirous to interfere with his plan of effecting good as a clergyman of the English Church.”[76]

Ingham, as well as Wesley, visited Hernhuth, where he spent a fortnight, and was “exceedingly strengthened and comforted by the services and conversation of the Brethren. Towards the end of the year, he returned to England.”

It is a curious fact that Wesley and Ingham were not the only Oxford Methodists who began to associate with the Moravians. On the first day of the year 1739, we find not fewer than seven of the Oxford brotherhood—the two Wesleys, Ingham, Whitefield, Westley Hall, Kinchin, and Hutchins,—present at a Moravian lovefeast in Fetter Lane, respecting which Wesley writes:—

“About three in the morning, as we were continuing instant
in prayer, the power of God came mightily upon us, insomuch
that many cried out for exceeding joy, and many fell to the
ground. As soon as we were recovered a little from the awe and
amazement at the presence of His Majesty, we broke out with one
voice, ‘We praise Thee, O God; we acknowledge Thee to be the
Lord.’”[77]

This was a memorable beginning of what will ever be a memorable year in the history of the Methodistic movement.

Four days afterwards, the same clergymen, joined by Mr. Seward, had a conference at Islington, and, without effect, tried to prevail on Charles Wesley to settle at Oxford. Whitefield writes:—

“We continued in fasting and prayer till three o’clock, and
then parted, with a full conviction that God was about to do
great things among us. O that we may be any way instrumental to
His glory! O that He would make us vessels pure and holy, meet
for such a dear Master’s use!”[78]

The men evidently were willing to be used in any way which Providence might appoint; and their conviction of the coming of great events was not falsified.

On Ingham’s return to Osset, his native place, he renewed his labours, and preached in most of the churches and chapels about Wakefield, Leeds, and Halifax. Private religious meetings also were greatly multiplied. Large numbers of persons were convinced of sin, and were converted. It was pre-eminently a day of divine visitation. The clergy, however, instead of rejoicing at an enlargement of the work of God, were envious and malignant; and, at a Church congress, held at Wakefield, June 6, 1739, Ingham was prohibited from preaching in any of the churches in the diocese of York; and was thus placed in the same position as Wesley had been compelled to occupy in London. Both were ordained clergymen, and both longed to preach the gospel of God their Saviour; but both were without a church of their own, and both were now uniformly shut out of the churches of others. What Wesley began to do at Bristol, Kingswood, and elsewhere, Ingham began to do in Yorkshire. Village greens, the public streets, fields, barns, cottages, and houses of all descriptions became his preaching places; and, such was the divine power which attended his ministry, that not fewer than forty religious societies were formed.

Ingham was reviled, but he reviled not again. The following letter illustrates his fine Christian spirit, at the period of which we are now writing. It probably was addressed to Wesley. At all events, Wesley published it in the first volume of his _Arminian Magazine_ (p. 181).

“OSSET, _Sept. 14, 1739_.

“MY DEAR BROTHER,—Wait the Lord’s leisure, and be still. His
time is the best time. ‘Be strong, and He shall comfort thine
heart; and put thou thy trust in the Lord.’

“I shall be very glad to see you, when the Lord pleases that
we shall meet together. O that we may do and suffer His will
in all things! It is following our own wills that creates us
trouble and confusion.

“All your opposition will work together for good. The more
the clergy oppose the truth, the more it will prevail. Their
preaching against us and our doctrines excites a curiosity in
the people to hear us, and to see if these things be true,
whereby many have their eyes opened. If this work is of God, it
cannot be overthrown: if it be of men, I wish it may speedily.
We have nothing to do but to follow our Leader. O that He may
direct all our ways aright!

“I say very little about the clergy in public. I preach the
truth of the gospel, according to the light the Lord has given
me into it, and leave it to the Lord to bless it as He pleases.
I take no notice of lies and calumnies, unless I am asked
whether or no they are true. It is endless to answer all that
is said. Our Saviour says, ‘Let them alone.’ He is concerned
for the welfare of His Church; let us, therefore, depend upon
Him, and let us mind what He says to us in His holy word. Let
us love our enemies, and pray for them; and let us love one
another; and thereby shall all men know that we are His true
disciples. We must be hated in this world; let us, therefore,
take great care to secure ourselves an inheritance in the next.

“BENJAMIN INGHAM.”

While the above exhibits Ingham’s spirit, the subjoined clearly shows that his ideas on the Methodist doctrines were as yet imperfect. It is a well-known fact, that Wesley himself was sorely perplexed with the doctrine of what is called “the witness of the Spirit,” and that his intercourse with the Moravians rather increased his mistiness than scattered it. In 1738 he had a lengthened and very important correspondence with his brother Samuel on the subject; and now he consulted Ingham, who replied as follows:—

“OSSET, _February 20, 1740_.

