- Home
- Speakers
- George Fox
- The Light Shews Sin And Evil
George Fox
George Fox (1624 - 1691). English Dissenter, founder of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), born in Drayton-in-the-Clay, Leicestershire. Apprenticed as a shoemaker, he left home at 19, seeking spiritual truth amid Puritan and Anglican tensions. In 1647, after visions and direct experiences of God, he began preaching an “inner light” accessible to all, rejecting clergy and formal worship. By 1652, he gathered followers in northern England, forming the Quakers, known for pacifism and simplicity. Fox traveled across England, Ireland, the Netherlands, and America, enduring eight imprisonments for his beliefs, including at Lancaster Castle. He wrote Journal (1694) and numerous letters, shaping Quaker theology with calls for equality and justice. Married to Margaret Fell in 1669, a key Quaker leader, they had no children, but she had eight from her prior marriage. His 1660 Declaration rejected violence, influencing conscientious objection. Fox’s emphasis on personal revelation transformed Protestantism, and his writings remain central to Quaker thought.
Download
Sermon Summary
George Fox emphasizes the importance of valuing the Light within us, which reveals sin and evil, guiding us towards humility and away from worldly temptations. He urges listeners to heed this inner Light, as it serves as both a teacher and a source of condemnation, leading to purity and holiness. By following the Light, individuals can cultivate a deeper relationship with the Lord and experience spiritual refreshment. Fox warns against conforming to the evils and vanities of the world, encouraging a focus on inner guidance and faithfulness to God. Ultimately, he calls for a love of the Light, equating it with a love for Christ.
The Light Shews Sin and Evil
DEAR Friends, Prize your Time and the Love of the Lord to your Souls above all things, and mind that Light in you that shews you Sin and Evil. Which checks you, when ye speak an evil Word, and tells you that you should not be proud, nor wanton, nor fashion yourselves like unto the World; for the fashion of this World passeth away. And if ye hearken to that, it will keep you in Humbleness of Mind, and Lowliness of Heart, and turn your minds within, to wait upon the Lord, to be guided by it; and bring you to lay aside all Sin and Evil, and keep you faithful to the Lord; and bring you to wait upon him for Teaching, till an Entrance thereof be made to your Souls, and Refreshment come to them from the Presence of the Lord. There is your Teacher, the Light, obeying it; there is your Condemnation, disobeying it. If ye hearken to the Light in you, it will not suffer you to conform to the evil Ways, Customs, Fashions, Delights and Vanities of the World; and so lead you to Purity, to Holiness, to Uprightness, even up to the Lord. Dear Hearts, hearken to it, to be guided by it; For if ye love the Light, ye love Christ; if ye hate that, ye hate Christ. Therefore in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, consider of it; and the Lord Open your Understandings to know him! G.F.
- Bio
- Summary
- Transcript
- Download
George Fox (1624 - 1691). English Dissenter, founder of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), born in Drayton-in-the-Clay, Leicestershire. Apprenticed as a shoemaker, he left home at 19, seeking spiritual truth amid Puritan and Anglican tensions. In 1647, after visions and direct experiences of God, he began preaching an “inner light” accessible to all, rejecting clergy and formal worship. By 1652, he gathered followers in northern England, forming the Quakers, known for pacifism and simplicity. Fox traveled across England, Ireland, the Netherlands, and America, enduring eight imprisonments for his beliefs, including at Lancaster Castle. He wrote Journal (1694) and numerous letters, shaping Quaker theology with calls for equality and justice. Married to Margaret Fell in 1669, a key Quaker leader, they had no children, but she had eight from her prior marriage. His 1660 Declaration rejected violence, influencing conscientious objection. Fox’s emphasis on personal revelation transformed Protestantism, and his writings remain central to Quaker thought.