Close friend to John Wesley and co-leader of the great revival of the 1700's, George Whitefield had an ability to preach that drew tremendous crowds. One sermon in London's Hyde Park was attended by eighty thousand people.
Yet as stunning as his success was, equally stunning was the opposition that arose against him. He wrote in his journal:
"I was honored with having a few stones, dirt, rotten eggs,
and pieces of dead cat thrown at me."
He was beaten, his pulpits were smashed, hecklers tried to drown him out, and one sermon featured a man trying to urinate on him.
Yet the deepest wound came at the hands of a friend - John Wesley.
Wesley published a sermon directly attacking Whitefield's beliefs, painting George in hellish terms. Tens of thousands converted under Whitefield's ministry turned against him.
You can hear the pain of the experience in Whitefield's words:
"Many of my spiritual children, who at my last departure from England would have plucked out their own eyes to give them to me, are so prejudiced by the dear Mssrs. Wesleys' dressing up (my) doctrine in such horrible colors, that they will neither hear, nor give me the least assistance."
Instead, many of his converts sent "threatening letters that God will speedily destroy me."
Amidst the sleepless nights and tears, the revival did not end. Whitefield chose to forgive his friends, spoke lovingly of Wesley to others, and made sure his own astonishing success in ministry reflected glowingly on Wesley. His constant refrain was, "Let the name of George Whitefield perish so long as Christ is exalted."
His impact on the founding generation in America alone was beyond any other. John Adams once wrote:
"I know of no other philosopher, or theologian, or moralist, ancient or modern, more profound, more infallible than Whitefield."
And Benjamin Franklin wrote:
"He is a good man, and I love him."
Thus George Whitefield surmounted the wounds he sustained from fellow Christians in order to live for a higher cause and the hope of deeper impact on his times.
The confirmation of history is that we are not called despite our wounding and betrayal; we are wounded and betrayed because we are called. And God yearns to make our pain redemptive in our lives.
(ReChurch)
