My mom died one year ago today. I have spent part of the day reflecting on my favorite memories with her. My immediate family was also able to have dinner tonight with my dad and share stories as a family about my mom.
I shared this story about my mom’s memorial service. It is the best example I have come up with of my mother’s unconditional and self-sacrificial love for me.
It is important that you know that I did not and could not have fully appreciated at the time, how hard this was for my mom. This was largely because she did not show me that my decision was hurting her because of her love for me.
High school was a tough time for me. I went to three high schools in three years. I kind of ran out of steam in the third high school and just didn’t have the energy after a few false starts to keep trying to find my people.
I remember driving to school on the first day of my junior year of high school, which was also the first day I ever drove myself to school, aware that nobody knew or cared that this was my first day to drive to school.
It was a hard year.
I remember going to lunch with my parents one day at the end of a long and discouraging week and one of my parents, I can’t remember who, suggested the possibility of applying to college as a junior. I had no idea that was a possibility, but fairly immediately became interested in it.
I applied to a small liberal arts school in the Midwest, Knox College (most famous for being the site of one of the Lincoln Douglas Debates).
With my parents blessing, I traveled to Knox College to visit the school and see what I thought. Having been to college, my parents knew better than I did that I would love it.
And I did.
A mother sacrificially loving her son, who has no idea his mom’s sacrifice.
So, I went to college after my junior year of high school. The truth is that the details of this story don’t really matter, except one thing:
I had no idea what my mom was giving up in order to support me going to college after my junior year of high school. It not only meant that I would be leaving the nest a year early. It also meant that both of my mom’s children would be leaving the same year.
My mom thought she had a year to recover from one son going off to college before both were gone. Instead, because of my decision, she became an empty nester overnight. She lost a year of parenting and a year she’d expected to have with just me living at home.
I had no idea at the time how selfless and generous it was for my mom to do that. And I had no idea how hard that must have been. The truth is I don’t think I thought about it at all.
And I want you to see what a blessing it was for me that I didn’t know. My mom could easily have let me know how much this was all hurting her. She could have let is passive aggressively slip how painful this was for her, or would be if I chose to do it.
But there was never any guilt trip at all. She had tremendous self-control. And a fierce determination to support my well-being as best she could.
I got a small glimpse of how hard this decision was for my mom a few years later when I heard the story of what happened when my mom took me back to the airport after Winter Break my freshman year.
My grandmother had to accompany my mom because she didn’t know if she’d be able to hold it together. She later told me she just fell to pieces once I was out of sight and gone again. I think that was the moment when she most felt the grief of losing that whole year with me.
From my mom’s perspective, my leaving a year early for college hurt. It was gut-wrenching.
It was bad for her.
But she saw the spark had come back into my eyes.
She saw the excitement of a new challenge and the joy that brought me.
She was not going to deny me any of that. She willingly and whole-heartedly supported me in doing something that was good for me that would cause her true grief. She sacrificed what was best for her because it was good for me.
That’s what my mom did.
Now that I have a kid in high school I have some idea of how hard this was for my mom.
I am forever marked by her love. I am so grateful.
As I mentioned in my last post, my appointment to Director of Academic Growth & Formation at Asbury Theological Seminary in Tulsa, OK has also provide the blessing of joining the staff at Asbury Church as Scholar-in-Residence. Reverend Andrew Forrest, the senior pastor at Asbury Church, wrote about my work at the church in a post published a few weeks ago. Read it here.
The first thing I get to do in my role as Scholar-in-Residence for Asbury Church is help Andrew by writing some of the commentaries for Asbury Church’s daily Bible reading. I’d love for you to join me in reading one psalm a day. We are on Psalm 94 today (July 12th). You can read today’s commentary here.
It has been a lot of fun to spend time reading commentaries and praying through these psalms. It has also deepened my appreciation for how much work it has taken for Andrew to write daily commentaries for Asbury Church’s reading plans since his arrival.
As Andrew often says, Asbury is a Bible reading church. I’m so grateful to be joining this faith community.
I’ve decided against republishing these commentaries on my own blog but wanted to share part of what I’m up to with you. It is easy to signup at Andrew’s blog here. Be sure to check the second box “Daily Bible posts” towards the bottom.
