John Wesley 's Spiritual Journey

As a “cradle Methodist,” the standards and theological tasks mentioned in Part III of the Discipline are ingrained in how I understand and apply my faith. These aspects of the United Methodist tradition have been a foundation from which I have grown during my formative years. Although I have not always been able to articulate these beliefs, I have learned the power in living them in addition to teaching them. I believe that much of the affirming, teaching, and applying of our standards and theological task that I do in my ministry is out of this same foundation that was formative to my faith. It informs how I preach, the lead Bible studies I lead, how I lead youth group, and my interactions with congregants and the community.

George would later attend Oxford to obtain his undergraduate degree. It was at school that George was introduced to John Wesley through his participation in the Holy Club. Mark Noll explained this time by saying, “Whitefield had been an Oxford undergraduate of very modest means when he was recruited into the Holy Club where John Wesley and his brother, the hymn writer Charles, were prominent”. Noll goes on to say that it was through the participation in the club that George was saved. After Whitefield graduated his talent for preaching was almost immediately recognized. He was asked to travel to many churches throughout England preaching the good news of Jesus Christ. Arnold Dallimore explained that during this time that people would simply try to touch George’s garments as he passed them. Though Whitefield had celebrity type success in England he was called to continue his preaching in America.

Hull, Bill. The Disciple-Making Church: Leading a Body of Believers On the Journey of Faith. Updated ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2010.

Thousands of miles away and across the Atlantic Ocean, an “awakening” began to sweep through the colonies. Evangelists such as George Whitefield, John Wesley, and Jonathan Edwards began to hold revivals that had more of a Methodist, Baptist, and Presbyterian influence. They emphasized an individual’s ability

Gloucester, England during 1714. Growing up Whitfield’s education wasn’t stable yet he managed to pull himself through Pembroke and Oxford University. While attending Oxford, Whitefield was introduced to a man by the name of Charles Wesley who was a devout Christian. Within a space of time Charles managed to convince George Whitefield to join the “Holy Club” consisting of men exercising methods to advocate personal holiness otherwise known as “Methodists”. In later years, as a result, Whitefield and Wesley progressed forwards creating the Methodist Movement.

John Wesley, son of Samuel and Susanna Wesley, was born in Epworth, Lincolnshire, United Kingdom, on June 17, 1703. On February 9, 1709, a fire broke out in the Wesley household in the middle of the night. John, only five years old, was left sound asleep in his bed. Fortunately, a stranger was able to help John escape just before the building collapsed. This monumental moment led Susanna Wesley to begin a “strict reform.” She wrote in one of her personal meditations, “I do intend to be more particularly careful of the soul of this child, that Thou hast so mercifully Provided for, than ever I have been, that I may do my endeavour to instill into his mind the principles of Thy true religion and virtue. Lord, give me grace to do it sincerely

John Wesley argued Christian perfection throughout his ministry. His quest was holy living. Wesley was focused with the life of holiness than with the philosophy concerning holiness and he was engrossed in the experience than in its principles.

When considering the strengths and weaknesses of the book, the strengths dramatically outweigh the shortcomings. Allen succeeded in showing the reader that there is no excuse to discount the ministry of Paul as irrelevant in today’s missionary setting. He powerfully implemented scripture throughout the book with precision. Every verse, story, and biblical example of Paul’s practices and teachings that Allen used were necessary and served to back up his claims with ultimate truth. Also, the open addressing of his opponent’s arguments served to strengthen Allen’s thesis in a way that a simple stating of facts would be incapable of

development of Sunday school and new denominations like Methodism’s, Christian Church, The Salvation Army, and Pentecostalism etc. In addition, there is the contribution of Theologians to the praxis of Christian living.

Breaking from Protestant tradition, in which church services tended to be muted and formal, Methodist services often included “crying, moaning, and shouting”8. For Methodists, this expression of true rapturous love for God was an outgrowth of the great personal love each person had for his or her creator; for Methodists, loudly and passionately expressing your religious feelings was to embrace God with all of one’s being. This was a common thread among many reformers during the time period: the idea that the church services being practiced by the mainstream Protestant church were too far removed from the passionate love of God that many believers felt from within their hearts. Methodism and its focus on personal relationships and contact with God would prove very popular among disaffected Protestants, and would eventually become among the most well-known and populous Protestant

Especially, after seeing how effective it worked for the Moravian Brethren from Herrnhut who displayed great spiritual strength and piety among themselves. From their influence, Wesley saw a method for spiritual growth. According to Shelley (2013), “He needed now to find a method . . . He owed much to them, especially their message of justification by faith and their system of small groups for spiritual growth (p.

In The Disciple Making Church: From Dry Bones to Spiritual Vitality, author Glenn McDonald addresses what he sees as the critical element missing from the modern Christian Church: discipleship. McDonald, who owns a Master of Divinity Degree from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, is the senior pastor at Zionsville Presbyterian Church, which was once a traditional large suburban church, in that it focused more on the needs of the church than the needs of the parishioners. In this book, McDonald discusses how he helped transform his church from a traditional church to a church that emphasizes discipleship.

A sentiment common to almost any organization is that the one fact that remains constant is change. As society changes, and human understanding grows, any organization that maintains a static posture, assures its demise. Churches and Christian organizations are no exception. The gospel may remain the same, but the method for communicating it must speak to the audience to assure understanding. The Christian leader must be prepared to meet this challenge by incorporating an effective model for change into his theology of leadership in order to keep the ministry relevant and effective. Searching for such a change agent can prove to be challenging as well. To aid in this search, four

John Wesley’s discourse, “The Means of Grace,” expresses the expedient of grace as, “outward signs, language, or actions ordained of God, and appointed for this end— to be the ordinary channels whereby he might impart to men preventing, justifying, or sanctifying grace.” Acknowledging his need and proceeding in his evangelization, Wesley could obtain the grace he needed to have both the potency and placidity that was eluding from his religion. God utilized his perpetuated participation in the ministry of Scripture to proclaim faith in Christ into Wesley’s philosophy.

Winsomely presented, B.B. Warfield is well known for his scholarship with no exception seen here, In The Religious Life of Theological Students. Here as seminary students, we must chiefly be Godly men, apt to teach with the added passion of devotion driven by our love of God. As a result of our love for God, we are encouraged to have in our vocation a devotion with zeal and piety. We are to be as Warfield puts it; God-made, meaning a minister is called, shaped and developed divinely by God’s decree and power thereby being made worthy through the process of God’s call upon their life.