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Series Code: TIJ
Program Code: TIJ002123A
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00:25 I'm standing where the tidal shores of the River Thames in 00:28 were once used as a place of execution. This is the land of 00:35 execution dock where pirates were condemned to 00:38 the gallows in the 00:39 15th to 19th centuries. Today walking in the well known 00:45 district in east London a short walk away from Tower Bridge and 00:49 the Tower of London. This place has a rich history of pirates, 00:54 explorers and sailors. But there's another fascinating 00:58 story of the sea that comes from this maritime suburb in London. 01:02 Walking was the birthplace of a man whose life was hardened by 01:08 obstinacy, arrogance and deliberate disobedience. 01:12 After many years at sea and mastering slave ships that 01:18 transported thousands of slaves John Newton found himself 01:22 depressed and totally ashamed of all he had done. Sometime later 01:29 he wrote a poem that has become the best known and most loved 01:33 song in all the world. It's a heartfelt song that was written 01:38 because one man's life was changed. He finally found inner 01:44 peace and happiness. What changed his life? Well we'll 01:48 find out what happened in today's program The Slave Trader 01:53 Amazing Grace. 01:56 ♪ ♪ 02:26 The golden age of piracy from 1660 to 1730 inspired images of 02:33 buried treasure, swashbuckling duals and sailing the high seas. 02:38 It was the age of colonial expansion and trade and pirates 02:42 roamed the seas looting valuable cargo ships. Many pirates were 02:50 experienced sailors who were either forced or chose to join the 02:54 pirate ships. Some of the most famous English pirates became 02:59 household names like Henry Morgan, William Captain Kidd, 03:04 Calico Jack Rackham 03:06 Bartholomew Roberts and the fearsome 03:09 Blackbeard or Edward Teach. Another well-known English 03:14 pirate was William Dampier. He was a privateer or a 03:19 pirate who had 03:20 permission from his king to attack other countries' ships. 03:23 He was also an explorer and navigator in the late 1600s who 03:28 sailed far and wide. These stairs, the Wapping old stairs 03:34 lead down to execution dock, the site where pirates were tried 03:38 and hanged by the admiralty court for over 400 years. The 03:43 gibbet or hanging gallows is constructed offshore beyond the 03:49 low watermark. The pirates bodies would be left hanging on 03:55 display until they had been submerged three times by the tide 03:58 It still stands here as a reminder of bygone days when 04:04 pirates such as Captain Kidd faced their end here. Another 04:10 famous place that is of par- ticular interest to Australians 04:15 and New Zealanders is the Bell Z right next to execution dock and 04:20 it was run by Samuel Batts whose daughter Elizabeth married James 04:25 Cook, explorer, navigator and captain in the Royal Navy who 04:29 who stayed in the Inn 04:31 and is most famous for his discovery and charting of 04:34 New Zealand and the east coast of Australia. 04:38 This dockside suburb 04:39 of London on the River Thames has had a strong maritime 04:43 character for centuries. In the 1700s it was a place for ship 04:48 wrights, sailors, mast makers and all other trades that supported 04:54 the sailors and seafarers. One of these shipmasters was John 04:59 Newton, Sr. and on the 4th of August 1725 a son John was born 05:06 to him and his wife Elizabeth here in Wapping. Elizabeth was 05:11 religious and taught her son Christian principles and values. 05:14 The family lived happily here until tragedy struck. John was 05:20 nearly seven when his mother passed away from tuberculosis. 05:24 He was heartbroken. John spent the next two years at boarding 05:30 school before going to live with his father and his new wife at 05:34 Abilene, Essex. John had become undisciplined and unruly and so 05:40 at the young age of 11 his father took him to sea to start 05:44 an apprenticeship on a merchant navy ship. His first full voyage 05:49 was on one of his father's ships Newton found his father distant 05:53 and aloof and this troubled the young Newton. He made five more 05:58 voyages through his teenage years until his father retired 06:03 in 1742. Back on land Newton worked in a merchant's 06:09 office until he 06:10 lost his job due to what was described as uncivil behavior 06:15 and impatience of restraint. This headstrong disobedience 06:20 became the pattern of young John's behavior and lifestyle. 