© 98 Colin Melbourne
Smith Wigglesworth was born of humble circumstances in 1859 at the hamlet of Menston, Yorkshire, England, during the reign of Queen Victoria.
He grew up as a farm labourer, picking turnips whilst a boy, and only learned to read and write after reaching adulthood. His Grandmother led him to Christ in a Primitive Methodist fellowship when he was eight years old. Primitive Methodists were noted for their free, loud, and lively worship.
He married Polly, a zealous Salvation Army Christian, one of the Halleluia-Lasses inspired by William and Catherine Booth’s vision, and they began a small Mission in Bradford. Polly was the preacher, whenever Smith tried to preach he soon gave up in a stammering muddle and she would have to take over.
They owned a thriving plumbing business, which at one point distracted Wigglesworth from Christ and he backslid. He even tried to stop his wife from attending meetings by hiding her shoes, and locked her out of their house overnight after she went despite his protests, by wearing wellingtons (gumboots). She stood firm and loved him back to Jesus. Later he confided, “Everything I am in Christ I owe to Polly”.
At the age of forty-eight, Smith sought and received the Baptism in the Holy Spirit during the historic Sunderland Outpouring at the turn of the Century. Overnight his ministry was transformed, and he became a fluent dynamic proclaimer of Christ. God performed the most amazing healing miracles through him during the next four decades. More than a dozen people being raised from the dead.
Jesus used him to introduce the Baptism in many countries from Scandinavia to Switzerland, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, South Africa and Australia. He was particularly effective in his many visits to America, inspiring a new generation of preachers to proclaim the full Message of Christ in power.
His life was practically a continuation of the Acts of the Apostles, God confirming his bold faith and dynamic messages (see below) with signs wonders and miracles leading countless people to salvation through Christ.
Smith Wigglesworth is by far the greatest evangelist ever to come from England, his ministry continues today through these powerful books and anointed sermons. You will be invigorated, blessed and challenged by what you learn from Smith’s example. And if you dare to follow it, you will thrill Heaven, and like Wigglesworth, trample on ‘snakes and scorpions’ in Christ’s Name.
In summary: If I had to choose just two books to own, I’d have the Holy Bible and a collection of Smith Wigglesworth sermons.
Smith was an unexceptional Yorkshire plumber who was saved as a boy, and grew into a stout-hearted Christian. But after receiving the Baptism in the Holy Spirit in the 1907 Sunderland revival, the Lord transformed Wigglesworth into England’s greatest evangelist. For the next 40 years, Jesus’ ministry and power flowed through Smith, healing, delivering and saving countless souls around the world. His life practically became a continuation of the Acts of the Apostles, with at least a dozen people raised from the dead, and all manner of sickness healed.
His electrifying preaching was taken down in short-hand, and carries the most powerful anointing of anything I’ve read outside of the Bible. His sermons and teachings are still reaping results today in ever-increasing measure. When you read them, you’ll understand why.
There’s no ‘side’ to Wigglesworth, no show, just the Living Christ and Holy Spirit working through a yielded servant. He truly deserves the accolade, ‘Apostle of faith’, but like all genuine Holy Ghost preachers, his message is Christ, and leaves his hearers healed, saved, and hungry for righteousness. The Lord confirming His word with signs miracles and wonders.
Look at these sermon titles, and you’ll begin to discover what walking in the Spirit really means.
I AM The Lord That Healeth Thee
The Active Life of the Spirit-filled Believer
What it Means to Be Full of The Holy Ghost
The Bible Evidence of The Baptism in The Holy Spirit
Himself Took Our Infirmities and Bare Our Sicknesses
Colin Melbourne
© 98 Colin Melbourne
Books About Smith Wigglesworth