The young preacher in his Anglican vestments stood on the steps of the Philadelphia courthouse and addressed the massive crowd of 10,000 or more gathered before him. It was 1739, and the preacher was 25-year-old George Whitefield. He came from England to America with the prayer in his heart that the people would no longer live as 13 divided colonies but as “one nation under God.”
Knowing there were people of many sects and denominations in the crowd before him, he decided to challenge their divisions and thus mimicked a conversation with Father Abraham, whom he pictured as looking over the banister of heaven at them all.
Looking up toward heaven, Whitefield cried boldly, “Father Abraham, are there any Anglicans in heaven?”
The answer came, “No, there are no Anglicans in heaven.”
Breaking News. Spirit-Filled Stories. Subscribe to Charisma on YouTube now!
Whitefield then asked, “Father Abraham, are there any Methodists in heaven?”
“No, there are no Methodists here either” came the response.
Whitefield called out again, “Father Abraham, are there any Puritans in heaven?”
“No, there are no Puritans here either,” was the response.
“What about Baptists and Quakers?” cried Whitefield as he continued to stare heavenward.
The response: “There are none of those here either.”
Finally, sounding somewhat desperate, Whitefield cried out, “Father Abraham, what kind of people are in heaven?”
The response came back, “There are only Christians in heaven, only those washed in the blood of the Lamb.”
THANK YOU FOR VISITING MYCHARISMA.COM. TO ENJOY THE REST OF THIS MYCHARISMA POST, PLEASE VISIT THIS LINK.
Join Charisma Magazine Online to follow everything the Holy Spirit is doing around the world!