Asbury Theological Seminary recently announced my hire as Director of Academic Growth & Formation. I am delighted to share this news with you. I am one of many new hires Asbury has made as they continue to strengthen what was already an outstanding faculty. You can read more about some of the new faculty that will be joining Asbury here.
I have felt drawn to Asbury’s Tulsa, OK Extension Site since I first heard about it several years ago. I will continue to teach in my new role. I will also get to work on Asbury’s commitment to introducing students to Wesleyan band meetings. Because of Asbury’s deep Wesleyan roots, the seminary has had a commitment to small group formation as a part of the student experience. These groups give students the opportunity to “watch over one another in love,” as Wesley put it. They also give students experience in leading small groups so they will be equipped to lead dynamic small group ministries where they serve. I am thrilled to get to partner with colleagues in Formation at Asbury to equip students to build community and connection in their ministry contexts and make disciples through these tried and tested small groups.
I have already been energized by the conversations I’ve had with people at Asbury Seminary and Seedbed around band meetings. The resurgence of Wesleyan small group formation in the contemporary church is one of the most encouraging things I’ve seen in the church over the past decade. Asbury has been the key leader in reclaiming this practice, particularly through their vision for Seedbed and New Room.
I will also have the opportunity to work to build Asbury’s Tulsa Extension Site. I think this is what I am most excited about. When I lived in Georgia, people would occasionally press me to transfer my conference membership. Wherever we have lived, I have always had a sense of calling to stay connected to Oklahoma. Tulsa, in particular, has felt like home throughout my life. I am excited to be able to invite students I care about and want to work with to spend some time in a place I love.
As someone who has primarily worked in the academy, but whose heart beats for the local church, experience has shown me how important healthy local churches are to theological education.
Tulsa is the home to not just one but two of the strongest Methodist Churches in the United States (Asbury Church and First Methodist). Each church has a strong and unique heritage. Both churches have also added new senior pastors in the past year. And they are dear friends who are both people I have long said I would love to have pastor my family. Andrew Forrest is just finishing his first year at Asbury Church. And Andrew Thompson has been in place for six months at First Methodist. And these are just two of many churches in the region I believe are on the verge of revival.
I also believe Tulsa provides a model where people who are already serving in local church contexts can be further equipped and strengthened for the work God has called them to without having to leave their ministry context. One of the best ways to learn and grow is by doing. Students at Asbury Seminary – Tulsa will only come to Tulsa for 2.5-day hybrid courses a few times a year. The on campus meetings will be both academically rigorous and spiritually invigorating. The rest of the student’s academic work will be done where they live. This is a model for theological education that puts the needs of the church first without sacrificing academic quality.
I thrive when I am in a context I genuinely believe in and passionately support. I believe in Asbury Theological Seminary and the opportunities at the Tulsa Extension Site. I am eager to work with the students there that God is raising up to lead in the church.
I am also grateful to God for opening a door for me to join the team at Asbury Theological Seminary because tectonic plates are shifting in the culture, the academy, and the church.
During times of significant change and upheaval, the historian in me looks to places that are already tried and tested. Asbury Theological Seminary has demonstrated its commitment to basic Christian orthodoxy, the authority of Scripture, and its value in raising up evangelical Wesleyan pastors for the church for a century. Asbury did this in an environment where it would have benefitted from compromising its values and theological commitments. More than any institution I know of over the past one hundred years, Asbury Theological Seminary has resisted the tendency that besets nearly every institution to drift from its founding commitments.
I experienced how seriously the faculty take stewarding Asbury’s identity and commitments during my candidacy for this position. It was clear to me that this was not a mere formality. Rather, the faculty take ownership of the institution’s identity and commitments with integrity.
Asbury Seminary is a community called to prepare theologically educated, sanctified, Spirit-filled men and women to evangelize and to spread scriptural holiness throughout the world through the love of Jesus Christ, in the power of the Holy Spirit and to the glory of God the Father.
Let’s go!