“MY DEAR BROTHER,—The most dangerous time in the Christian
race, seems to be when a person receives the forgiveness of
sins, especially if he is filled with great joy, and of long
continuance. Indeed, all states of great joy are dangerous,
if not humbly received. If persons have not now a guide, or
are not guidable, it is ten to one but they run into error
and by-paths. Many souls miscarry here, and never get further
in their spiritual progress. They run on till their joy and
strength are spent, and then they lose themselves, and are all
in confusion. I have met with several persons with whom it has
been thus, and how to help them I know not. They do not get
forward. I believe, indeed, that they will be saved, yet their
degree in glory will be low. They are but in the first stage of
the new birth.

“You ask, What are the marks of a person who is justified, and
not sealed?[79]

“I cannot give you any certain, infallible marks; but a person
to whom the Lord has given the gift of discerning will tell;
and, without the gift, we shall never be able to know surely.
However, such persons are meek, simple, and childlike; they
have doubts and fears within; they are in a wilderness state.
In this state, they are to be kept still and quiet; to search
more deeply into their hearts, so that they become more and
more poor in spirit, or humble. They are likewise now taught
to depend wholly on Christ. By all means, keep them from
confusion. If they come into confusion (as they are apt to do),
they receive inconceivable damage; but, if they continue still
meek and gentle, searching into their hearts, and depending
upon Christ, they will find their hearts to be sweetly drawn
after Christ; they will begin to loathe and abhor sin, and to
hunger and thirst after righteousness; they will get strength
daily; Christ will begin to manifest Himself by degrees; the
darkness will vanish, and the day-star will arise in their
hearts. Thus they go on from strength to strength, till they
become strong, and then they will begin to see things clearly,
and to understand what the Lord has done for them; so, by
degrees, they will come to have the assurance of faith.

“You ask whether, in this intermediate state, they are
‘children of wrath, or heirs of the promises’?

“Without doubt, they are children of God; they are in a state
of salvation. A child may be heir to an estate before it
can speak, or know what an estate is; so we may be heirs of
heaven before we know it, or are made sure of it. However, the
assurance of faith is to be sought after. It may be attained;
it will be given to all who go forward. We must first be humble
and poor in spirit. We must be deeply so. We must have a
constant, fixed, abiding feeling,—a sense of our weakness and
unworthiness, corruption, sin, and misery. This it is to be a
_poor sinner_.

“If I were with you, I would explain things more largely; but
I am a novice,—I am but a beginner,—a babe in Christ. If you
go amongst the Brethren, they are good guides; but yet, after
all, we must be taught of God, and have experience in our own
hearts; or else it will not do. May the Spirit of truth lead us
into all truth!

“I am your poor, unworthy brother,

“B. INGHAM.”

The above is given _verbatim_ from the manuscript letter, and is of great importance as revealing the views, doubts, and difficulties of the leaders of the Methodist movement.

Before proceeding further, it may be added that Ingham was not forgotten by his old friend Whitefield, who wrote to him as follows:—

“SAVANNAH, _March 28, 1740_.

“How glad I should be of a letter from dear brother Ingham.
When shall my soul be refreshed, with hearing that the work of
the Lord prospers in his hand? I suppose before now you have
received my letters and seen my journal. I believe God is yet
preparing great things for us. Many at Charles-Town lately
were brought to see their want of Jesus Christ. The Orphan
House goes on bravely. I have forty children to maintain,
besides workmen and their assistants. The great Householder
of the world does, and will, I am persuaded, richly provide
for us all. The colony itself is in a very declining way; but
our extremity is God’s opportunity. Our brethren, I trust,
go forwards in the spiritual life. I have often great inward
trials. I believe it to be God’s will that I should marry. One,
who may be looked upon as a superior, is absolutely necessary
for the due management of affairs. However, I pray God, that I
may not have a wife, till I can live as though I had none. You
may communicate this to some of our intimates; for I would call
Christ and His disciples to the marriage. If I am deluded, pray
that God would reveal it to your most affectionate brother and
servant,

“GEORGE WHITEFIELD.”

In the midst of all this, a new evangelist sprang up, who, without the educational advantages of the Oxford Methodists, had a kindred soul.

