Study of Asahel Nettleton — E.A. Johnston

We are still studying the second great awakening and the primary human instrument of that awakening which was Ezehiel Nettleton and we are going to study a couple of excerpts from my biography on Nettleton entitled Ezehiel Nettleton Revival Preacher.

Asahel Nettleton and the Revival at Lenox

And friends as we look at these this evening I want us to not only realize how mightily used this man of God was during revivals but how wise he was in conducting them. I want to read us an excerpt of a pastor whom Nettleton preached at his church in 1821 with powerful effect and a great revival broke out.

This occurred in Lenox, Massachusetts at the church on the hill. When I visited that church and its archives it's astounding the church exists the same way today as it did in 1841. It's a white church that sits on a hill with an ancient graveyard attached to it and Nettleton preached there with great power in the spring of 1821.

I want to read us Dr. Shepard's narrative of this, the pastor of that church and the powerful revival that broke forth in that time. In the spring of 1821 Dr. Nettleton came to Pittsfield in consequence of an invitation from Dr. Humphrey.

Dr. Nettleton was in poor health and Dr. Humphrey invited him to his house with the hope that by being relieved from press and calls he might recover his health. When Dr. Nettleton first came to Pittsfield he took no part I believe in religious meetings.

After a while he preached once or twice in the course of a week. His preaching was soon attended with a divine blessing and was undoubtedly instrumental of a revival of religion in Pittsfield and several other towns in the vicinity.

When I was from home on a journey Dr. Nettleton preached in Lenox on the Sabbath and two or three times in the course of the week after. On my return I found a revival begun and progressing in the town.

Many were awakened and some were rejoicing in hope. He afterwards preached occasionally in my parish as his engagements elsewhere permitted. The number of hopeful converts who were received into the church as the fruits of that revival was 91.

Almost all of them continued to adorn the doctrine of God their Savior by the virtues of a sober, righteous, and godly life. These, as I find stated in my church record at the time, these are the fruits of a revival of religion in this town last summer.

Reverend Azahel Nettleton was apparently instrumental of great good in that season of refreshing from the presence of the Lord. May the Lord reward him for his labors of love and may we as a church be more humble and prayerful and may God in his sovereign mercy continue to shed down his divine influence here.

Nettleton's Preaching, Prayer, and Humility

You ask what were the characteristics of his preaching and in what did its chief excellency consist? I answer he held no protracted meetings nor did he adopt any new measures apparently for effect. His labors consisted principally in preaching the word.

He sometimes appointed what was called an inquiry meeting. At such meetings he manifested an almost instinctive discernment of character and his remarks in accordance with it were sometimes attended with a powerful effect.

In his preaching, his humility was apparent to all. He was, I believe, eminently a man of prayer. That he entered the pulpit or the inquiry meeting directly from the mount of communion with his maker, no one would readily doubt, who was witness of the holy calm, the indescribable, the almost unearthly solemnity and earnestness of his manner.

His countenance was peculiarly expressive, his demeanor was dignified, and his voice was at times very melodious. The joy with which his heart seemed to be filled by contemplation of the love of Jesus in giving his life a ransom for sinners marked his preaching and imparted an unction and uncommon energy to his eloquence.

When he spake of the glories of heaven, it was almost as if he had been there himself. When he made his appeals to the sinner, he made them with a directness which placed before him as a mirror his utterly lost state.

It seemed at times as if he was about to uncover the bottomless pit and to invite the ungodly to come and listen to the groans of the damned and then drink deeply of the spirit of his master. When he wept over Jerusalem to urge them to flee from the wrath to come with an expression of countenance which was not in my power to describe.

Many who came with a skeptical and cavalent spirit to hear him had their attention arrested at once to the great truths communicated by him and at the close of the meeting were anxiously inquiring what they should do to be saved.

Revival Preaching and the Stability of the Churches

The success attended in his preaching seemed in short to be a plain and clear illustration of all the distinguished doctrines of the gospel by a humble, devout, praying, unpretending man constrained to his duty by the love of Christ, the influence of the revival upon the interest of the church, and this and other places was very happy in his claiming to be seen especially in regard to the faith once delivered to the saints up to this time.

The tendency of Dr. Nettleton's preaching and indeed of all his labors here and elsewhere as far as I have learned in regard to them has been to establish the churches in the faith and order of the gospel and to strengthen the hands of every clergyman with whom he labored.

I never heard that any minister among whose people Dr. Nettleton labored ever expressed any regret he had been with them. On the contrary, when at any time meet with a minister who formerly had assistance from Dr. Nettleton, especially in a season of revival, he never fails to express great respect for him and unfeigned gratitude for the benefit derived to him and his people from his labors.

The Revival Movement from Saratoga to Union College

I want to go over revival, friends, that occurred on Union College in Schenectady, New York, in late 1819. It was a powerful work of grace. In July of 1819, Nettleton traveled to Saratoga Springs, New York.

It was his custom to visit the springs to recover from his exhaustion from revivals. And at Hartford Seminary in the archives is a handwritten record by Nettleton detailing an incredible revival which occurred at Union College in Schenectady, New York, while resting at Saratoga Springs in late 1819.

He was requested by a local minister, the Reverend Griswold, to take part in some local concerts of prayer. As usually was the case, Nettleton's time arrest was interrupted by new preaching invitations.

God was moving in revival around the area of Saratoga Springs, including Malta and Schenectady, New York. Soon, Nettleton became the main human instrument of these revivals, but it was the revival at Union College which became the most powerful under Nettleton's preaching.

