Auburn Friends

"I aim to speak plain truths to a plain people! May it please the God of all grace, to accompany my feeble endeavors to promote the knowledge of His truth! If my letters are owned to comfort the afflicted, to quicken the careless, to confirm the wavering — I will rejoice." - John Newton

John Newton, well known as the author of the song,  Amazing Grace, was radically changed by the Lord Jesus Christ and became an outstanding witness to that grace that never ceased to amaze him.  From his letters we come to know a man of great humility and wisdom, and though written some 250 years ago, they continue to comfort and encourage those who take the time to read them.

These readings are from the edition of letters edited by Josiah Bull and first published in 1869.  

Concerning Lord Dartmouth, the editor writes:

"William Legge, second Earl of Dartmouth, was born in 1731. Early in life he was deprived of his father, and his education devolved on his surviving parent. Upon the death of his grandfather, in 1750, he succeeded to the earldom. Soon after his marriage with the daughter and heiress of Sir Charles G. Nicholl, he was introduced to Lady Huntingdon. At her house he made the acquaintance of Mr. Whitefield, Mr. Romaine, the Wesleys, and other good men of the same class. Indeed, Lord and Lady Dartmouth very soon attracted general attention for the profession of religion they made, and the countenance they afforded to faithful ministers of Christ, suspected of what was called "Methodism."
Exalted as was the social position of Lord Dartmouth, he did not escape the misrepresentations and even the ridicule of some of his friends, who regarded his opinions and practices as fanatical and absurd. They, however, afterwards saw cause entirely to change their views."

"I aim to speak plain truths to a plain people! May it please the God of all grace, to accompany my feeble endeavors to promote the knowledge of His truth! If my letters are owned to comfort the afflicted, to quicken the careless, to confirm the wavering — I will rejoice." - John Newton

John Newton, well known as the author of the song,  Amazing Grace, was radically changed by the Lord Jesus Christ and became an outstanding witness to that grace that never ceased to amaze him.  From his letters we come to know a man of great humility and wisdom, and though written some 250 years ago, they continue to comfort and encourage those who take the time to read them.

These readings are from the edition of letters edited by Josiah Bull and first published in 1869.  

Concerning Mrs. Wilberforce, the editor writes:

"Mrs. Wilberforce was the wife of William Wilberforce, Esq., uncle to the celebrated statesman and philanthropist, William Wilberforce. ... She was a remarkably godly woman, a lover of all true Christians, and ever anxious and ready with her influence and her wealth to promote the cause of Christ."

On Romans 1:5

What does it mean to be a Christian? Are we saved by faith or by obedience? What does the Bible mean when it says that we will be judged by our works at the end?

Adoniram Judson (August 9, 1788 – April 12, 1850) was an American missionary, who served in Burma for almost forty years.  He labored there with his first wife Ann (née Hasseltine) (December 22, 1789 – October 24, 1826) and then also his second wife, Sarah (née Boardman, the widow of George Boardman who died while also serving in Burma) (November 4, 1803 – September 1, 1845). 

Adoniram Judson translated the whole Bible into Burmese.  He is remembered as the first significant missionary in Burma, as well as one of the first missionaries from America to travel overseas.

Their labors and their suffering are a striking testimony to their devotion to God.

[Recorded January 31, 2021]

A free verse poem by William Haddad inspired by Simon Peter's response to Jesus, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." (John 6:68)

October 26, 2020

Concerning the Chaconne (from Bach’s Partita No. 2 in D Minor): “On one stave, for a small instrument, the man writes a whole world of the deepest thoughts and most powerful feelings. If I imagined that I could have created, even conceived the piece, I am quite certain that the excess of excitement and earth-shattering experience would have driven me out of my mind. If one doesn’t have the greatest violinist around, then it is well the most beautiful pleasure to simply listen to its sound in one’s mind.” — Romantic composer Johannes Brahms in a letter to fellow composer Clara Schumann.

...

That, I submit, is the worship woven with love and beauty that made Bach’s work ultimately authentic.

An Australian Prime Minister, frustrated perhaps with the expectations placed upon him, was once heard to say that “life wasn’t meant to be easy”...

We seek ease, but it is a strange thing that, while we are easily able to imagine all manner of fears and afflictions, we cannot begin to imagine any actual circumstances that would lead to endless happiness and contentment. Whatever pictures we paint soon become wearisome and tedious. Why is this? 

Nabeel Qureshi (1983 – 2017) was a Pakistani-American Christian apologist, author, and speaker. He was a convert to Christianity from the Ahmadi movement within Islam and worked  with Ravi Zacharias from 2013 until 2016. 
He wrote 3 books: Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus: A Devout Muslim Encounters Christianity, Answering Jihad: A Better Way Forward, and No God But One—Allah or Jesus.

(Recorded November 28, 2020)

There is a scene from the great musical “Hamilton” where a song is interrupted by a herald with the words: “Silence! A message from the king. A message from the king. A message from the king!”...

Well, we asked her – she was about 13 years old then - if she would like to come with us and meet an old lady to whom we had been referred, and I have to tell you, she was not too keen...