The following is from a book called Characters and Pilgrim's Progress, and this character is evangelist, but it mentions the conversion of John Gifford, the pastor of John Bunyan. Do the work of an evangelist, Paul said to Timothy. On the 1st of June, 1648, a very bitter fight was fought at Maidstone and Kent between the parliamentary forces under Fairfax and the Royalists, till Oliver Cromwell rose to all his military and administrative greatness. Fairfax was Generalissimo of the Puritan Army, and that able soldier never executed a more brilliant exploit than he did that memorable night at Maidstone. In one night a royalist insurrection was stamped out and extinguished in its own blood. Hundreds of dead bodies filled the streets of the town. Hundreds of the enemy were taken prisoners while hundreds more who were hiding in the hop fields and forests around the town fell into the hands of Fairfax next morning. Among the prisoners so taken was a Royalist Major who had had a deep hand in the Maidstone insurrection named John Gifford, a man who was destined in a time to come to run a remarkable career. Only today, the day after the battle, he has no prospect before him but to gallows. On the night before his execution by the courtesy of Fairfax, Gifford's sister was permitted to visit her brother in his prison. The soldiers were overcome with weariness and sleep after the engagement, and Gifford's sister so managed it that her brother got past the sentries and escaped out of the town. He lay hid for some days in the ditches and thickets around the town till he was able to escape to London, and thence to shelter of some friends of his at Bedford. John Gifford had studied medicine before he entered the army, and as soon as he thought it safe, he began to practice his old art in the town of Bedford. Gifford had been a dissolute man as a soldier, and he became, if possible, a still more scandalously dissolute man as a civilian. Gifford's life in Bedford was a public disgrace, and his hatred and persecution of the Puritans in that town made his very name an infamy and a fear. He reduced himself to beggary with gambling and drink, but when near suicide, he came under the power of the truth. Till we see him clothed with rags and with a great burden on his back, crying out, what must I do to be saved? But at last, I quote from the session records of his future church at Bedford, he said, God did so plentifully discover to him the forgiveness of sins for the sake of Christ, that all of his life after he lost, not the light of God's countenance, No, not for an hour, save only about two days before he died. John Gifford's conversion had been so conspicuous and notorious that both town and country soon heard of it. And instead of being ashamed of it and seeking to hide it, Gifford at once and openly threw in his lot with the extremist Puritans in the Puritan town of Bedford, England. Nor could the talents of John Gifford be hid, till from one thing to another we find the former royalist and dissolute cavalier, actually the parish minister of Bedford and Cromwell, so evangelical, but otherwise so elastic establishment. At this point we open John Bunyan's Grace abounding to the chief of sinners and we read this classical passage. Upon a day the good providence of God did cast me to Bedford to work in my calling, and in one of the streets of that town I came where there were three or four poor women sitting at the door in the sun and talking about the things of God. But I may say I heard, but I did not understand, for they were far above and out of my reach. About this time I began to break my mind to those poor people in Bedford and to tell them of my condition, which when they had heard they told Mr. John Gifford of me, who himself also took occasion to talk with me and was willing to be well persuaded of me, though I think on too little grounds. But he invited me to his house. where I should hear him confer with others about the dealings of God with their souls, from all which I still received more conviction, and from that time began to see something of the vanity and inner wretchedness of my own heart, for as yet I knew no great manner therein. At that time also I sat under the ministry of Holy Mr. Gifford, whose doctrine, by the grace of God, was much for my stability." And so on in that inimitable narrative. The first minister whose words were truly blessed of God for our awakening and conversion has always a place of his own in our hearts. We all have some minister, some revivalist, some faithful friend, or some good book in a warm place in our heart. It may be a great city preacher. It may be a humble American or Irish revivalist. It may be the Pilgrim's Progress or the Cartophonia or the Serious Call. Whoever or whatever it was that first arrested and awakened and turned us into the way of life, they all are or they stand in a place by themselves in our grateful hearts. John Gifford has been immortalized by John Bunyan both in his grace abounding and in his Pilgrim's Progress. In his grace abounding, as we have just seen, and in the pilgrim, Gifford has his portrait painted in holy oil on the wall of the interpreter's house, and again in eloquent pen and ink. In the person of evangelist, John Gifford had himself made a narrow escape out of the city of destruction, and John Bunyan had, by Gifford's assistance, made the same escape as well. The scene, therefore, both within that city and outside the gate of it, was so fixed in Bunyan's mind and memory that no part of its memorable book is more memorably put than just its opening page. Bunyan himself is a man in rags, and Gifford is the evangelist who comes to console and to conduct him. John Bunyan's portraits are all taken from the