Oh, one more thing: Remember how I said that I would love for Andrew Forrest or Andrew Thompson to be my family’s pastor? Andrew Forrest is now my family’s pastor! In God’s goodness to us, I am not only the Director of Academic Growth & Formation at Asbury Seminary, I am also the Scholar in Residence at Asbury Church. Asbury Church, through Tom Harrison’s leadership (who was long-time senior pastor of Asbury Church before Andrew), has always had a strong partnership with Asbury Theological Seminary. The Seminary’s Tulsa Extension Site is located on Asbury Church’s property in the Development Center. I cannot imagine a church more invested than Asbury Church in the future of theological education. I believe it will be essential for many churches to stand up and be counted in the coming years. The church must insist academic institutions entrusted with training women and men for Christian ministry maintain an unwavering commitment to biblical orthodoxy and an unabashed commitment to the ongoing formation of those students in the likeness of Jesus Christ as they are learning, growing, and leading in the church.
If you or someone you know is considering seminary, please reach out! I would love to talk with you about Asbury’s many degree options and how they can help you grow in your calling.
Kevin M. Watson is Director of Academic Growth & Formation at Asbury Theological Seminary. He is anchored at the Seminary’s Tulsa, OK Extension Site.
Tellia Ann Watson died on January 24, 2023 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She was sixty-nine years old. Tellia is survived by her husband, Matt; sons Brad (and wife Heidi) and Kevin (and wife Melissa); grandchildren Bethany, James, Eden, Henry, George, and Thomas; and siblings Susan Cherry and Roger Hennington.
Born in Wichita, KS, in the Wesley Hospital, Tellia moved many times throughout her childhood. Tellia graduated from Memorial High School (Tulsa, OK) in 1971. She graduated summa cum laude from Monmouth College in 1977. Tellia Watson was a devoted wife and mother. She was married to Matt for 51 years. She regularly said that being a mother was her most important job, which was evident in the ways she prioritized her family throughout her sons’ childhoods. She was also a constant and steadfast source of support and strength for Brad and Kevin and their families.
Tellia was a committed disciple of Jesus Christ. She was a member of Asbury Church in Tulsa. An avid reader in general, she spent time reading the Bible and other devotional material daily. Tellia also enjoyed playing board games and card games, particularly with her grandchildren. Named “Nani” by her grandkids, she was most comfortable in the role of gracious loser and delighted in seeing them win. She beamed doing anything with her grandkids and smiled when hearing about them even in her last days.
Tellia Watson is preceded in death by Willard Mack Hennington (father), Lanora Frances Miner Hennington (mother), and David Hennington (brother). A celebration of Tellia’s life will be held at 10am on February 3 at Asbury Church, 6767 S. Mingo Road, Tulsa, OK 74133.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests any charitable donations be given to Asbury Church: http://www.asburytulsa.org.
This is the 34th sermon in this series. It is very encouraging to see how many people are reading these posts and clicking through to read the sermon itself. Just joining the growing number of people reading these sermons? Feel free to start at the beginning by reading the first sermon by John Wesley in this series, “Salvation by Faith,” or jump right in with us!
Background:
Did you know that many of John Wesley’s sermons are part of the formal doctrinal teaching of multiple Wesleyan/Methodist denominations? Wesley’s sermons have particular authority because these were the main way he taught Methodist doctrine and belief.
“Catholic Spirit” is the 34th sermon of the Wesleyan Standard Sermons. Of all of Wesley’s sermons, “Catholic Spirit” may be the most frequently cited today by contemporary Methodists. In my view, the sermon is often misused to justify a big-tent vision for Methodism. But the sermon is intentionally titled “Catholic Spirit” and not “Methodist Spirit.” In other words, the sermon provides a vision for how Christians can extend love and goodwill towards one another when they disagree on matters of belief and practice that prevent them from being in the same denomination. Click here and here to read posts I’ve written that unpack how this sermon is often misused or misunderstood. This is a powerful and convicting sermon when Wesley’s words are read carefully and on their own terms.
In hopes of sparking interest in Wesley’s sermons and Methodism’s doctrinal heritage, here is my very short summary of “Catholic Spirit.” I hope it will inspire you to read the sermon in its entirety yourself. Links to the sermon and other resources are included at the end of this post.
Key quote:
“But while he is steadily fixed in his religious principles in what he believes to be the truth as it is in Jesus; while he firmly adheres to that worship of God which he judges to be most acceptable in his sight; and while he is united by the most tender and close ties to one particular congregation, his heart is enlarged toward all mankind, those he knows and those he does not; he embraces with strong and cordial affection both neighbours and strangers, friends and enemies. This is catholic or universal love. And he that has this is of a catholic spirit. For love alone gives the title to this character: catholic love is a catholic spirit. [III.4]
One sentence summary:
This sermon describes the love and good-will that Christians ought to have towards one another across denominational or confessional lines; they can be united in love though they cannot be united in one body.
