Teacher

Baxter enjoyed immense popularity during his own lifetime for his preaching and writing. But, he is remembered best for his work of discipling at Kidderminster and the phenomenal transformation, which took place there. He recognized that the revival at Kidderminster was all God's doing, but he also observed that God uses human means to achieve His ends. Baxter's means of making disciples was one-on-one teaching and applying the basic truths of Christianity. "Make disciples of all nations..." That is the goal of all Christian teaching. Baxter said it well:

The ministerial work must be carried on purely for God and the salvation of souls, not for any private ends of our own...Hard studies, much knowledge, and excellent preaching, if the ends be not right is but more glorious hypocritical sinning.

What was the content and the aim of Baxter's teaching and preaching? He preached once each Sunday (twice before the War) and once on Thursday, focusing on the fundamentals of the Christian faith. He would occasionally introduce a subject "above their own discovery," in order to keep them humble and teachable, staying clear of controversy and "Novelties of Doctrine." Always, Baxter's goal was to "increase their Knowledge; and also to make Religion pleasant to them, by a daily addition to their former Light, and to draw them on with desire and Delight."

On Thursday evenings, his home was open to neighbors. This was an informal meeting where they would sing a psalm and someone would repeat the sermon from the previous Sunday. Baxter answered doctrinal questions, gently responded to any objections, and applied Biblical principles to real-life situations. Then he would ask one or two to pray, helping those who were timid or afraid. It was there that prayers were offered and answered, and lives were changed eternally.

What proved to be the most effective and fruitful method of instruction was Baxter's system of privately catechizing, or systematically teaching every member of the flock. Monday and Tuesday afternoons were set aside by Baxter and his assistant to spend an hour with each family. Baxter would meet with the people in town and his good friend, Mr. Richard Sergeant, would visit those in the surrounding countryside.

During these meetings, Baxter would have family members recite a simple catechism and explain the sense of the doctrines. If some members of the family were shy, he would talk to them privately. He took great pains to gently draw them out. Baxter was careful not to embarrass those who were simple-minded, but still help them to grow in their faith as much as possible. Finally, he would address their individual strengths and weaknesses, urging them to "holy and blameless conduct."

The positive effects of this work were enormous. First, Baxter found that this arduous and time-consuming program was, in reality, a much more efficient and fruitful manner of teaching than any other. His experience showed that:

our private Meetings were a marvellous help to the propagating of Godliness... for thereby Truths that slipt away were recalled, and the seriousness of the Peoples minds renewed; and good desires cherished; and hereby their knowledge was much increased... some ignorant persons, who have been so long unprofitable hearers, have got more knowledge and remorse of conscience in half an hour's close discourse, than they did from ten years' public preaching.

Time passed and the majority of the church at Kidderminster followed Baxter's example of making disciples. He practiced the ideals expressed in the fourth chapter of Paul's letter to the Ephesians, "equipping the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ" and the gospel spread through the homes and shops of Kidderminster. Baxter blessed God for:

the Zeal and the diligence of the Godly People of the Place; who thirsted after the Salvation of their Neighbours, and were in private my Assistants, and being dispersed through the Town, were ready in almost all Companies to repress seducing Words, and to justify godliness, and convince, reprove, exhort Men according to their needs; as also to teach them how to pray; and to help them sanctifie the Lord's Day...

The crowning success of Baxter's personal instruction in the basics of the Christian faith was unity. In the seventeenth chapter of John, Jesus prayed for those who would believe on Him through the word of the apostles. He asked , "that they may all be as one; even as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be in Us; that the world may believe that Thou didst send Me." Jesus' prayer was answered at Kidderminster:

And our Unity and Concord was a great Advantage to us, and our freedom from those Sects and Heresies which many other Places were infected with. We had no private Church, though we had private Meetings; we had not Pastor against Pastor, nor Church against Church, nor Sect against Sect, nor Christian against Christian...But we were all of one Mind, and Mouth, and Way...When People saw diversity of Sects and Churches in any Place, it greatly hindred [sic] their conversion; and they were at a loss, and knew not what Party to be of, or what Way to go...But they had no such offence or Objection there; they could not ask, which church or Party shall I be of; for we were all but as one...