Many of the converts of the Second Great Awakening were youths or college students. The revival at Union College was one of the most dramatic of his career. I visited that campus and their archives, and today you can visit the campus of Union College and actually see the house, the scene of the revival surrounding the corpse of the deceased student, which Nettleton relates in his diary, where this marvelous revival occurred in the home of Dr. McCauley, who was professor at Union College.

In fact, the house of Dr. McCauley is virtually the same today as it was in Nettleton's time. Nettleton stayed there and prayed there and composed much of the following account there. The wide front porch where he and Dr. McCauley used to sit in the evenings still beckons with comfortable chairs.

It's interesting to note, friends, that when Asa Holt Nettleton labored in revivals in the state of Connecticut, he was primarily in congregational churches. However, when his labors moved to the state of New York, he was principally in Presbyterian churches or meeting houses.

Nettleton's Account of Regional Revivals

I want to turn now to Nettleton's record of these remarkable revivals from his own handwriting. I can at present give you nothing more than the outlines of what the Lord is doing for this section of the church.

This region, and especially the county of Saratoga, has heretofore been as destitute revivals of religion as any part of the state. The commencement of this work was at Saratoga Springs last summer. At that place, about 40 have made a profession of religion.

These include some of the most respectable characters in the village. Directly south is the town of Malta. For a number of years, there has been no Presbyterian church in that place. But the year passed, there has been a very interesting revival among the people.

Our meetings have been crowded and solemn as the house of death. A church has been recently organized, which now consists of 105 members. You can hardly imagine the interest which this revival excited in the surrounding region.

Although the inhabitants are scattered over a large extent, yet I fairly believe I have seen more than 1 ,400 people assembled at once to hear the gospel. On the east of Malta is the town of Stillwater.

Here also, there have been very powerful revivals. Although there has been some excitement to serious things in this place in years past, yet these revivals exceed any they have ever witnessed before.

On the 27th of February last, 103 publicly presented themselves, a living sacrifice unto the Lord. And about 100 more are rejoicing in hope and expect soon to follow their example. The work is still advancing.

Numbers are under conviction. In Boston, adjoining Malta on the west, the work has been very powerful. At these last two communions, they admitted 118. As the fruit of this revival, the work is yet increasing.

Directly north is the town of Milton. I visited that people Sabbath last and preached three times to a crowded and solemn assembly. In this place, a revival has just commenced. Twelve are rejoicing in hope, and a number more are anxious for their souls.

Eight miles to the northwest, adjoining Milton, is the town of Galway. Here, the work is overwhelming. In less than two months past, more than 150 have been brought to rejoice in hope. Dr. Knott from this college visited them last Sabbath and admitted 95 to the church, and the work is still progressing.

On the south of this is Amsterdam. Here, 50 have recently been led to rejoice in hope. Adjoining this is a place called Trips Hall. Here, 30 are rejoicing, and the work in both these places is increasing.

The Union College Revival and the Death of a Student

South from Malta, about 12 miles, is the city of Schenectady and Union College, where I now reside with Dr. McCauley. He takes a lively interest in this good work. I first became acquainted with him last summer at the Springs, and more particularly at Malta, where he frequently visited us and preached and conversed, and attended the meetings appointed for those anxious for their souls.

On a Sabbath, when a number were to be admitted to the church in Malta, he brought with him a number of students from the college. Some of them became anxious. About this time, one of the students was called into the eternal world.

He was laid out in Dr. McCauley's study. The doctor was anxious to improve the solemn providence to the best advantage. He assembled the students around the lifeless remains of their deported friend, and conversed and prayed with them in the most solemn manner.

A number of them engaged to attend to the subject of religion in earnest. From that time, many of the students became deeply impressed with a sense of their lost condition. For them were appointed meetings of inquiry.

And in this very room, where they lately beheld the breathless corpse of their young companion, and where I am now writing, was witnessed a scene of deep and awful distress. About 30 of the students are brought to rejoice in hope.

Conviction, Prayer, and the Spread of the Awakening

The revival is now very powerful in the city. Such a scene they never before witnessed. More than 100 have been brought to rejoice in hope. Besides these, we had more than 200 in our meeting of inquiry, anxious for their souls.

We met in a large upper room called the Masonic Hall. The room was so crowded that we were obliged to request all who had recently found relief to retire below and spend their time in prayer for those above.

This evening will never be forgotten. The scene is beyond description. Did you ever witness 200 sinners with one accord in one place weeping for their sins? Until you have seen this, you can have no adequate conception of the solemn scene.

I felt as though I was standing on the verge of the eternal world while the floor under my feet was shaken by the trembling of anxious souls in view of a judgment to come. The solemnity was still heightened when every knee was bent at the throne of grace and the intervening silence of the voice of prayer was interrupted only by the sighs and sobs of anxious souls.

I have not time to relate interesting particulars. I only add that some of the most stout, hard-hearted, heaven-daring rebels have been in the most awful distress within a circle whose diameter would be 24 miles.

Not less than 800 souls have been hopefully born into the kingdom of Christ since last September. The same glorious work is fast spreading into other towns and congregations. This is what was spoken by the prophet Joel.

Learning from Nettleton and Praying for Revival

Well, I will pause there, friends, as we continue to study the second great awakening and the labors of Azahel Nettleton. It's of primary importance that we study men like Nettleton and Arday, friends.

Study what they preached. Study how they lived. Study how they knew their God and the God of revival. Oh, how we need a move of grace in Arday. How we need a revival to shake this nation from coast to coast.

Let us go now to a time of prayer to pray to the God of revival. Then in his mercy, he will visit our land once again with a mighty spiritual awakening that will grip the hearts and consciousness of sinners and show them the eternal world.

Let us pray.