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Olaudah Equiano: The Interesting Man

2/14/2019

This week, I want to recommend a wonderful resource by Luke Walker. He wrote Olaudah Equiano: The Interesting Man to highlight the life of a godly black Christian who has made an impact on the world. I hope this sampling of the book whets your appetite to pick up a copy!

A Boy In Bondage

Olaudah Equiano was the first known writer of the atrocities of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. His autobiographical writings chronicled his life from the moment he and his sister were kidnapped and enslaved to his days as an abolitionist and missionary. He was only eleven years old when he and his sisters were forcefully kidnapped. After this, he was separated from his sister and tossed back and forth amongst domestic slave owners before finally being carried across the Atlantic Ocean to America.

For a short time, he was enslaved in Virginia but was eventually purchased and taken to England. On his way, his name was changed to Gustavus Vassa (the name he would carry most of his life, until his autobiography revealed his birth name). Luke Walker, a biographer of Equiano, calls us to consider a painful reality: “Imagine being a child alone, socially isolated with no explanation given while horrors are carried out all around you. That is perhaps the most frightening aspect of all, the psychological terror of the ice-hearted cruelty of men”. (p. 10)

Glimpses of Providence

A man by the name of Daniel Queen began to instruct Equiano in the scriptures, and this would lead to a passion and love for God’s Word in his life. His master, who should have freed him, instead sold him to another master, bringing Equiano to the West Indies. As he traveled under his new master Robert King and Captain Thomas Farmer, he chose not to run away because he trusted in God’s sovereign hand over his life (though he didn’t fully grasp who God was at the time). This integrity led to a relationship with Thomas Farmer that would ultimately change his entire life.

In God’s Providence, King advised him to pursue his freedom. He even gave Equiano sugar and rum to sell as he sought to purchase his freedom. Though God’s hand was with him, he experienced injustice in his trading with no legal support when fraudulent transactions occurred. Even worse, Equiano recounts the rape, iron muzzles, thumb screws, and other cruel methods used to punish and harm the slaves. Walker says, “I will not let the reader forget that these were real people, created imago dei (in the image of God)” (p. 17). He continues accurately, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles” because of such wickedness (Romans 2:24)!

“I wished to be as happy as them… this kind of Christian fellowship I had never seen, nor ever thought of seeing on earth; it fully reminded me of what I had read in the holy scriptures, of the primitive Christians who loved each other and broke bread.”

Things Are Changing

When Equiano earned enough money to buy his freedom, his master almost didn’t let him go. However, God’s hand was at work just as it was in the days of Joseph in Genesis and Thomas Farmer convinced King to let him go. After buying his freedom, he returned to England where he would use his appetite for learning to gain much knowledge and insight in music, mathematics, and other areas.

In some near-death experiences while traveling with Dr. Charles Irving strike a northern passage to India, Equiano realized that his soul was not free from the bondage of sin. After a season of seeking Catholicism, Quakerism, and Judaism, God opened a door for Equiano to hear the gospel from some sea-faring man he met. This man and his minister would show and speak of the impacts of the powerful gospel in their lives. Equiano writes that “I wished to be as happy as them… this kind of Christian fellowship I had never seen, nor ever thought of seeing on earth; it fully reminded me of what I had read in the holy scriptures, of the primitive Christians who loved each other and broke bread.” (p. 27)

Free At Last

On October 6, 1774, Equiano came across this life-changing verse of scripture: “there is no other name under heaven by which men must be saved” (Acts 4:12). It was then that Equiano “saw clearly with the eye of faith” that he was a wicked sinner, that Jesus died to pay for his sin, and that God’s invisible hand had been with him since he was 11 years old (p.29). Jesus and His Word became sweeter and greater to him than anything else on this earth. He was born again. The slave who had been released from the shackles of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade was freed from the eternal shackles of sin and death!

After his conversion, the saints in London urged him to use his gifts as a sailor to spread the gospel. Several of his early missionary efforts were thwarted, but he eventually founded The Sons Of Africa and fought for the rights of blacks in Britain. Being an entrepreneur, he self-promoted his autobiography The Interesting Man to help his work in the abolition of slavery at a time when William Wilberforce and others were also fighting for the same cause.

The slave who had been released from the shackles of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade was freed from the eternal shackles of sin and death!