Scripture passage for the sermon:
“And when he was departed thence, he lighted on Jehonadab the son of Rehab coming to meet him. And he saluted him and said, Is thine heart right, as my heart is with thy heart? And Jehonadab answered, It is. If it be, give me thine hand.”
– 2 Kings 10:15
Outline of “Catholic Spirit”
1. The royal law of love is due to all mankind. 2. We have a special obligation to love God. 3. Daily experience shows that people do not love one another as God has commanded. This is because “they cannot all think alike” and “they cannot all walk alike.” 4. “But although a difference in opinions or modes of worship may prevent an entire external union, yet need it prevent our union in affection? Though we cannot think alike, may we not love alike?” 5. Wesley introduces the Scripture he chose for the sermon as a way into his “Catholic spirit”
I. First, “Is your heart right, as my heart is with your heart?” 1. There is no questioning at the outset of Jehonadab’s opinions, though there were certainly points of difference. 2. Jehu “lets Jehonadab abound in his own sense.” 3. “It is an unavoidable consequence of the present weakness and shortness of human understanding that several men will be of several minds, in religion as well as in common life.” 4. Everyone believes that their opinions are true. But we cannot be certain that all of our opinions are true. Indeed, some of them are almost certainly false. But we don’t know which ones, or we would change our minds. 5. “Who can tell how far invincible ignorance… may extend.” 6. “Every wise man, therefore, will allow others the same liberty of thinking which he desires they should allow him; and will no more insist on their embracing his opinions than he would have them to insist on his embracing theirs.” 7. Secondly, Jehu did not question Jehonadab’s way of worshipping. 8. “As long as there are various opinions, there we be various ways of worshiping God; since a variety of opinion necessarily implies a variety of practice.” 9. How do we choose among so much variety of belief and practice? “No man can choose for, or prescribe to, another. But everyone must follow the dictates of his own conscience, in simplicity and godly sincerity.” 10. “Although every follower of Christ is obliged… to be a member of some particular congregation… none can be obliged by any power on earth but that of his own conscience to prefer this or that congregation to another, this or that particular manner of worship.” 11. “I dare not, therefore, presume to impose my mode of worship on any other.” Wesley also includes form of church government, liturgy or form of prayer, posture and manner of receiving the Lord’s Supper, and administration of baptism in this category. 12. What is, then, implied in the question: “Is your heart right, as my heart is with your heart?” First: “Is your heart right with God?” Wesley here includes a variety of doctrines as required: “Do you believe his being and his perfections? HIs eternity, immensity, wisdom, power?” 13. “Do you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ?” Wesley again includes here a litany of questions that require affirmative assent, such as “Having absolutely relinquished all your own works, your own righteousness, have you ‘submitted yourself to the righteousness of God which is by faith in Christ Jesus?'” 14. “Do you love God… ‘with all your heart, and with all your mind, and with all your soul, and with all your strength’? … Has the love of God cast the love of the world out of your soul?” 15. “Are you employed in doing not your own will, but the will of him that sent you?” 16. “Are you more afraid of displeasing God than of either death or hell?” 17. “Is your heart right toward your neighbor? Do you love as yourself, all mankind, without exception?” 18. “Do you show your love by your works? While you have time, as you have opportunity, do you in fact ‘do good to all men?'”
II. “If it be, give me your hand.” 1. “I do not mean, ‘Be of my opinion.'” 2. “I do not mean, ‘Embrace my modes of worship,’ or, ‘I will embrace yours.’… We must both act as each is fully persuaded in his own mind. He includes form or government or church polity, infant baptism, and communion in the category where differences do not prevent “catholic spirit.”[This is a key paragraph that shows that Wesley could not have intended this paragraph to apply for relationships within one denomination, but was intended to be applied across denominations.] 3. “I mean, first, love me.” 4. “Love me… with the love that is long-suffering and kind; that is patient.” 5. “I mean, secondly, commend me to God in all your prayers.” 6. “I mean, thirdly, provoke me to love and to good works.” 7. “I mean, lastly, love me not in word only, but in deed and truth.” 8. “Two things should be observed with regard to what has been spoken under this last head: One, that whatever love, whatever offices of love, whatever spiritual or temporal assistance, I claim from him whose heart is right, as my heart is with his, the same I am ready, by the grace of God, according to my measure, to give him: Two, that I have not made this claim on behalf of myself alone, but of all who heart is right toward God and man, that we may all love one another as Christ has loved us.”
