(John Newton) 1725 - 1807


With the storm raging fiercely, Newton had time to think. His life seemed as ruined and wrecked as the battered ship he was trying to steer through the storm. Since the age of eleven he had lived a life at sea. Sailors were not noted for the refinement of their manners, but Newton had a reputation for profanity, coarseness, and debauchery which even shocked many a sailor.


John Newton was born in London July 24, 1725, the son of a commander of a merchant ship which sailed the Mediterranean. Newton was the son of an English sea captain. His mother was a deeply pious woman, who, with much care, taught him spiritual things until she died when John was seven years old.

At the age of 11, John went to sea and spent the next 20 years as a sailor engaged in slave trading. His life was spent in the basest sort of wickedness. At one time, he him- self was the property of an African woman, who fed him only that which she threw him under her table. He was nearly killed several times during a terrible storm at sea, which almost sank the ship. His wicked life passed before him, and deep conviction caused him to cry out to God for salvation.

THE GREYHOUND had been thrashing about in the north Atlantic storm for over a week. Its canvas sails were ripped, and the wood on one side of the ship had been torn away and splintered. The sailors had little hope of survival, but they mechanically worked the pumps, trying to keep the vessel afloat. On the eleventh day of the storm, sailor John Newton was too exhausted to pump, so he was tied to the helm and tried to hold the ship to its course. From one o'clock until midnight he was at the helm.

A chance reading of Thomas à Kempis sowed the seed of his conversion. It was accelerated by a night spent steering a waterlogged ship in the face of apparent death. He was then 23 years old. Over the next six years, during which he commanded a slave ship, his faith matured. He spent the next nine years mostly in Liverpool, studying Hebrew and Greek and mingling with Whitefield, Wesley, and the Nonconformists. He was eventually or­dained, and became curate at Olney, Buckinghamshire, in 1764. It was at Olney that he formed a life long friendship with William Cowper, and produced the Olney Hymns.

The next several years were spent in preparation for the ministry. He learned Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, and stud- ied the Scriptures intensively. In 1764 he was appointed pas- tor of Olney, where he served for 16 years before moving to St. Mary Woolnoth in the city of London. In addition to his pastoral duties, Newton was an ardent writer. His works in- cluded: Omicron, Narrative, Review of Ecclesiastical History, and Cardiphonia.

In 1779 Newton left Olney to become rector of St. Mary Woolnoth in London. His ministry included not only the London poor and the merchant class but also the wealthy and influential. William Wilberforce, a member of Parliament and a prime mover in the abolition of slavery, was strongly influenced by John Newton's life and preaching. Newton's Thoughts on the African Slave Trade, based on his own experiences as a slave trader, was very important in securing British abolition of slavery. Missionaries William Carey and Henry Martyn also gained strength from Newton's counsel.

Newton lived to be eighty-two years old and continued to preach and have an active ministry until beset by fading health in the last two or three years of his life. Even then, Newton never ceased to be amazed by God's grace and told his friends, "My memory is nearly gone; but I remember two things: That I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Savior."

His greatest fame is the result of his work as a writer of hymns, the most familiar being Amazing Grace, which depicts in its verses the life story of John Newton:

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.


'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved.
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed!


Through many dangers, toils, and snares,
I have already come.
'Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.


The Lord has promised good to me,
His Word my hope secures.
He will my shield and portion be,
As long as life endures.


When we've been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We've no less days to sing God's praise
Than when we first begun.



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References:
(*) http://www.gospelcom.net/chi/GLIMPSEF/Glimpses/glmps028.shtml
(*) Christian Connection: [http://www.webzonecom.com/ccn/bio/newton2.txt]