John Nelson, the brave-hearted Yorkshire stonemason, after hearing almost all sorts of religionists,—Church of England men, Dissenters, Papists, and Quakers,—had been brought to a knowledge of the truth by Wesley. This was under the first sermon preached by Wesley in Moorfields. In 1740, Nelson returned to Yorkshire, and related to his friends his happy experience. He writes:—

“They begged I would not tell any one that my sins were
forgiven, for no one would believe me, and they should be
ashamed to show their faces in the street. I answered, ‘I shall
not be ashamed to tell what God has done for my soul, if I
could speak loud enough for all the men in the world to hear
me at once.’ My mother said, ‘Your head is turned.’ I replied,
‘Yes, and my heart too, I thank the Lord.’”

He went to Adwalton, to hear Ingham preach; and remarked:—

“As soon as I got into the house, he called me into the
parlour, and desired the company that was with him to go out,
for he had something to say to me. When they went, he rose up,
barred the door, then sat down, and asked me, ‘Do you know
your own heart, think you?’ I answered, ‘Not rightly; but
I know Jesus Christ, and He knows and has taken possession
of it; and though it be deceitful, yet He can subdue it to
Himself; and I trust He will’. He said, ‘Have you not deceived
yourself with thinking that your sins are forgiven, and that
you are in a state of grace? I was three years seeking before
I found Him.’ I replied, ‘Suppose you were, do you confine
God to be three years in converting every soul, because you
were so long? God is able to convert a soul in three days now,
as He was to convert St. Paul seventeen hundred years ago.’
I then began to tell him what I had seen at London under Mr.
Wesley’s preaching. He said he pitied poor Mr. Wesley, for he
was ignorant of his own state; and he spoke as if he believed
Mr. Wesley to be an unconverted man; at which words my corrupt
nature began to stir. But it came to my mind, ‘The wrath of
man worketh not the righteousness of God’; and I lifted up
my heart to the Lord, and my mind was calmed in a moment. He
said, ‘You ought not to tell people that they may know their
sins forgiven, for the world cannot bear it; and if such a
thing were preached, it would raise persecution.’ I replied,
‘Let them quake that fear. By the grace of God, I love every
man, but fear no man; and I will tell all I can, that there
is such a prize to run for. If I hide it, mischief will come
upon me. There is a famine in the land; and I see myself in
the case of the lepers that were at the gate of Samaria, who
found provisions in the enemy’s camp; and, when they had eat
and drank, and loaded themselves, said, “We do not well; for
this is a day of glad tidings, let us go and make it known to
the king’s household.” When I found God’s wrath removed, for
the sake of His dear Son, I saw provision enough for my poor
fainting soul, and for all the world if they would come for it.
I believe it is a sin not to declare to the children of men
what God has done for my soul, that they may seek for the same
mercy.’ He told me, I had nothing to do with the Old Testament,
or to make comparisons from anything in it. I answered, ‘I have
as much to do with it as with the New Testament.’ He replied,
‘I would not have you speak any more to the people till you are
better acquainted with your own heart.’ I told him, I would
not in his societies, unless I was desired; but what I did in
my own house, or any other person’s that requested me, he had
no business with. I added, ‘I do not belong to you; and though
I have heard you several times, it is no benefit to me; for I
have experienced more of the grace of God than ever I heard you
preach of it, or any one else since I left London.’”

Nelson here obviously refers to his enjoyment of the Holy Spirit’s witness to the fact that his sins were pardoned; and hence he continues,—

“Soon after Mr. Ingham came out and began to preach; when I
was greatly surprised; for what he had forbidden me to do, he
himself did directly; for he told the people, that night, they
must know their sins forgiven in this world or go to hell.”[80]

Soon after this, Ingham went to London, where the Wesleys were in painful conflict with the Moravians. Philip Henry Molther, who had been the private tutor of Zinzendorf’s only son, was preaching, to large congregations, four times every week, and was much more popular than his talents or his misty doctrines merited. The chief controversy between him and Wesley was concerning the use of the means of grace. Molther recommended penitent inquirers to “_be still_;” that is, not to search the Scriptures, not to pray, not to communicate, not to do good; for it was impossible to use means, without trusting in them. Wesley, on the other hand, recommended and enforced just the opposite. The contention among their partisans was fierce and furious; and the object of Ingham’s visit to the metropolis seems to have been to reconcile the irritated disputants. Charles Wesley writes:—

“1740. May 22.—I found our dear brother Ingham at Mr. West’s.
The holiday mob were very outrageous at the Foundery. God
filled my mouth with threatenings and promises; and, at last,
we got the victory, and the fiercest rioters were overawed into
silence.

“May 25.—At the lovefeast, I was overwhelmed with the burden
of our brethren, with such visible signs of dejection, that
several, I was since informed, were in great hopes that I
was now coming down in my pride, or unsettling, and coming
into confusion. Indeed, my faith did well-nigh fail me; for
in spite of the seeming reconciliation which brother Ingham
_forces_ them into, it is impossible we should ever be of one
mind, unless they are convinced of their abrogating the law of
_Christian_ ordinances, and taking away the children’s bread.