life. Brilliant and well furnished as Bunyan's imagination was, Bedford was still better furnished with all kinds of men and women, and with all kinds of saints and sinners. And thus instead of drawn upon his imagination and writing his books, Bunyan drew from life. And thus it is that we see first John Gifford and then John Bunyan himself at the gate of the city. And then over the page Gifford becomes the evangelist who is sent by the four poor women to speak to the awakened Tinker. It is interesting to see in this biography of John Gifford what book God used in his conversion. It just happened to be published in Moby, Kindle, and PDF format yesterday from monergism.com. Robert Bolton directions for a comfortable walk with God 1631. Again, here is the story of John Gifford, his awakening, but one night After losing all of his money at cards, Gifford was led to open a book of the famous Puritan Robert Bolton, when something that he read in that book took such a hold of him that he lay in agony of conscience for several weeks afterwards. At last, at his old church session record still extant, it has it that God did so plentifully discover to him the forgiveness of his sins for the sake of Christ and that all of his life after he lost not the sight of God's countenance save only about two days before he died. No sooner did John Gifford become a changed man than like Saul of Tarsus he openly joined himself to those whom he had hitherto persecuted and ultimately he became their beloved pastor. The three or four poor women whom Bunyan saw one day sitting at a door in the sun and talking about the things of God were all members of John Gifford's free church congregation. And in long after days Bunyan immortalized Gifford as his evangelist in the Pilgrim's Progress. Such then was Holy Mr. Gifford whose doctrine, by God's grace, was so much for John Bunyan's stability. John Gifford's pulpit was blessed to young John Bunyan, and Bunyan long afterwards went back upon and signalized these four features of Gifford's pulpit work. Its scriptural character, its doctrinal character, its experimental character, and its evangelical character. He tells us in his own inimitable way how his minister taught him to read his New Testament, and especially how he taught him to employ his eyes upon Jesus Christ in his New Testament. Under the ministry of Holy Mr. Gifford, oh how my soul, says Bunyan, was led on from truth to truth, even from the birth and cradle of the Son of God to His ascension and a second coming from heaven to judge the world. There was not one part of the gospel of the Lord Jesus, but I was orderly led into it. I thought I was as if I had seen him born, as if I had seen him grow up, as if I had seen him walk through this world from his cradle to his cross, to which also, when he came, I saw how gently he gave himself to be hanged and knelt upon it for my sins and my wicked doings. Also, as I mused on this, his progress, that scripture dropped on my spirit, he was ordained for the slaughter. What a contrast to the time when the young John Bunyan could not away with the Scriptures, and when he said, What is the Bible? Give me a ballad, a newsbook, George on horseback, or Beavis of Southampton. Give me some book that teaches curious arts, or that tells old fables. But for the Holy Scriptures I cared not. What a happy service John Gifford did to John Bunyan, and to us, and to all the world. And then all his after days, John Bunyan Tinker, preacher, great writer and great saint of God, went back on John Gifford's doctrinal preaching with an ever-increasing gratitude. At this time also I sat under the ministry of Holy Mr. Gifford, whose doctrine by God's grace was much for my stability. His doctrine was as seasonable to my soul as the former and the latter reign in their season. Wherefore I found my soul through grace very apt to drink in his doctrine." Both John Gifford's day and John Bunyan's day were the greatest days of doctrinal preaching the Church of Christ has seen since Paul's day, whereas your day and mine is the weakest in doctrine that the Church of Christ has ever had to come through. Now this is being written by Alexander White and White died in the year 1921. I go on. But the day of sound and deep doctrine and religion must come back again. All real knowledge takes a form of doctrine. A doctrine is a truth that is so sure that it can be taught and can be trusted to our statesmen and our businessmen and our scientific men and our artistic men are all trusted and are all honored and are all rewarded just in the measure that they master the foundation doctrines of their several professions and services and then go on to put those doctrines into practice. And it surely cannot continue to be that the one thing needful for all men to know should be left to stand without a foundation in men's understandings, as well as without a hold over their hearts and their lives. All other doctrines, whether of philosophy or of science or of art, have been the slow and the gradual discovery of human observation and experiment. But the doctrines of grace are of another kind. And they come from another world. Unless they are the greatest delusion and the greatest snare, the doctrines of grace are the very wisdom of God and the very power of God to the salvation of sinful and suffering men. And in the Word of God those doctrines stand revealed from heaven, in all their fullness and in all their assurance of grace and truth, and in the fullness to which no man is ever to add. or is ever to take away. At this time, says John Bunyan, I sat under the ministry of Holy Mr. Gifford, whose doctrine by God's grace was much for my stability. Characters in Pilgrim's Progress Alexander White The Evangelist