Because George Whitefield refused to soft-pedal his preaching, he received a variety of responses. His bluntness sometimes offended people, and many established ministers of his time refused to allow him to speak in their pulpits. While angry listeners occasionally pelted him with everything from rotten fruit to dead cats, many people loved to hear him preach. He delighted the masses with his colorful style, often running around the stage and using dramatic facial and hand gestures. If some people were upset by this, so be it.

Early eighteenth century crowds came to hear George Whitefield by the tens of thousands. When this traveling minister came to town, his meetings were not to be missed. In Philadelphia, a crowd cheered and yelled for George as he stood on a hill outside the central part of the city, mesmerizing the audience with his dynamic message.

"Father Abraham, whom have you in heaven?" he shouted. "Any Episcopalians?"

"No!" the people roared.

"Any Presbyterians?" Whitefield danced around the stage as he spoke, jabbing at the air with his hands.

"No!"

"Any Independents or Seceders. New Sides or Old Sides, any Methodists?"

"No! No! No!" the crowd shouted in reply

He called out, "Whom have you there, then, Father Abraham? We don't know those names here! All who are here are Christians-- believers in Christ, men who have overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of his testimony . . . God help me, God help us all, to forget having names and to become Christians in deed and in truth."

A Great Awakening
George Whitefield was born in 1714 in Gloucester, England. His father died when George was just two years old, leaving his mother to keep their inn running and support her family as best as she could. As a young man, Whitefield considered becoming a preacher and spent hours studying his Bible, often reading late into the night. Shortly before entering Oxford, he was converted to faith in Christ. While at Oxford, he met John and Charles Wesley, forming a friendship that God would use on both sides of the Atlantic to influence multitudes with the Gospel.

All three Englishmen came to America in the 1730s. The movement known as the Great Awakening was just beginning, and this was a time when God's Spirit moved across the emerging nation, drawing people to himself. When Europeans first came to the New World in the early 1600s, some were eager to share their vital faith in Christ with the Native Americans. They desired to create a shining city on a hill that would be an example to the rest of the fallen world, an idea that John Winthrop preached about on his way to Massachusetts.

Many who came to the New World were seeking a country where they could freely practice their faith, unlike the nations from which they fled. But by the early 1700s, traditional churches had largely settled into self-satisfaction. Their preachers delivered dry sermons and avoided speaking about winning souls to Christ. Under this kind of leadership, faith often withered, lacking the vital spark that would make it relevant to their everyday lives.

No Lukewarm Christianity
George Whitefield detested lukewarm Christianity. To him, it was worse than no faith at all. In his ministry, he made every effort to shake churchgoers out of their apathy. He reminded them of Christ's words to the church at Laodicea in Revelation 3:16, where Christ said he would spew such congregations out of his mouth. The only kind of faith that pleased God was fervent, heartfelt belief, and Whitefield preached dramatically about this type of faith.