“May 27.—I rejoiced to find no difference betwixt my brother
Ingham and me. He has honestly withstood the deluded brethren;
contradicted their favourite errors, and constrained them to be
_still_. That blot he easily hit: ‘You say no man must speak of
what he has not experienced; you, Oxley and Simpson, say that
one in the Gospel-liberty can have no stirrings of sin.’ ‘Yes.’
‘Are you in Gospel-liberty?’ ‘No.’ ‘Then out of your own mouth
I judge you: you speak of things which you know not of.’

“June 2.—I _preached up_ the ordinances, as they call it, from
Isaiah lviii.; but first, with the prophet, I preached them
_down_. Telchig” [Toltschig], “Ingham, etc., were present,
which made me use greater plainness, that they might set me
right, if I mistook.

“June 11.—I returned” [from the Delamotte family at Blendon]
“to be exercised by our _still_ brethren’s contradiction.
My brother proposed new-modelling the bands, and setting by
themselves those few who were still for the ordinances. Great
clamour was raised by this proposal. The noisy _still_ ones
well knew that they had carried their point by wearying out
the sincere ones scattered among them; so that a remnant is
scarcely left. They grudged us even this remnant, which would
soon be all their own, unless immediately rescued out of their
hands. Benjamin Ingham seconded us, and obtained that the names
should be called over, and as many as were aggrieved put into
new books.

“We gathered up our wreck,—_raros nantes in gurgite vasto_;
for nine out of ten are swallowed up in the dead sea of
_stillness_. O, why was not this done six months ago? How
fatal was our delay and moderation! ‘Let them alone, and they
will soon be weary, and come to themselves of course,’ said
one,—_unus qui nobis cunctando restituet rem!_ I tremble at the
consequence. Will they submit themselves to every ordinance of
man, who refuse subjection to the ordinances of God? I told
them plainly, _I should only continue with them so long as they
continued in the Church of England._ My every word was grievous
to them. I am a thorn in their sides, and they cannot bear me.

“They _modestly_ denied that we had any but hearsay proof
of their denying the ordinances. I asked them all and every
one, particularly Bray, Bell, etc., whether they would now
acknowledge them to be commands or duties; whether they sinned
in omitting them; whether they did not leave it to every
man’s fancy to use them or not; whether they did not exclude
all from the Lord’s table, except those whom _they_ called
believers. These questions I put too close to be evaded;
though better dodgers never came out of the school of Loyola.
Honest Bell and some others spoke out, and insisted upon their
antichristian liberty. The rest put by their stillness, and
delivered me over to Satan for a blasphemer, a very Saul (for
to him they compare me), out of blind zeal persecuting the
Church of Christ.”[81]

Ingham continued among these angry people a week longer, when John Wesley wrote:—

“1740. June 18.—I went to our own society, of Fetter Lane,
before whom Mr. Ingham (being to leave London on the morrow)
bore a noble testimony for the ordinances of God, and the
reality of weak faith.[82] But the short answer was, ‘You are
blind, and speak of the things you know not.’”[83]

Matters now reached a crisis. For about two years, Wesley had been a sort of member and minister of the Moravian Society in Fetter Lane. Five weeks after this, by a vote of the Brethren, Wesley was expelled; and Molther, his rival, was left in full possession. Those who sympathised with Wesley were, in number, about twenty-five men and fifty women, all of whom seceded with him, and, on July 23rd, 1740, met, for the first time, at the Foundery, instead of at Fetter Lane; and thus the _Methodist_ Society was founded.

Whitefield was in America; but, in the midst of these wretched squabbles, wrote to Ingham the following Calvinistic, and not too luminous epistle:—

“BOSTON, _September 26th, 1740_.

“MY DEAR BROTHER INGHAM,—I thank you for your kind letter. It
is the first I have received from you since I left England.
I bless God, that the work goes on in Yorkshire. May our
glorious, sin-forgiving Lord, bless you and your spiritual
children more and more!

“I find our friends are got into disputing one with another.
O, that the God of peace may put a stop to it! I wish many
may not be building on a false foundation, and resting in a
false peace. They own _free justification_, and yet seem to
think that their continuance in a justified state depends on
their doings and their wills. This, I think, is establishing
a righteousness of our own. My dear brother, if we search the
Scriptures, we shall find that the word _justified_ implies,
not only pardon of sin, but also all its consequences.
‘Thus,’ says St. Paul, ‘those whom He justified, them He also
glorified;’ so that, if a man was once justified, he remains
so to all eternity. There lies the anchor of all my hopes,—our
Lord having once loved me, He will love me to the end. This
fills me with joy unspeakable and full of glory. I now walk by
faith. I work not to keep myself in a justified state, (for men
nor devils can pluck me out of Christ’s hands,) but to express
my love and gratitude for what Jesus hath done for my soul.
This, I think, is what the apostle calls, ‘faith working by
love.’