His Legacy Lives On

In 1792, Equiano married Susanna Cullen, a white woman. Like many of the early white abolitionists of his day, he desired to see society as a whole shaped by the freedom of all people. Olaudah and Susanna had two children before Susanna passed away in 1796 and Olaudah in 1797. In 1833, the Slavery Abolition Act was passed by the British Parliament due in some part to Equiano’s life and work some 40 to 50 years prior. It would be another 30 years before slavery was abolished in the United States, but Equiano was undoubtedly aided in the “domino” effect that England’s abolition had in the United States (p. 38)

Though Christianity is often called a “White Man’s Religion”, men like Equiano prove that Christianity—and Reformed theology—are not inherently white or racist. Equiano was a Calvinist and his Calvinistic theology pervaded his views of humanity and our being made in God's image. There is an increasing animosity toward Reformed theology today, but Christians of all races would be wise to look back at men like Olaudah Equiano to be reminded that Biblical truth transcends the racial distinctions set up in any culture.

As you celebrate black history month, thank God for His sovereign hand in the lives of slaves who saw a corrupt form of Christianity but, more importantly, saw the true Savior in His glory. All things work together for those who love God.

Two Christian men, one black and one white, had a major impact on the abolition of slavery in England. The common thread between Equiano and Wilberforce was a robust, Biblical, and Reformed theology of man’s dignity. Every free black person in America and England can be thankful for God’s Providential hand in the life of Olaudah Equiano. Equiano, like other black Christians from his day, can truly look back at all of his former masters and oppressors and say, “as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today” (Gen. 50:20).

As you celebrate black history month, thank God for His sovereign hand in the lives of slaves who saw a corrupt form of Christianity but, more importantly, saw the true Savior in His glory. All things work together for those who love God.

*I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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Lott Carey: Liberated to Preach Christ

2/7/2019

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Image credit: http://lottcarey.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/Lott-Carey-Photograph-654x1024.jpg

Since it’s Black History Month, I am reading The African Preachers published by Sprinkle Publications. I plan to share about the four African preachers spotlighted in this wonderful work in order to stir your affections for the work God has done among black Christians in America. I also highly recommend this volume for your personal library! It's a wonderful glimpse into Christ's work amid the horrors of slavery in America, and it will truly remind you that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28).

Early Life and Conversion
Lott Carey (1780-1828) may not be a household name, but God's use of this man will be known and celebrated for eternity. Born a slave, Carey made his way to Africa through God's missionary call on his life.

Carey was raised by godly parents in his hometown of Charles City, Virginia before being moved to Richmond, Virginia to work as a common laborer in a warehouse at the age of 24. For the first couple of years that he was in Richmond, he was described as "increasingly vicious" (p.12), being frequently drunk and very vulgar in his language. God was at work in his life, and this would soon be obvious.

In 1807, Carey was saved by the Lord and "an immediate and remarkable change was discovered in his life" (p.12). This change can be attributed only to the powerful working of the Holy Spirit in transforming his heart. It was at this time that he would hear his pastor preaching about the Spirit’s mighty work of the new birth in the life of believers found in John 3. He devoted himself to learning how to read this passage.

From Slave to Student
At his conversion, Carey was lacked knowledge even of the alphabet (p.13). However, just as God used "uneducated men" to spread His kingdom in the New Testament, He would give Carey all he needed to preach the Word and build enough favor to purchase his own freedom (Acts 4:13). With the help of some young men at the warehouse, Carey quickly taught himself to read John 3. Soon after, he also learned to write.

His learning was not in vain, either. He began preaching and exhorting people to come to Christ immediately. Carey devoted his free time to reading and building up his mind, even being found studying Smith's Wealth of Nations. Meanwhile, as his intellect grew and his call to mission work was growing, Carey "became more and more respected, and useful in his services at the warehouse" (p.14). He took seriously the biblical command to "work heartily as unto the Lord and not unto men" (Colossians 3:23).

His Character and Call

Though a slave, Lott Carey's character and work ethic were highly regarded by both black and white folks, and through God's providence, he was able to earn enough money to purchase freedom for himself and his two children for $850. Sadly, his first wife passed away before he could purchase her freedom. His godly reputation would proceed him so much that when he desired to leave his work as a warehouse laborer, his employers offered to raise his salary to $1000 if he would remain in the United States.

