JOHN BUNYAN - THE BEDFORD TINKER

written by A G Ashdown specifically for the anniversary of Bunyan's death in 1988

There will be thousands of words written about this very remarkable man, as the ter-centenary of his death on 31st August 1988 is celebrated. He will be remembered for his literary ability and mighty preaching, for his pastoral gifts and his tenacious love of truth.

However, I wish to recall his unique contribution to the cause of religious liberty. This is a priceless treasure, which is denied to many in the communist countries of the world in our own day. We enjoy it because of the sufferings of our ancestors in a past time. Some gave up their lives, and others endured great hardship, toil and suffering to secure this blessing for us. It is a basic human freedom. We, who hold firmly to our Protestant principles would not deny those who differ from us this right - it was the Reformation that secured it for us and our Roman Catholic neighbours alike. John Bunyan suffered much in this righteous cause.

His Early Life and Background

His early life is hidden from us, even the patient researches of Dr John Brown, his best biographer, failed to unveil it. That he came from an obscure working class origin is very clear. Poverty, hardship and insecurity were his lot. Later in life he was able to interpret these conditions in the light of the Word and providence of God and thus found comfort. We would like to know with certainty where he went to school and what he learned. We do know that he was an expert at the trade of a tinker which both he and his father followed. In the Bunyan Museum at Bedford there is a violin made from sheet iron, the work of his hands and it is a masterpiece of his craft.

Non-Conformity and the Stuart Monarchs

The lot of the non-conformist in those times was a hard one. The established Church tried to coerce the population into its pale, it had renounced the Pope but retained much of the spirit of popery. Non attendance at the parish Church was an offence, punishable by fines and even imprisonment if persisted in. The sufferings of the Puritans became more acute with the passing of the Act of Uniformity in 1662 and the ejection of the 2000 ministers from the Church of England. Meanwhile John Bunyan was sent to the Bedford County Gaol in 1660. This was about two years after the death of Oliver Cromwell.

Preaching the Gospel was an Offence

His great offence was preaching the Gospel. No one was allowed to preach but those who held the Bishop's licence, the clergy of the Church of England. John Bunyan did not obey this spiteful law but continued his ministry. He knew he was called of God to preach, that his call had been ratified by the Church of which he was a member. The Puritans were convinced that the Bible was the inspired Word of the living God, to be obeyed and followed without questioning. John Bunyan dare not go back on what he firmly believed to be the Word of God. Had he signed a bond to the effect that he would not preach, this would have ended his pastorate of the dissenting Church in Bedford. He would have been released, but it would have silenced him. He would not sign such a paper. The great commission to "Go into all the world and preach the Gospel" was of more importance to him than personal liberty. He could cry with Paul, "Woe is unto me if I preach not the Gospel" (1 Cor 9:16). His Divine call to the preaching of the Gospel must be obeyed regardless of cost.

Counting the Cost

John Bunyan knew much of this cost. The Protestant faith that he professed was a costly one. There were people alive, who he must have met, whose grandparents were burnt at the stake under Mary I (Tudor) in the great persecution. Even under Elizabeth I there had been some persecution of the separatists. During the reign of James I the laws against them had been enforced and led to the flight of the Pilgrim Fathers first to Holland and then to the New World. During that period many Quakers were in Prison for not taking oaths in the courts of law. It may be that John Bunyan's first wife, Mary, came from a persecuted family. It was certainly one where the Word of God was honoured and Puritan literature read, for poor as she was, she clung to the two Puritan books that were the property of her deceased father and her only possession at the time of her marriage. All real religion in those times was costly. No doubt the life of the tinker was influenced to some degree by the fact that he had served in the Parliamentary Army under General Fairfax in the garrison at Newport Pagnell. Many of his comrades had been persecuted by Archbishop Laud. He would have listened to great Puritan preachers at Church Parades, he may well have become inclined to evangelical belief during that two and a half years. Later he knew that his position in the Church that met in St. John's Church, Bedford and his preaching might bring him into trouble, but he was prepared for this and bore the burden with patience.

The Years in Prison

John Bunyan speaks of the pain he felt when he was parted from his family and committed to prison. The hardest part of all was the parting from his eldest child, Mary, was was born blind. His beloved first wife, Mary, had died in 1656 and he had married again in 1659, a bold and courageous woman, Elizabeth, who shared his faith and matched his courage. He was committed in the first instance for three months, if at the end of that time he would not sign a bond to the effect that he would preach no longer he would be deported or be hanged. Had he been deported he would have been sent to the West Indies as a slave, if hanged it would have been a public hanging. In the end the justices preferred to let him rot in prison. It was a life of uncertainty and hardship. Not being allowed his forge he had to ply a different craft, that of making long leather laces and fitting them with metal tags. At times, chained to the prison wall he would offer his laces to passers by to earn a living. Elizabeth worked at her lace pillow. With help from friends the family survived, but in great hardship. It was the goodness of a faithful God that kept them alive. Meanwhile John Bunyan laboured long, on his books, wrote and preached in the prison when possible. He stored his mind with the Word of God and read John Foxe's "Acts and Monuments of the Christian Church". No doubt the story of the Martyrs and the history of the Reformation helped to give him the courage he so sorely needed and brought him hope. The days and months went by till twelve years had passed, then he was released for a little while. When committed to prison again for a short while he wrote the "Pilgrim's Progress", his greatest work.

The Great Cause

He and others who suffered with him secured for us the right to preach the Gospel, to evangelise, to obey the great commission. Yet today many evangelicals, not fettered or hindered, living in ease and luxury, drag their feet. Some of the people of these islands live and die without ever having the Gospel put plainly to them. Many pulpits are filled by men who do not believe the great truths of the Bible, they deny the essentials of the faith and our country is in great darkness. Let us then arise and spread the Gospel, taking advantage of this costly freedom, let pen and pulpit and personal witness all be used to spread our Saviour's Name. Let us bring Christ to the nation and the nation to Christ. The profession of the Gospel is not costly to us, that is why we value it little. Many attend only one service on the Lord's Day and none in the week. Large Churches are often in difficulty to find people to carry on their organisations. In spite of many having much more leisure than their fathers had they will not shoulder the burden of spreading the Gospel. In Bunyan's day to be a Christian was to give oneself to the cause of Christ and it was costly, it meant hardship and imprisonment, but the sacrifices they made were fruitful of very great good.

The Final Years

On his release from gaol John Bunyan resumed his pastorate of the cause at Bedford. His influence grew, he preached, he wrote, his was a life of activity, and from the midst of it, at the age of sixty, in 1688 the call came to enter the celestial city and the presence of Christ. He died in London and like his Master was buried in another man's grave. In Bunhill Fields his mortal remains rest, among a host of other godly puritans, awaiting the resurrection of the just at the advent of our Saviour.

Bunyan at one of his trials:

"I did but speak that I did smartingly feel."

(Taken from the July/August 1988 edition of "The Reformer", the official organ of the Protestant Alliance. Reproduced with permission.)