III. From the previous, we can learn what a “catholic spirit” is. 1. “There is scarcely any expression which has been more grossly misunderstood, and more dangerously misapplied, than this: but it will be easy for any who calmly considered the preceding observations to correct any such misapprehensions of it, and to prevent any such misapplication. … First, a catholic spirit is not speculative latitudinarianism. It is not an indifference to all opinions: this is the spawn of hell, not the offspring of heaven. This unsettledness of thought, this being ‘driven to and fro, and tossed about with every wind of doctrine,’ is a great curse, not a blessing; an irreconcilable enemy, not a friend, to true catholicism. 2. Second, “a catholic spirit is not any kind of practical latitudinarianism. It is not indifference as to public worship, or as to the outward manner of performing it. 3. Third, “a catholic spirit is not indifference to all congregations. 4. “But while he is steadily fixed in his religious principles in what he believes to be the truth as it is in Jesus; while he firmly adheres to that worship of God which he judges to be most acceptable in his sight; and while he is united by the most tender and close ties to one particular congregation, his heart is enlarged toward all mankind, those he knows and those he does not; he embraces with strong and cordial affection both neighbours and strangers, friends and enemies. This is catholic or universal love. And he that has this is of a catholic spirit. For love alone gives the title to this character: catholic love is a catholic spirit. 5. “A mean of a catholic spirit is one who… gives his hand to all whose hearts are right with his heart.” 6. “You, O man of God, think on these things! If you are already in this way, go on. If you have until now mistaken the path, thank God who has brought you back! And now run the race which is set before you, in the royal way of universal love. Take heed, lest you be either wavering in your judgment or hardened in your sympathies: but keep an even pace, rooted in the faith once delivered to the saints, and grounded in love, in true catholic love, till you are swallowed up in love for ever and ever!”
I highly recommend the critical edition of Wesley’s sermons, which has excellent references that show his reliance on Scripture throughout his preaching. There are four volumes if you want every known Wesley sermon. The sermon outlined in this post is in volume II. These books aren’t cheap, but this is the most important publication by Abingdon since its release. And they are designed to last. Highly recommended!
There is also a three volume edition of Wesley’s sermons in modern English, which is easier to read if you find the 18th century English frustrating. Here is the first volume.
William J. Abraham has just published a three volume edition of the 44 Standard Sermons, with his own commentary. I just received my copy and am very excited to get into them! Check them out here. We are now in the third volume of Abraham’s edition.
Kevin M. Watson is a professor at Candler School of Theology, Emory University. He teaches, writes, and preaches to empower community, discipleship, and stewardship of our heritage. Click here to get future posts emailed to you. Affiliate links used in this post.
Seedbed has just published my newest book, Perfect Love: Recovering Entire Sanctification – The Lost Power of the Methodist Movement. I have more excitement and nervous energy about this book than any other book I have written. I wrote two books from a sense of direct calling from God to write on a particular topic at a particular time. The first one was The Class Meeting. This book is the second. After a conversation with Andy Miller at Seedbed, I sensed it was time to invite John Wesley’s spiritual heirs to boldly claim the doctrine he believed was the reason God breathed life into Methodism in the first place.
Since I started writing the book, I have seen people experience powerful and dramatic growth in holiness. And I know of at least one recent testimony to entire sanctification. And I am confident there are others! God is up to something in our tribe.
It is time to recover entire sanctification, the lost power of the Methodist movement.
Seedbed is hosting a Summer Book Club and you are invited to join! This group will be unlike other book clubs. We will not merely read a book and discuss interesting ideas together. We are joining together to press in after God and ask him to give us the indescribably precious gift of perfect love. We are going to read, yes. But, more importantly, we are going to pray. And we are going to seek all that God has for us. After all, as my friend and Seedbed Sower in Chief J. D. Walt says, “The best of the gospel is the rest of the gospel.”