“My dear brother, my heart’s desire and prayer to God is,
that we may all think and speak the same things; for, if we
are divided among ourselves, what an advantage will Satan get
over us! Let us love one another, excite all to come to Christ
without exception, and our Lord will show us who are His.

“With difficulty, I get time to write this, but I must
answer dear brother Ingham’s letter. May the Lord Jesus be
continually with your spirit, and make your soul brimful of
peace and joy in the Holy Ghost! I love you in the bowels of
the crucified Lamb. May He unite us more and more intimately
to His dear self, and to one another! Salute all that love Him
in sincerity. That you may be kept by God’s power to eternal
salvation, is the prayer of your most affectionate, though
unworthy brother and poor weak servant in Christ,

“GEORGE WHITEFIELD.”

It is needless to say, that some of the doctrines in the above letter were not held by Wesley; but let that pass.

Ingham returned to Yorkshire with broader views and sympathies than he had when he left for London. Sending for John Nelson to one of his meetings, he said, “John, I believe God has called you to speak His word; for I have spoken with several since I came back from London, who, I believe, have received grace since I went; and I see God is working in a shorter manner than He did with us at the beginning; and I should be sorry to hinder any one from doing good.” Then, turning to the assembled brethren and sisters, Ingham continued, “Before you all, I give John leave to exhort in all my societies;” and, taking the rough hand of the Yorkshire stonemason, he added, “John, God hath given you great honour, in that He hath made use of you to call sinners to the blood of our Saviour; and I desire you to exhort in all my societies as often as you can.”

Thus, in the employment of lay preachers, Ingham co-operated with his friend Wesley. Both were clergymen of the Church of England; and both were willing to have lay helpers. Nelson’s preaching was attended with great success. “Nine or ten in a week were brought to experience the love of Jesus.”[84] John was no proselytizer. Those of his converts, who belonged to the Church of England, he “exhorted to keep close to the Church and sacrament;” and those who were “Dissenters, to keep to their own meetings, and to let their light shine before their own community.”

In this respect, he was somewhat in advance of his reverend patron; for Ingham advised just the contrary, and several acted on his advice, which, says Nelson, “made me very uneasy.” Nelson firmly adhered to the Church of England, and wished to avoid a schism. Ingham, on the other hand, had already virtually seceded, and was at the head of the Moravian sect in Yorkshire. The priest and the mason found it difficult to work in harmony. Besides, though always actuated by the best intentions, Ingham was somewhat fickle, and easily influenced by his Moravian helpers. Nelson was just the opposite; and, yet, his steadfastness was not stubbornness. He was firm, because he felt that the ground he occupied was right. As already stated, Ingham, on his return from London, publicly authorised, and even requested, Nelson to exhort in all his societies; but, shortly afterwards, the authorization was withdrawn. Why? Because Ingham was no longer the commander-in-chief of the Yorkshire converts, but a merely co-ordinate member of a common-council. He could no longer act as he liked; but must proceed in harmony with the decisions of those to whom he had allied himself. Here an explanation is necessary.

In 1740, Ingham wrote:—

“There are now upwards of fifty societies, where the people
meet for edification; and of two thousand hearers of the
gospel, I know, at least, three hundred on whose hearts the
Spirit of God works powerfully; and one hundred who have found
grace in the blood and the atonement of Jesus.”

The work begun by Ingham bid fair to exceed that in London. Hitherto the rendezvous of the English Moravian ministers had been the metropolis; now it became a farm-house in Yorkshire. About four miles east of Halifax stood a spacious dwelling, with extensive outbuildings, and a large farm attached. This the Moravians rented, that it might serve as a place of residence for those Moravian pastors to whom the spiritual affairs of the societies were committed, and as a common centre of union. They entered on the occupancy of the premises in 1741; and, shortly after, Ingham, who had hitherto had the chief care of the Yorkshire societies, urgently, and in writing, requested the Brethren to take the entire direction of them into their own hands, so that he might devote himself wholly to the work of preaching. To carry out his purpose, a public meeting was convened, on July 30, 1742, which was attended by about a thousand persons, belonging to these societies. Ingham’s proposal was submitted to them, and was heartily accepted. A document was drawn up, which, after referring to Ingham’s faithful labours, expressed a desire to be served in future by the ministers of the Brethren’s Church, “whom,” said the twelve hundred persons who signed it, “we not only desire to preach publicly amongst us, but also to visit us in private, put us to rights, and make such orders amongst us as they shall see useful and necessary, according to the grace the Lord shall give them.”