06:25 In 1743, while on his way home from visiting a friend he 06:31 stopped at a Wapping pub. He was captured and pressed into the 06:35 naval service aboard the H.M.S. Howard. At this time when a navy 06:40 ship didn't have enough sailors to operate the ship a group of 06:44 the ship's sailors would go into the nearby pubs and force the 06:48 young men into working on the ship. Although Newton eventually 06:53 became a midshipman aboard the H.M.S. Howard he rebelled 06:58 against the discipline of the Royal Navy and tried to desert. 07:02 He was caught, put in irons and punished in front of the crew of 07:07 315. Newton was stripped to his waist and tied to the grating 07:13 where he was received a flogging of eight dozen lashes and then 07:16 demoted to a common seaman. Despite this experience he 07:22 remained arrogant and insubordinate. He eventually 07:26 convinced his superiors to discharge him to the Pegasus 07:30 a goods and slave trading ship bound for west Africa. Newton 07:36 didn't get along with the crew of the Pegasus and so in 1745 07:41 they left him in west Africa with a slave trader named Clough 07:45 who owned a lemon tree plantation on an island off the 07:49 coast. But Clough treated him cruelly and he soon found 07:53 himself a slave to Clough's African mistress. She abused and 07:58 mistreated Newton as much as the other slaves. Newton was now a 08:04 servant of slaves. His clothes soon turned to rags. He was 08:08 beaten and forced to beg for food just to survive. It was one 08:13 of the lowest times in his life. Hearing of his plight, Newton's 08:19 father asked a friend to search for his son. Newton was found in 08:24 1747 and began the long homeward journey to England. Off the 08:29 coast of Donegal in Ireland the ship was overtaken by an 08:33 enormous and almost sank. Before the storm Newton began reading 08:39 the Bible. In desperation and fear of drowning he cried out to 08:45 God for help although he did agree later that he didn't 08:49 consider himself a believer in the full sense of the word. But 08:53 after this experience he did try to avoid swearing and gambling. 08:57 But surprisingly despite his recent experiences Newton 09:03 refused to give up slave trading He still continued to serve as a 09:08 mate and then as a captain on a number of slave ships 09:11 and all this 09:13 happened before he was 23 years old. The transatlantic slave 09:20 trade involved the transportation of enslaved 09:23 African people mainly to the Americas from the 16th to the 09:27 19th centuries. The Portuguese were the first to engage in this 09:32 trade with a slave voyage to Brazil and other European 09:36 countries soon followed. At this time in history these western 09:41 European countries were vying with each other to create 09:46 overseas empires. Shipowners and crew regarded the slaves 09:51 as mere cargo to be transported to the Americas as quickly as 09:56 possible. The conditions aboard the ship were horrible and 10:00 disgusting. Newton faced mounting criticism for 10:04 continuing in the slave trade after professing to be a 10:08 Christian. But he excused his actions by saying the slave 10:12 trading was an excepted practice at that time and there were 10:15 thousands of slaveholders in the colonies who were profiting 10:18 from the slave trade. Newton continued in the slave trade as 10:23 a ship's captain. He knew his behavior was evil and cruel and 10:28 his conscience troubled him. Newton became increasingly 10:31 disgusted with the slave trade and abhorred his role in it. 10:36 But even though he'd left the slave trade he couldn't 10:40 get rid of his guilt. 10:42 He felt terrible about all the bad things he'd done. He just 10:46 couldn't forget that he'd taken thousands of people to a life of 10:51 slavery and ruined their lives forever. He couldn't forget that 10:57 he showed no compassion for his cargo, for these people. He 11:02 chained them below the decks to prevent suicide. The slaves were 11:06 laid side by side to save space row after row, one after another 11:11 until his vessel squeezed in as many as 600 Africans. And if a 11:17 slave became ill during the voyage he was tossed overboard 11:21 to prevent the infection from spreading. John Newton realized 11:26 that he'd done terrible things and that he was nothing but a 11:30 wretch and he felt wretched, filled with guilt. In his 11:36 desperation to find inner peace he turned to religion and began 11:40 studying the Bible along with the writings of reformers John 11:44 Calvin and Martin Luther. As he read the Bible he made a 11:48 discovery that changed his life forever. He discovered grace. 