I hope you will join me. You need this. And Methodism needs this.
Kevin M. Watson teaches, writes, and preaches to empower community, discipleship, and stewardship of our heritage. Click here to get future posts emailed to you.
My family will be making a significant transition this summer. I will be transitioning from being a member of the faculty at Candler School of Theology, Emory University to joining the pastoral staff at First Methodist Waco. I am so excited to join the pastoral staff at the church as Associate Pastor of Discipleship!
This is a challenging post to write because I am thinking of so many different audiences as I write this. I am aware that this post will be read by people where we live. It will also be read by people at our new church. And it will be read by a lot of people who have followed this blog over the years and will wonder why I am stepping out of an academic position where I earned tenure just about a year ago in order to return to the local church.
First of all, I want to say that the past seven years have been wonderful in so many ways. God has been so faithful to us! Our family has thrived here. When we moved to Atlanta, we had a 1st grader, a child starting pre-K, and one who was just barely walking. Our youngest is now older than our oldest was when we got here. Melissa and I are so grateful to have lived here for this season. Thanks are especially due to Grayson United Methodist Church! We have been blessed to have a community come around us and love each one of us so well. We will take countless memories with us and cherish the friendships that we all have formed throughout this season. Thank you for all you have done for us and all you have been to us.
My time at Candler School of Theology, Emory University was filled with blessings as well. I got paid for seven years to teach, read, write, think, and pray with students. I am regularly surprised and delighted to receive emails from former students updating me on their lives and thanking me for teaching them. It is still surreal to me that I got paid to teach and that people acted like I had done them a favor. Candler provided generous and exceptional support for my work as a scholar that allowed me to do research that would not have been possible otherwise, especially the work on Old or New School Methodism?
Candler also provided a context where I was able to think more carefully about the teachings of the United Methodist Church. Over the past seven years I learned, I hope, how to more effectively advocate for my church’s doctrine and discipline. In my classes, we talked openly about the controversies facing the UMC, in part because I’ve never been very good at ignoring the elephant in the room. As an elder in the church who was teaching students preparing for ordination in the same church, I felt obligated to do what I could to try to help students think as well as they could about these issues. I also wanted them to hear the most faithful and gracious case I could make that affirmed the current teaching of their church.
But my favorite part of teaching was getting to talk with students about the keys to Methodism’s spiritual vitality when British and American Methodism experienced revival. I loved teaching the class on Methodist doctrine, where I walked through the way of salvation, particularly engaging students on Wesley’s audacious optimism of the possibility of perfect love, by the grace of God, in this life. And I loved teaching the class on the central importance of small groups in early Methodism. I enjoyed teaching both of these particular classes so much because I believe they are still relevant for Methodists today. I want to see them come back to life in local churches today. I am certain that where Methodist churches return to the doctrine, spirit, and discipline with which they first set out, God’s blessing will follow.
And above all else, I loved praying with my students. I prayed at the beginning of each class. And I invited students to ask me to pray with them. The highest honor given to me over the past seven years was when a student would reach out to me for prayer. And it was such a gift to see the Lord move in the lives of my students! I have had the particular privilege these last few years of having a student become my pastor and my family’s pastor. God is good!
Candler has been supportive of my teaching and scholarly career since the day I arrived, and I know that support ultimately derives from my Dean’s generosity and kindness to me, for which I am grateful. Jan Love has been consistently kind, generous, and gracious to me. The gift of tenure that Candler gave me last year is just one example of many of the support shown to me over the past several years. I would be lying if I said that making the decision to leave wasn’t hard.
So, why am I leaving full-time teaching within the academy to serve on a pastoral staff in the local church?
The short version is because I believe God has called me to this place and to this role. Melissa and I have had a growing sense that doors were closing here and that God was going to open a new door for us to walk through. We have been praying regularly for God to open the door that He wanted to open and to keep doors closed that should stay closed. And we prayed that God would unite us as husband and wife, that we would be deeply unified in our desire to walk through the door God opened.
In the academy, it is often hard to make space for testimony and speaking to a sense of God’s guidance and direction in one’s life. It is important for me to say that we are making this move because we feel like God is in it. Above all else, we want to be faithful to the Lord and grow in our love and dependence on Jesus.