Smith House, near Halifax, was now the head-quarters of English Moravianism. Even members in London, elected to fulfil sacred functions there, were sent all the way to Yorkshire to be solemnly inducted into their respective offices. The field, hitherto occupied by Ingham, Nelson, and other co-operators, was divided into six principal districts, namely, Smith House, Adwalton, Mirfield, Great Horton, Holbeck, and Osset; and to each of these districts a Moravian minister was appointed.[85]

We now return to Ingham, and his neighbour Nelson. The latter tells us of a great Moravian meeting at Gomersal Field House, at which Ingham desired him to be present. Nelson went. The house was filled with five or six preachers, four exhorters, and about a hundred of the principal members of the Yorkshire societies. Not being able to gain admittance to the house, and finding a large number of people outside, the honest stonemason went into a field and preached. At length, Ingham came out, and announced the decision of the Brethren: namely, that it was not prudent to have so much preaching, for fear it should engender persecution. “I desire, therefore,” said he, “that none of the young men will expound till they are desired by the Brethren; we shall meet again this day month, and then we will let you know what we are all to do.” He next spoke to the young expounders, one by one, and said, “I hope you will be obedient.” They all replied, “Yes, sir.” He then turned to Nelson, saying, “John, I hope you will leave off till you have orders from the Church.” “No, sir,” replied intrepid John; “I will not leave off—I dare not; for I did not begin by the order of man, nor by my own will; therefore, I shall not leave off by your order; for, I tell you plainly, I should have left off without your bidding, but that I believed, if I did, I should be damned for disobedience.” Ingham answered, “You see these young men are obedient to the elders, and they have been blessed in their labours as well as you.” Nelson said, “I cannot tell how they have been blessed; but, I think, if God had sent them on His own errand, they would not stop at your bidding.” At this point, one of the preachers interfered, saying, “The spirit of the prophets is subject to the prophets; therefore, they are right and you are wrong, for they are subject.” John failing to be convinced by the preacher’s logic, boldly answered, “You are not obedient to the prophets of God that were of old, for God saith by one of them, ‘I have set watchmen upon the walls of Jerusalem that shall not cease day or night;’ but you can hold your peace for a month together at man’s bidding.” Then turning to Ingham, Nelson continued, “You know that many have been converted by my exhorting lately, and a great many more are under convictions; what a sad thing would it be to leave them as they are.” Ingham’s lame reply was, “Our Saviour can convert souls without your preaching.” “Yes,” retorted John, “or yours either; and He can give corn without ploughing or sowing, but He does not, neither has He promised that He will.” Ingham rejoined, “Be still one month, and then you will know more of your own heart.” “With one proviso, I will,” said Nelson: “if you can persuade the devil to be still for a month; but if he goes about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour, and God hath put a sword into my hand, I am determined to attack him wheresoever I meet him; and wheresoever I meet sin, I meet Satan.” Further conversation followed; and, at length, Ingham “charged all the people, as they loved him and the brethren, that they should not let Nelson preach in their houses, nor encourage him by hearing him elsewhere.”

This, on the part of Ingham, was painful and unworthy conduct. The preaching of the stonemason had probably been as greatly blessed and as successful as his own. The man was no irreligious, rash intruder; but a real evangelist, called and qualified by Him who, in all ages, has been wont to choose “the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; and base things of the world, and things which are despised, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are; that no flesh should glory in His presence; and that he that glorieth may glory in the Lord.” Nelson was as divinely called to preach Christ’s glorious gospel as Ingham was. His ministry had the seals of divine approbation in the souls it had been the means of converting; and Ingham’s effort to suspend it, even for a month only, was a bold, bad act. Besides, the reason assigned for such an interference with a commission, which Nelson had received from God Himself, was a piece of cowardice unworthy of the man who had braved the storms of the Atlantic Ocean, and the hardships and miasmata of Georgia, solely for the purpose of being useful to the wild Indians and to a portion of England’s outcast population. For fear of persecution, Nelson, whom God had used in saving sinners, was to be gagged and silenced. The change which had come over the naturally brave spirit of the Oxford Methodist was a painful one; and also puzzling, except on the ground that he had changed his company.