11:53 And it's absolutely amazing! He discovered that God doesn't stop 12:00 loving you when you make mistakes and mess up, even when 12:03 you're ridiculously bad and you make mistakes over and over 12:08 again. God won't stop loving us. God understands our failures and 12:15 loves us anyway. That's grace. That's God's gift. Here's what 12:21 it says in Ephesians chapter two and verse eight: 12:37 It finally dawned on Newton that God forgives us for the mistakes 12:41 we've made regardless of how big bad or ugly they may be and it 12:47 doesn't matter how many times we've made the same mistake. God 12:51 still forgive us completely and thoroughly. John Newton realized 12:56 that God hates sin but he loves the sinner. God hates mistakes 13:02 but he loves the people who make them. We don't deserve God's 13:07 love and forgiveness, but God loves us anyway and will never 13:12 stop loving us. That's God's amazing grace! It's a uniquely 13:20 Christian concept and it's a theme found only in the Bible 13:23 and it changed Newton's life forever. Finally, he had inner 13:30 peace. His guilt was gone. You see the Christain life isn't a 13:35 mistake-free life but it can be a guilt-free life. Newton was so 13:41 overwhelmed by this amazing grace that he wanted to share 13:46 the good news with everyone. A sense of service began to grow 13:53 in him and Newton studied to become a minister. After several 13:58 years of intense study and commitment he quit his job in 14:01 Liverpool and accepted a position as a church curate in 14:05 the Anglican church of St. Peter and St. Paul in Olney, 14:09 Buckinghamshire. Olney is a market town about 90 km. north 14:15 of London and is surrounded by beautiful English countryside. 14:19 It's famous for its annual pancake race which first began 14:23 in 1445 when a housewife hearing the church bell ran outside with 14:29 her frying pan tossing a pancake so it wouldn't stick to the pan 14:33 as she ran to the church. The tradition has continued ever 14:38 since and today on Stroh Tuesday each year the women of Olney 14:43 draped in a kitchen apron and head scarf like the first 14:46 housewife and carrying a frying pan flip their pancakes as they 14:51 run from the marketplace to the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul 14:55 a distance of over 400 meters. Newton arrived in Olney in 1764 15:03 and took up his position as minister of this very church 15:07 St. Peter and St. Paul. He received a meager wage of 60 15:11 pounds a year to live on, the equivalent of about 20,000 15:15 dollars today. At that time Olney was a village with a 15:20 population of about 2500 people Its main cottage industry was 15:25 lace making. Living in the courts and alleyways of High 15:30 Street most of the population were illiterate and poor and 15:34 sadly as cottage industries waned during the industrial 15:37 revolution many of the lace makers here faced starvation. 15:42 This troubled John Newton and this changed man who in the past 15:48 had treated humans as mere goods to buy and sell now felt great 15:52 compassion for those in need. He desperately wanted to help. A 15:58 wealthy merchant, John Thornton, agreed to supplement John 16:03 Newton's meager stipend with an additional 200 pounds a year so 16:08 he could help the poor in the area with food and basic 16:11 supplies. John soon became known for his pastoral care of the 16:16 people in Olney and also as a powerful preacher. Newton's 16:21 preaching was unique at this time as he shared many of his 16:25 own struggles and experiences with his congregation. He shared 16:30 with them how he struggled with the burden of guilt carried due 16:33 to his involvement in the slave trade and mistakes of the past. 16:37 He shared the peace he had found in his belief in God and the 16:44 assurance he had been forgiven. Soon many people came to hear 16:47 him preach and a gallery had to be added to the church to 16:51 