And I cannot express just how excited I am to be joining the staff at First Methodist Waco! Pastor Ryan Barnett, the senior pastor, is a person I deeply respect who has shown moral courage. His love for Jesus and Christ’s church is visible. I am humbled to join his team. In the brief interactions I’ve had with the other pastors on staff, I have been extremely impressed. Pastor Brandon has already been a gift and encouragement to our family. (Our kids cannot wait to visit Fabled!) I am also aware of the faithful witness of those who have served before me. I hope to honor their work by building on it.
It took me awhile to recognize what was happening, but I have had a growing desire to be more fully involved in the life of the local church, not only as an active participant, but as a leader on the ground in the local church. When Pastor Ryan invited me to come and serve in this role, it caught me a bit off guard at first. But I realized that he was asking me to do what I have been urging pastors across Methodism to do for the past thirteen years. My passion has been calling Methodists to return to their roots in deep discipleship to Jesus Christ, giving all of their lives to Jesus. Methodists have historically done an exceptional job of helping people avoid being merely fans of Jesus, but leading people to become deeply committed followers of Jesus Christ. In the work I have done on Wesleyan discipleship, especially the need to reclaim class and band meetings, the response I’ve gotten time and time again is something like this: “Ok, we agree with everything you’ve said. But how do we actually do this on the ground in the local church?” This is where people have often wanted to hear more.
And so when I was asked to step into a multi-site congregation, one of the strongest and healthiest congregations in the Central Texas Annual Conference, and to focus particularly on discipleship systems and building small groups and community to help Christians grow in their faith, it just made more and more sense. My soul shifted from: “What will people say if you walk away from tenure at Emory?” to simply sensing a deep peace and a simple, “Yes!”
I want to give myself to this work. This is an opportunity for me to put into practice what I have been researching and writing about my entire academic career. I have always hoped that my academic work was ultimately in service to the church. Being given the chance to practice what I’ve preached, so to speak, is a tremendous opportunity!
And so, to the folks at First Methodist Waco: Melissa and I are so excited to meet you and build relationships with you! I am a Texan. I was born in Houston and lived there until just before starting school. We moved back to Houston when I was in high school. And anyone who knows me at all knows I am a die-hard and unapologetic Houston Astros fan. Our second child was born in Dallas, when I was working on my PhD at Southern Methodist University. So, we are 40% Texan already! I can’t wait to get back to Texas!
I want to spend time learning about you and your church. I want to get to know you first. I want you to know up front that I have two main goals at the outset. First, by the grace of God, I will do everything I can to help you know where you are in your walk with Jesus. You need to know where you are before you can know what the next step is. Second, once you have a sense of where you are in your life with Christ, again, by the grace of God, I will do everything I can to come alongside you to empower you to take the next step in your faith. There is nothing more meaningful or fulfilling in this life than seeing people grow in their faith.
People of First Methodist Waco, we cannot wait to meet you!
(Click here for the announcement First Methodist made yesterday afternoon.)
Kevin M. Watson teaches, writes, and preaches to empower community, discipleship, and stewardship of our heritage. Click here to get future posts emailed to you. Affiliate links used in this post.
This is the 33rd sermon in this series. It is very encouraging to see how many people are reading these posts and clicking through to read the sermon itself. Just joining the growing number of people reading these sermons? Feel free to start at the beginning by reading the first sermon by John Wesley in this series, “Salvation by Faith,” or jump right in with us!
Background:
Did you know that many of John Wesley’s sermons are part of the formal doctrinal teaching of multiple Wesleyan/Methodist denominations? Wesley’s sermons have particular authority because these were the main way he taught Methodist doctrine and belief.
“A Caution against Bigotry” is the 33rd sermon of the Wesleyan Standard Sermons. This sermon is written in the context of Wesley’s leadership of Methodism as a renewal movement within the Church of England and the tensions that were often just below the surface between his ordination as a priest in the Church of England and his leadership of Methodism. Wesley’s use of lay preachers, in particular, was controversial and is an important part of the background of this sermon [see III.5-12 of this sermon]. In other words, the sermon should be read in part as an appeal for not interfering with lay preachers whose ministry bears fruit [they are “casting out devils”] by leaders within the Church of England. The sermon has a variety of intriguing applications in the contemporary context.
