Series Preface
Abbreviations
Introduction
Acknowledgments
 
Chapter 1: The New Birth
Chapter 2: Theologian of the Head and Heart
Chapter 3: True Religion
Chapter 4: Experience of God
Chapter 5: The Means of Grace
Chapter 6: Guiding Souls to Jesus
Chapter 7: Preacher of One Book
Chapter 8: The Relational Whitefield
Chapter 9: Whitefield and Slavery
Chapter 10: Whitefield’s Legacy
 
Timeline for George Whitefield
General Index
Scripture Index

“With thorough research, empathy balanced by criticism, and unusual attention to often neglected aspects of George Whitefield’s life, Tom Schwanda and Ian Maddock make a notable contribution to the Theologians on the Christian Life series. If Whitefield is best known as a celebrity preacher and, more recently, as having tolerated slavery, he still provided many insights that lead from ‘the new birth’ he so famously preached into mature, enduring Christian existence. This book explains all that and much more.”
Mark Noll, author, America’s Book: The Rise and Decline of a Bible Civilization, 1794–1911

“By all accounts, George Whitefield was one of the greatest, most prolific, most persuasive preachers in evangelical church history. At the heart of his preaching was a gospel experience that tragically became a Christian cliché and is often neglected altogether: the necessity of a new spiritual birth to a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. This accessible yet comprehensive introduction to Whitefield’s ministry and theology helps us to recapture the cruciality of conversion for our own spiritual experience and evangelistic ministries.”
Philip Graham Ryken, President, Wheaton College

“Zealous in mission, Christ-centered in doctrine, experiential in piety, peripatetic in ministry, and fiery in preaching, Whitefield was consumed, for his entire postconversion lifetime, with the inexhaustible riches of Jesus Christ. This masterful portrait is at once balanced, nuanced, and thoughtful—far from hagiographical, delightfully historical, and at times painfully human and realistic. May the flaws and failures of this great (if somewhat complex) evangelist remind us that even the godliest of men on this side of eternity are far from sinless, yet those flaws too should point us to the Savior whose gospel he so freely proclaimed. Above all, may this story of Whitefield’s life and doctrine encourage us to pursue what he pursued with passion—the glory of Christ, the presence and power of the Holy Spirit, the satisfying smorgasbord that is the means of grace, and a life of vital, heartfelt, experiential, and enjoyable piety.”
Joel R. Beeke, Chancellor and Professor of Systematic Theology and Homiletics, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary; Pastor, Heritage Reformed Congregation, Grand Rapids, Michigan

“George Whitefield has been called ‘the apostle of the English empire’ for his evangelical zeal but also ‘God’s erring and human instrument.’ This book unpacks the glorious gospel that Whitefield preached so fervently and successfully, yet it doesn’t shy away from the flaws in this celebrity preacher’s business methods more clearly seen from a distance (including an attempt to redeem but still use the institution of slavery). It both inspires us to live as wholehearted Christians today and rightly warns us of our own potential pragmatic complicity with fallen prevailing culture.”
Lee Gatiss, editor, The Sermons of George Whitefield; author, Living to Please God

“Evangelicalism has a rich, complicated, sometimes contradictory history. As one of evangelicalism’s founding leaders, George Whitefield too has a rich, complicated, and sometimes contradictory legacy. His life not only is worthy of study in itself but also illuminates the larger history of the movement. To better understand evangelicalism today, one can do no better than to read this probing account of Whitefield’s place in his time and ours.”
Karen Swallow Prior, author, The Evangelical Imagination: How Stories, Images, and Metaphors Created a Culture in Crisis

“The ‘relational glue’ of the Great Awakening is how the authors of this fine book describe George Whitefield. And given the central role he played in the revivals of his transatlantic world, it follows that his vision of the Christian life was equally influential and far-reaching, both for good and for ill. What I appreciate in this fresh study of Whitefield is the attention paid not only to the good but also to the bad—specifically, the English preacher’s disturbing advocacy of slavery. All in all, this is a helpful guide to Whitefield’s theological convictions and key elements of evangelical thought and piety.”
Michael A. G. Haykin, Professor of Church History and Biblical Spirituality, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

“If you want to understand early American views of Christian spirituality, you would do well to spend time reading Whitefield. He emphasized intimacy with Jesus, the vital importance of evangelism, and the practical side of a distinctive Calvinistic approach to the Protestant faith. This volume nicely captures all of that and so much more. Thankfully, the authors do not romanticize the man, especially as they dive into Whitefield’s complex relationship with slavery, but rather offer a nuanced and honest treatment. There is much for us to learn in this book.”
Kelly M. Kapic, Professor of Theological Studies, Covenant College

“By examining occasional writings like sermons and letters, Schwanda and Maddock distill Whitefield’s understanding of the spiritual life and present to us the abiding themes of Christian experience celebrated in the midst of Whitefield’s peripatetic ministry. Along with crisp prose and thoughtful structure, we encounter in this book refreshment and inspiration for our own walks with the Lord.”
Rhys Bezzant, Principal, Ridley College, Melbourne

“Evangelicals must rediscover their identity as evangelists. Other accounts of George Whitefield’s life and ministry analyze many strengths and notable weaknesses of the preeminent evangelist of the evangelical movement. This guide offers more—an intimate picture of Whitefield, showing us how to cultivate a relationship with Jesus that can’t keep quiet about the gospel.”
Sean McGever, Adjunct Professor, Grand Canyon University; author, Born Again and Ownership

“Avoiding ‘chronological snobbery,’ Schwanda and Maddock’s engaging and well-researched biography masterfully summarizes the immense legacy of George Whitefield to today’s evangelical church. Whitefield, perhaps the first celebrity evangelist, had his personal flaws and struggles. Yet ultimately his commitment to God’s word, his dependence on the Holy Spirit, his evangelical ecumenical mindset, and his desire that sinners like himself discover the new birth in Jesus Christ were used powerfully by God to impact countless people. Read this book and be encouraged to know that God can use you too for his purposes.”
Joel Woodruff, President, C. S. Lewis Institute

“Tom Schwanda and Ian Maddock have created a lucid introduction to the Christian life—from deadness in sin to sinless perfection in glory—as lived, preached, and journaled by George Whitefield. This book is a treasure of the Christian life given as a thick description in candid illumination. Theology preached, friendships cultivated, and evangelistic sermons printed—all reveal the full humanity and large persona of this great founder of modern evangelicalism. The apt subtitle of this volume, New Birth to Enjoy God, reminds us that Whitefield’s theology, and the best of ecumenical evangelicalism, is driven by gratitude and joy.”
Scott W. Sunquist, President, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary

“Writing with clarity and grace, Tom Schwanda and Ian Maddock give us a fresh spiritual biography of the Great Awakening’s most renowned evangelist. Without sugarcoating the problematic aspects of George Whitefield’s life, they explore the many salutary aspects of his spirituality. This book is a compelling invitation to live a life marked by a new birth, a transformed heart, and sweet communion with God.”
Gwenfair Walters Adams, Professor of Church History and Spiritual Formation, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary

“In this book, Schwanda and Maddock do a tremendous job helping us appreciate the potent spiritual message at the core of Whitefield’s ministry, especially his concern for regeneration—new life in Christ. But the authors are more than just cheerleaders. They show us Whitefield in all his complexity to help us learn from his flaws as much as from his virtues.”
Bruce Hindmarsh, author, The Spirit of Early Evangelicalism