accommodate the crowds that came to hear him speak. In 1767, 16:59 three years after Newton arrived William Cowper, the poet, moved 17:04 to Olney. Cowper was one of the most popular poets of his time 17:09 and is credited with changing the direction of 18th century 17:13 poetry by writing about every day life and scenes of the 17:18 English countryside. For the New Year's sermon a few years later 17:23 Newton focused on the importance of expressing gratefulness to 17:28 God for his love and mercy. He spoke of the New Testament 17:32 stories of the prodigal son and the healing of the blind man and 17:37 ending with his own personal story of redemption and 17:39 acceptance of the grace of God. He wrote a hymn to illustrate 17:44 the sermon on this New Year's day in 1773. It was a powerful 17:50 personal expression of his own life's experience. He opened 17:55 with the now famous words, Amazing grace! how sweet the 18:00 sound that saved a wretch like me. It's not known if there was 18:05 any music accompanying the verses because at the time hymns 18:10 didn't have specific music connected to them the way they 18:13 do today. The song was first printed in 1779 in Newton and 18:20 Cowper's Olney Hymns. Newton combined 280 of his own hymns 18:25 with 68 of Cowper's in what was to become the popular Olney 18:30 Hymns. The most famous of these hymns were first called Faith's 18:35 Review and Expectation. Although it's not known exactly 18:40 how the song made its way to the United States and it did 18:44 become very popular there. It became known by the title 18:48 Amazing Grace. In 1835 William Walker, an American Baptist song 18:56 leader joined the verses with the tune named New Britain which 19:00 is the melody we all know and love today. Walker's tune book 19:06 of songs, Southern Harmony, was enormously popular and sold over 19:11 600,000 copies when the population of America 19:15 was only around 20 million. 19:17 The sixth verse of Amazing Grace which begins with 19:22 When we've been there 10,000 years was not written by Newton, 19:28 but was added by Harriet Beecher Stowe who used the song in her 19:32 antislavery novel Uncle Tom's Cabin. The song with it's simple 19:39 message that forgiveness and redemption are possible 19:42 regardless of the sins committed touched the hearts of many of 19:46 many of its listeners. The message that you can be 19:50 delivered from your struggles and despair through the great 19:53 mercy of God is a message of hope. Though a spiritual song it 20:00 even occasionally appears on popular music charts. It's 20:04 estimated that it is performed more than 10 million times every 20:10 year. In 1779 after 16 years at Olney John Newton was invited to 20:18 become the rector of St. Mary Woolnoth church on Lombard St. 20:22 in London. John became popular amongst Christians of many 20:26 denominations and many people came to hear his sermons about 20:30 God and His amazing grace. St. Mary Woolnoth is a magnificent 20:38 church in the baroque style. It's one of the beautiful Queen 20:42 Anne churches designed by the then famous architect Nicholas 20:47 Hawksmoor. Today the church is still a place of prayer and 20:52 reflection. Young Christians and people struggling with their 20:58 faith came to St. Mary's to speak to John Newton and seek 21:02 his advice. Among them were well known social people including a 21:07 young William Wilberforce, a member of parliament and a 21:11 philanthropist. Newton became a mentor to Wilberforce and had a 21:16 great influence on him especially regarding the evils 21:19 of the slave trade. Wilberforce was seriously considering 21:23 leaving politics but Newton convinced him to remain in 21:27 parliament and serve God there. Wilberforce took his advice and 21:32 remained in politics. He dedicated his life to fighting 21:37 the slave trade in parliament. Newton and Wilberforce 21:41 collaborated in the fight to abolish slavery and 34 years 21:46 after Newton retired from the slave trade he published a 21:49 forceful pamphlet Thoughts Upon the Slave Trade in which he 21:54 described his remorse for his involvement in this evil and 21:58 cruel trade. Newton had copies sent to every MP and lived to 22:03 see the British government pass the Slave Trade Act in 1807 22:09 that prohibited the slave trade in the British empire and 22:12 ultimately led to Slave Abolition Act in 1833. Plagued 22:19 by ill health and failing eye sight Newton died on the 21st 22:23 of December1807 in London. He was buried beside his wife in 22:29 St. Mary Woolnoth in London but later they were reinterred at 22:33 the St. Peter and St. Paul Olney church in 1893. And so John 22:39 Newton the slave trader who experienced God's amazing grace 22:43 is buried here beside his wife in the churchyard at Olney. 