Selected Sermons

George Whitefield's Selected Sermons captures the theological core of the most prominent preacher of the eighteenth-century evangelical revival. These sermons emerged from Whitefield's itinerant ministry across Britain and colonial America, where his dramatic outdoor preaching drew unprecedented crowds and sparked both fervent conversions and fierce controversy. Published in 1740 at the height of the Great Awakening, the collection distills the essential messages that Whitefield proclaimed to audiences numbering in the tens of thousands.

The sermons center relentlessly on the necessity of the new birth, arguing that formal religion and moral reformation cannot substitute for the radical transformation that God works in the human heart. Whitefield expounds classic evangelical themes with vivid imagery and emotional directness: the total depravity of human nature, justification by faith alone, and the assurance that flows from genuine conversion. His sermon "The Method of Grace" traces the progression from conviction of sin to saving faith, while "The Nature and Necessity of Our New Birth in Christ Jesus" demolishes any notion that christening, church membership, or ethical behavior can constitute true Christianity. Throughout, Whitefield employs theatrical techniques and colloquial language that scandalized refined churchmen but proved devastatingly effective in reaching common people previously untouched by gospel preaching.

These sermons established the template for evangelical preaching that would dominate Protestant revivalism for centuries. Whitefield's emphasis on immediate decision, personal experience of God's grace, and the priority of heart religion over ritual observance became foundational to evangelical identity. His ability to distill complex theological concepts into accessible, emotionally compelling messages influenced generations of revivalists from Charles Finney to Billy Graham. Modern readers encounter in these pages the theological DNA of evangelical Protestantism in its most potent original form.

Who should read this: Those seeking to understand the theological foundations of evangelical Protestantism and the rhetorical power that launched the Great Awakening. Readers expecting nuanced systematic theology or contemplative spirituality will find Whitefield's urgent, single-minded focus on conversion too narrow for their purposes.