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A Faithful Narrative
of the Surprising Work of God
by
Jonathan Edwards
 
A Faithful Narrative of the Surprising Work of God is Jonathan Edwards' own account of the mighty way in which God moved among the people of Northampton, Massachusetts and other nearby communities in the early stages of what has become known as The Great Awakening. There is much to be learned from Edwards regarding the nature of true conversion and how God's Spirit works in awakening and converting sinners. A Faithful Narrative is reproduced here in its entirety with the hopes that many will profit greatly from the observations of the greatest evangelist ever to grace the American continent.
The Narrative is divided into three sections:
I. A General Introductory Statement,
II. The Manner of Conversions Various, Yet Bearing a Great Analogy,
III. This Work Further Illustrated in Particular Instances.
 


Faithful Narrative (1737)
INTRODUCTION
As reports of the awakening of 1734-35 in and around Northampton spread, provincial leaders began to inquire into the truth and nature of the phenomena. Edwards expanded an initial brief description of the revival into a London publication in 1737, and again for a Boston imprint the following year, followed by translations in German and Dutch. A Faithful Narrative of the Surprising Work of God in the Conversion of Many Hundred Souls in Northampton put Edwards and his church before the eyes of an international audience. Here Edwards provided a social and demographic profile of the town and a sophisticated portrait of the religious psychology that he observed among his parishioners. In particular, he made famous two of his converts, the dying Abigail Hutchinson and the four-year-old Phebe Bartlett, by including extended accounts of their religious experiences. A Faithful Narrative became nothing less than the model for future revivals, a manual for conducting and monitoring them.
Edwards wrote the Narrative to dispel rumors and to clarify how conversion to Christianity occurs. Edwards gives a background of the town and its relatively mundane history prior to the Awakening of 1734.
In the book Edwards describes God's grace by using examples of various people from his local congregation, such as Abigail Hutchinson, a young woman who died joyfully. These examples illustrate the psychology of conversion by grace. He outlines several universal steps in conversion:
First, Edwards explains how the conversion starts when individuals with an interest in Christianity attempt to live righteously through their works and study scripture attempting to avoid sin and damnation and to "earn" salvation.[1]
Next, Edwards describes how these individuals inevitably fail to live up to the Old Testament legalist standard, and they experience despair at their failures and inherent sinfulness, often believing they have committed "unpardonable sin."[2]
Then, Edwards describes how successful converts experience "converting grace" and "awaken" to see that forgiveness is available to all who have faith that Jesus' sacrifice atones for all sins. This salvation is impossible through works which are simply evidence of faith, and only possible through Christ's sacrifice.[3]
Finally, this revelation of grace is followed by a sense of joy or an internal "new light" from the Holy Spirit and a desire to spread the Christian gospel and leave sin behind. Also, true converts experience a greater sensitivity to their "heart sins", such as pride and judging others, sins with which they were largely unconcerned before conversion when they were primarily concerned with legalism or their own "saving" works. Even though this change has occurred, many Christians "have no imagination that they are now converted."[4]
[edit] History and impact
Edwards published the "Narrative" in England in 1737, Boston in 1738, and later in German and Dutch, and it brought him a large international following. Prominent Christians such as George Whitefield, a British minister, came to visit Edwards in Northhampton after the publication.
The "Narrative" remains popular and modern day evangelists such as Timothy Keller often refer to this and other Edwards works as models for their ministry.[5] The song Amazing Grace, written in 1772, is sometimes compared to the "grace experience" described in the "A Faithful Narrative."