22:48 He's memorialized by his self made epitaph before his death. 22:53 It reads: John Newton Clark once an infidel and libertine a 23:00 servant of slaves in Africa was by the rich mercy of our Lord 23:04 and Saviour Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned, 23:09 and appointed to preach the faith he had long labored to 23:13 destroy near 16 years as curate of this parish and 28 years as 23:19 Rector of St. Mary Woolnoth. John Newton described himself in 23:30 one simple sentence: I'm a great sinner, but Christ is a great 23:36 Saviour. His story gives us all hope. Even the greatest of 23:41 sinners can ultimately and meaningfully repent and find 23:45 forgiveness and inner peace. You see, God doesn't love you 23:50 because of who you are or what you've done, but because of who 23:55 He is and what He's done. God made you, He loves you and 24:01 that's it. Nothing changes that. He loves you as much on your 24:06 bad days as He does on your good days. His love is not 24:11 performance based. God looks at you and says: I chose to love 24:16 you and nothing will stop me loving you. That's grace and 24:22 it's absolutely amazing. It not only forgives, it changes, 24:27 transforms, rewires everyone who entered into a relationship with 24:33 Jesus. If you'd like to experience that grace and find 24:37 true inner peace and happiness, why not ask for it right now as 24:43 we pray. 24:45 Dear heavenly Father, we have all made mistakes in life and 24:49 have done things that we know are wrong. We are sinners. But 24:53 we are so thankful that you still love us and forgive us 24:57 when we accept Jesus and are sorry for our sins. Thank you 25:03 for your amazing grace that saved us even though we don't 25:06 deserve it. Please make your face shine on us and grant us 25:13 peace. We ask this in Jesus' name, Amen. 25:17 If you're facing challenges in life and would like to 25:22 experience God's grace and find inner peace and happiness then 25:26 I'd like to recommend a free gift we have for all our viewers 25:30 today. It's the book Steps to Christ. This book is our gift to 25:36 you and is absolutely free. There are no costs or 25:40 obligations whatsoever. This book has brought hope, peace and 25:45 happiness to millions of people around the world. So don't miss 25:50 this wonderful opportunity to receive the gift we have for you 25:54 today. Here's the information you need: 25:57 Phone or text us at 0436-333-555 or visit our website www.tij.tv 26:08 to request today's free offer and we'll send it to you totally 26:12 free of charge and with no obligation. So don't delay. 26:16 Call or text 0436-333-555 in Australia or 020-422-2042 in New 26:26 Zealand to request today's offer Write to us at: 26:30 P. O. Box 5101, Dora Creek, New South Wales 2264 Australia or: 26:43 So don't delay. Call or text 26:46 0436-333-555 in Australia or 020-422-2042 in New Zealand or 26:56 visit our website to request today's offer. Don't delay. Call 27:00 or text us now. 27:01 The Incredible Journey and Pastor Gary Kent with Pastor 27:06 Louis Torres and Carol Torres as the principal trainers are 27:10 opening a Bible College in Sydney in February of 2020. 27:14 This 14-week program will give you the skills you need to be an 27:17 effective co-laborer with Christ to carry the message of a 27:21 crucified, risen, and soon coming Saviour to the whole world. For 27:25 more information and to register phone or text us at 0481-315-101 27:32 Email us at info@tij.tv or visit our website at TiJ.tv/events. 27:43 Be sure to join us again next week when we will share another 27:47 of life's journeys together. Until then remember the ultimate 27:52 destination of life's journey. Now I saw a new heaven and a new 27:56 earth. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. 28:00 There shall be no more death nor sorrow nor crying. There shall 28:04 be no more pain for the former things have passed away. 28:09 ♪ ♪ |
Revised 2021-07-06