It is a mournful duty to have to mention another incident. Ingham interdicted Nelson, though unsuccessfully. He further renounced his old friend Wesley, and, for a season at least, became intoxicated with the Moravian vanity, at that time disastrously spreading. Hence, the following extract from Nelson’s Journal:—

“I was desired once more to go to Gomersal Field House to speak
to Mr. Ingham. When I got there, David Taylor was with him, and
spoke kindly to me. When Mr. Taylor was gone, Mr. Ingham began
to talk to me about making division among the Brethren. I told
him, I did not want to make division; I wanted the people to
be saved. He said, ‘We cannot receive you or Mr. Wesley into
our community[86] till he publicly declares he has printed
false doctrine, and you declare you have preached false.’ I
said, ‘Wherein?’ He then burst out into laughter, and said, ‘In
telling the people they may live without committing sin.’[87]
I replied, ‘Do you call that false doctrine?’ He answered, ‘I
do, I do; and Mr. Wesley has written false doctrine, teaching
the same errors.’ He quoted some words; then I said, ‘They
are not Mr. Wesley’s, but St John’s words; it is St. John who
says, “Let no man deceive you; he that doeth righteousness is
righteous, and he that committeth sin is of the devil.” So, if
St. John be right, every one who preacheth contrary to what
Mr. Wesley has written here, and what I have preached, is a
deceiver and betrayer of souls.’ ‘If that be your opinion,’
said Mr. Ingham, ‘we cannot receive you into our Church.’ I
replied, ‘I don’t want to be one of you, for I am a member of
the Church of England.’ He answered, ‘The Church of England is
no Church; we are the Church.’ I said, ‘We! Whom do you mean?’
He replied, ‘I and the Moravian Brethren.’ I said, ‘I have no
desire to have any fellowship with you or them; it has been
better for my soul since I have been wholly separated from you,
and God has blessed my labours more since I was told, they
had delivered me up to Satan, than ever before; therefore, I
think it better to have their curse than to have communion with
them.’ He replied, ’ If you think so, I have no more to say to
you;’ and then, he turned his back on me.”

Thus did Ingham fully and finally sever himself from the Methodists. Nelson continued preaching; souls were saved; and, in 1742, Wesley, for the first time, visited the Birstal stonemason. After giving an account how Nelson was led to begin to preach, and of his success, Wesley adds:—

“Mr. Ingham hearing of this, came to Birstal, inquired into
the facts, talked with John himself, and examined him in the
closest manner, both touching his knowledge and spiritual
experience; after which he encouraged him to proceed; and
pressed him, as often as he had opportunity, to come to any
of the places where himself had been, and speak to the people
as God should enable him. But he soon gave offence, both by
his plainness of speech, and by advising the people to go to
church and sacrament. Mr. Ingham reproved him: and, finding him
incorrigible, forbad any that were in his societies to hear
him. But, being persuaded this is the will of God concerning
him, he continues to this hour working in the day, that he may
be burdensome to no man; and, in the evening, ‘testifying the
truth as it is in Jesus.’”[88]

This is a long account; but not without interest; inasmuch as it furnishes a glimpse of the way in which Ingham parted with the Methodists, and of the beginnings of both Moravianism and Methodism in the north of England. We only add, that, though Ingham passed through Birstal during Wesley’s visit, there was no interview between them.[89] Thus was an old and close friendship severed.

It has been already stated, that, the differences between Ingham and Nelson probably occurred in 1741; and that Wesley’s visit to Birstal took place in 1742. This, in some respects, was the most important period in Ingham’s life.

Far away from the miserable strifes of the Moravians in London, we find him, in 1740, an humble, happy, loving, useful Christian. The following letter is simple and beautiful:—

“OSSET, _September 20, 1740_.

“MY DEAR BROTHER,—I have not heard anything of you this long
time. As to myself, I am exceeding happy.[90] The Lord Jesus,
my dear Redeemer, is abundantly gracious and bountiful towards
me. I have, and do daily taste of His goodness. I am ashamed
before Him; I am so very unworthy, and He is so very kind and
merciful. My heart melts within me, at the thoughts of Him. He
is all love. I am a sinful, helpless worm.

“In Yorkshire, the Lord still keeps carrying on His work. Many
souls are truly awakened: some have obtained mercy. The enemies
are engaged against us; but the Lord is our helper. We have
great peace, and love, and unity amongst ourselves. We have
no differences, no divisions, no disputings. May He, who is
the giver of every good and perfect gift, grant us always to
be like-minded; and may we and our friends grow in grace, and
increase in love towards one another, that, by this mark, all
men may know that we belong to Christ!

“I remain your affectionate, though unworthy brother,

“B. INGHAM.”[91]

If Ingham and John Nelson had been left to themselves, Ingham’s prayer for continued unity might have been answered; but Ingham wished for Toltschig, one of the ministerial chiefs among the London Moravians; and Toltschig doubtless went.