Like Paul, in Acts 20:22, however, Carey was “constrained by the Spirit” to take the gospel to Africa. When asked why he would risk his life, comfort, and prosperity to preach the gospel in Africa, he responded, "I feel bound to labor for my suffering race" (p.17). He must have felt the anguish of Paul who said, "...I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh" (Romans 9:1-3). This calling would lead Carey and others to form the African Missionary Society which would give money to African mission work. This wasn't enough for him, though. God called him to the mission field in Africa and he desired it as much as God did.

Onward to the Mission Field
Carey and his fellow preacher Collin Teague were approved by the American Baptist Mission Society and the Colonization Society to take the gospel to Africa where being black would be "no disparagement to their usefulness" (p.20). About a year after their approval, Carey, Teague, and their families would be ready to go. In Carey's last sermon, he preached these profoundly prophetic words:

"I am about to leave you and expect to see your faces no more. I long to preach to the poor Africans the way of life and salvation. I don't know what may befall me...nor am I anxious what may become of me. I feel it my duty to go, and I very much fear, that many of those who preach the gospel in this country will blush when the Savior calls them to give account of their labors in His cause, and tells them, 'I commanded you to go into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature'..." (p. 24)

They traveled to the coast of Africa in the Nautilus on January 23, 1821 and eventually settled in the colony of Liberia, where they would live out the Great Commission.

Carey and His Legacy
Lott Carey was the first African American missionary to Africa. He founded Providence Baptist Church in Monrovia, the first Baptist church in Liberia. We would all do well to imitate Lott Carey's "impeccable life" and remember that "because he trusted God in ordinary things, God blessed him extraordinarily" (p. 4-5). As Christians, we know that all authority has been given to Jesus as He will build His church through us as we "make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28:19).

Though Carey only served in Africa for 7 years until his death in 1828, he was a pastor, counselor, and physician to the people there. His impact was not only felt in Liberia but also in the churches who supported him on the mission field. Carey's integrity, commitment to the mission, and faith in God have encouraged and inspired black and white Christians for nearly 200 years since his departure from Virginia.

Bibliography:
“The African Preachers” by Sprinkle Publications
The Lott Carey Global Christian Missional Community: LottCarey.Org

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The Beauty Of The Cross

2/6/2019

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*Affiliate Disclosure:
I received a complementary copy of this book from the publisher and was not required to leave a positive review. Also, as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Many Christians worldwide celebrate Lent, the 40 day period leading up to Easter which emphasizes prayer, fasting, and the importance of repentance. Though typically associated with Catholicism, many Protestants also find that a season of repentance and preparation for Easter is something of great value as well. Regardless of what you call it, you may want to set aside those forty days to give some focused meditation on Christ and His Sacrifice at the cross.

The Beauty of the Cross: Reflections for Lent from Isaiah 52 and 53 by Tim Chester is an excellent option for such a time of focus and reflection. From the introduction, Chester makes it clear that he wants readers to stand in awe of God and His great work in the death and resurrection of Jesus:

I want our jaws to drop as we stand open-mouthed before the cross, lost for words as we see the love of Christ in all its fullness.

Chester's deep love for God and His Word shines bright in this wonderful 40-day devotional. He drinks deep from the wells of sound biblical teaching while bringing rich illustrations and exhortations to see Christ's worth as we behold Him. By no means is this a technical commentary nor is it a light and fluffy feel-good devotional book. The Beauty of the Cross is meant to show us precisely what the title says: that the cross is beautiful because of the Savior who hung on it.

Zooming in on some of the richest and most explicitly Christ-centered passages in the Old Testament, the four songs in Isaiah (particularly the fourth song in 52 and 53) will open readers' eyes to the glory of Christ and His work in making purification for sins.

Chester shows us that Christ's work on the cross wasn't a New Testament invention or God's "whoops, better fix it!" moment to solve humanity's problems. The Beauty of the Cross shows us that God's plan A to rescue His people is glorious and gives us an opportunity to step back in awe as we set our minds and affections on the holy and triune God we serve.

Do yourself a favor and grab a copy before March 6th, so you can savor God's Word in Isaiah 52 and 53 this Lenten season! In a world of distraction, sometimes the best moments are we simply slow down and steep ourselves in a small section of God's Word!

For more information on Lent, see https://www.gotquestions.org/what-is-Lent.html.

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Olaudah Equiano: The Interesting Man

Lott Carey: Liberated to Preach Christ

The Beauty Of The Cross