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John Gifford Bellett
John Gifford Bellett (1795–1864) was an Irish preacher, writer, and a foundational figure in the early Plymouth Brethren movement, known for his gentle spirit and Christ-centered teachings. Born in Dublin, Ireland, into a well-off Anglo-Irish family tied to the Church of Ireland, he was educated at Exeter Grammar School and excelled in classics at Trinity College Dublin, where he met John Nelson Darby, forming a lifelong friendship. Converted in 1817 during his student years, he briefly pursued law in London and was called to the bar in Dublin in 1821, but soon abandoned this career to serve the church as a layman. In 1825, he married Mary Drury, with whom he had six children, though only one daughter, Letitia, survived to adulthood. Bellett’s ministry took root in the late 1820s when he joined Darby, Edward Cronin, and others in Dublin to break bread and pray, sparking the Plymouth Brethren movement in 1829. Unlike his more itinerant peers, he remained largely in Ireland, focusing on local Bible study, pastoral care, and writing devotional works like The Patriarchs, The Evangelists, The Son of God, and The Moral Glory of the Lord Jesus Christ, earning him the nickname “the nightingale among the Brethren” for his poetic style. From 1846 to 1848, he lived in Bath, England, for his son John’s health, returning to Dublin in 1854 to establish a new Brethren assembly amid the movement’s divisions. Though aligned with Darby’s “exclusive” faction, he sought peace with all, notably supporting the 1859 Irish Revival. Bellett died in Dublin in 1864, leaving a legacy of humility and devotion that continues to inspire through his writings.
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John Gifford Bellett emphasizes the humility and servanthood of Christ Jesus, who, though in the form of God, took on the form of a servant and became like man. Bellett illustrates how Jesus, despite His divine nature, concealed His glory and performed miracles in a humble manner, such as paying tribute with a miraculous provision, quietly attending a wedding feast, and calming a storm as a tired man. Through these actions, Jesus demonstrated His true identity as the Creator and Lord of all, hidden beneath His humble exterior.
The Form of a Servant
"Christ Jesus: who, being in THE FORM OF GOD, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him THE FORM OF A SERVANT, and was made in the likeness of men" (Philippians 2:5-7). In His life, Christ hides His glory "the form of God," under the "form of a servant" as illustrated in the gospels. When asked for tribute, He pays the custom for Peter and Himself by commanding a fish from the sea to bring Him that very piece of money needed. On another occasion, He was the unnoticed guest at a marriage feast, yet as the very Creator of all He furnished it. Observe Him again in the vessel on the lake during a storm. He was there as a tired laboring man whose sleep was sweet. Such was His manifested form. But underneath lay "the form of God." He arose and rebuked the sea into a calm. Who was He? None less than He of whom it had been written "The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof."
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John Gifford Bellett (1795–1864) was an Irish preacher, writer, and a foundational figure in the early Plymouth Brethren movement, known for his gentle spirit and Christ-centered teachings. Born in Dublin, Ireland, into a well-off Anglo-Irish family tied to the Church of Ireland, he was educated at Exeter Grammar School and excelled in classics at Trinity College Dublin, where he met John Nelson Darby, forming a lifelong friendship. Converted in 1817 during his student years, he briefly pursued law in London and was called to the bar in Dublin in 1821, but soon abandoned this career to serve the church as a layman. In 1825, he married Mary Drury, with whom he had six children, though only one daughter, Letitia, survived to adulthood. Bellett’s ministry took root in the late 1820s when he joined Darby, Edward Cronin, and others in Dublin to break bread and pray, sparking the Plymouth Brethren movement in 1829. Unlike his more itinerant peers, he remained largely in Ireland, focusing on local Bible study, pastoral care, and writing devotional works like The Patriarchs, The Evangelists, The Son of God, and The Moral Glory of the Lord Jesus Christ, earning him the nickname “the nightingale among the Brethren” for his poetic style. From 1846 to 1848, he lived in Bath, England, for his son John’s health, returning to Dublin in 1854 to establish a new Brethren assembly amid the movement’s divisions. Though aligned with Darby’s “exclusive” faction, he sought peace with all, notably supporting the 1859 Irish Revival. Bellett died in Dublin in 1864, leaving a legacy of humility and devotion that continues to inspire through his writings.