“We, in London,” writes James Hutton, “cannot spare Toltschig
until Spangenberg comes to us. We here all think he will
be useful to Ingham and the souls there. They must seize
the opportunity presented. The souls in Yorkshire are more
simple-hearted than those in London, where they are more
knowing; and they do not, like those in town, quibble at
every word. Toltschig is known in Yorkshire, where the souls
love him, and he can speak to them with confidence. We want
a thorough brother, fundamentally correct, and of large
experience, for the souls in London, able to attend our bands
and conferences, and to address our meetings. Toltschig is very
well in bands and conferences, but he cannot preach.”[92]

Did Toltschig carry the cantankerous contagion of the London Moravians with him? We cannot tell; but there can be no question, that, the “simple-hearted” Yorkshire brethren caught it; and, that, in Yorkshire, as in London, a schism among the Moravians led to the formation of the society of Methodists.

Indeed, it is a curious fact, that, for a season, the spirit of discord, among nearly the whole of the new religionists, seemed rampant. No man ever lived who sighed for peace more ardently than Whitefield. His large and loving heart had room enough for every man. The language of the Psalmist’s pen was pre-eminently the language of Whitefield’s life: “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee. Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces. For my brethren and companions’ sake, I will now say, Peace be within thee.” And, yet, at this very time, as if to make bad things worse, the quarrel, between the London Moravians and Methodists, was followed by the quarrel between Wesley and Whitefield, respecting Wesley’s sermon on “Free Grace;” and, to complete the whole, and to make the confusion more confounded, the Yorkshire converts, so far away from the strifeful scene, began disputing; and the frank, warm-hearted Ingham began to regard his old friend Wesley with a suspicious eye, and presumptuously tried to annul John Nelson’s divine commission to act as an evangelist among his neighbours!

Ingham’s objection to Wesley’s doctrine of entire sanctification has been already mentioned; but, besides this, there were other points of difference. Wesley writes:—

“1741. August 1.—I had a long conversation with Mr. Ingham. We
both agreed,—1. That none shall finally be saved, who have not,
as they had opportunity, done all good works; and, 2. That if
a justified person does not do good, as he has opportunity, he
will lose the grace he has received; and, if he ‘repent’ not,
‘and do the former works,’ will perish eternally. But with
regard to the unjustified (if I understand him), we wholly
disagreed. He believed, it is not the will of God, that, we
should wait for faith in doing good. I believe, this is the
will of God; and that, they will never find Him, unless they
seek Him in this way.”

Again:—

“1742, August 3.—I preached at Mirfield, where I found Mr.
Ingham had been an hour before. Great part of the day, I spent
in speaking with those who have tasted the powers of the world
to come; by whose concurrent testimony I find, that, Mr.
Ingham’s method to this day is,—1. To endeavour to persuade
them, that they are in a delusion, and have indeed no faith
at all: if this cannot be done, then, 2. To make them keep it
to themselves; and, 3. To prevent them going to the church or
sacrament; at least to guard them from having any reverence, or
expecting to find any blessing in those ordinances of God. In
the evening, I preached at Adwalton, a mile from Birstal. After
preaching, and the next day, I spoke with more, who had, or
sought for, redemption through Christ; all of whom I perceived
had been advised also, to put their light under a bushel; or to
forsake the ordinances of God, in order to find Christ.”[93]

Ingham’s wish to prevent persecution has been noticed. On this ground, he requested Nelson and other exhorters to desist from preaching for a month. What led to this? Perhaps, the publication, in 1740, of a furious pamphlet of eighty-four pages, with the following title: “The Imposture of Methodism displayed; in a Letter to the Inhabitants of the Parish of Dewsbury and Occasioned by the Rise of a certain Modern Sect of Enthusiasts, (among them,) called Methodists. By William Bowman, M.A., Vicar of Dewsbury and Aldborough in Yorkshire, and Chaplain to the Right Honourable Charles Earl of Hoptoun.”

This pastorly letter was avowedly written against the Methodists; but the reverend author, like many others at the time, employed an inappropriate word; for, at that period, there were no Methodists at all, either in Yorkshire or any other part of the north of England. His letter is dated, “Aldbrough, August 15, 1740”; whereas, John Nelson, the beginner of northern Methodism, did not commence preaching to his neighbours for several months after this.[94] The Vicar of Dewsbury _meant_ Moravians; but, for reasons of his own, he preferred to use the word Methodists.

Terrible was the anger which Ingham and his coadjutors had excited in the Christian breast of their reverend neighbour. The pamphlet is a rarity, and, perhaps, a condensed account of it may be welcome.