In hopes of sparking interest in Wesley’s sermons and Methodism’s doctrinal heritage, here is my very short summary of “A Caution against Bigotry.” I hope it will inspire you to read the sermon in its entirety yourself. Links to the sermon and other resources are included at the end of this post.
Key quote:
‘But what is a sufficient, reasonable proof that a man does (in the sense above) cast out devils?’ The answer is easy. Is there full proof, first, that a person before us was a gross, open sinner? Secondly, that he is not so now; that he has broke off his sins, and lives a Christian life? And thirdly, that his change was wrought by his hearing this man preach? If these three points be plain and undeniable, then you have sufficient, reasonable proof, such as you cannot resist without willful sin, that this man casts out devils. [III.3]
One sentence summary:
This sermon warns against interfering with the work of people outside of your own tribe whom God is using to bring sinners to repentance and from evil to good.
Scripture passage for the sermon:
“And John answered him, saying, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name, and we forbade him, because he followeth not us. And Jesus said, Forbid him not.”
– Mark 9: 38-39
Outline of “A Caution against Bigotry”
1. Wesley introduces the context of Mark 9: 38-39. 2. What is the relevance of this passage, “Seeing no man now ‘casts out devils”? 3. This sermon will show “first, in what sense men may, and do now, ‘cast out devils’; secondly, what we may understand by, ‘He followeth not us.’ I shall thirdly, explain our Lord’s direction, “Forbid him not,’ and conclude with an inference from the whole.”
I. First, “in what sense men may, and do now, ‘cast out devils.'” 1. “We should remember that (according to the scriptural account) as God dwells and works in the children of light, so the devil dwells and works in the children of darkness.” 2. The devil is one “who ‘ruleth the darkness’ or wickedness ‘of this world’, of worldly men and all their dark designs and actions, by keeping possession of their hearts, setting up his throne there, and bringing every thought into obedience to himself.” 3. “It is therefore an unquestionable truth that the god and prince of this world still possesses all who know not God… It was then his aim to drive mankind into superstition. Therefore he wrought as openly as he could. But ’tis his aim to drive us into infidelity. Therefore he works as privately as he can; for the more secret he is, the more he prevails.” 4. “There are countries even now where he works as openly as aforetime… But with you he is pursuing a different point. He is to make you idolize yourselves, to make you wiser in your own eyes than God himself, than all the oracles of God.” 5. “The prince of darkness therefore does not appear while he rules over these his willing subjects. The conqueror holds his captives so much the safer because they imagine themselves at liberty. Thus the ‘strong one armed keepeth his house, and his goods are in peace’: neither the deist nor nominal Christian suspects he is there; so he and they are perfectly at peace with each other.” 6. “He blinds the eyes of their understanding so that the light of the glorious gospel of Christ cannot shine upon them. He chains their souls down to earth and hell with the chains of their own vile affections. He binds them down to the earth by love of the world, love of money, of pleasure, of praise. And by pride, envy, anger, hate, revenge, he causes their souls to draw nigh unto hell; acting the more secure and uncontrolled because they know not that he acts at all.” 7. Wesley uses the example of “the admired, the virtuous Romans” to show how easily we can see the “cause from its effects.” 8. Dion Cassius is cited to illustrate the “gluttony and lewdness” of Rome. 9. “As gross and palpable are the works of the devil among many (if not all) the modern heathens.” 10. “It were to be wished that none but heathens had practised such gross, palpable works of the devil. But we dare not say so. Even in cruelty and bloodshed, how little have the Christians come behind them!… Our own countrymen, too, have wantoned in blood, and exterminated whole nations: plainly proving thereby what spirit it is that dwells and works in the children of disobedience.” 11. “These monsters might almost make us overlook the works of the devil that are wrought in our own country. But, alas! We cannot open our eyes even here without seeing them on every side. It is small proof of his power that common swearers, drunkards, whoremongers, adulterers, thieves, robbers, sodomites, murderers, are still found in every part of our land?” 12. “He less openly but no less effectually works in dissemblers, talebearers, liars, slanderers; in oppressors and extortioners; in the perjured, the seller of his friend, his honor, his conscience, his country.” 13. “If you consider this you cannot but see in what sense men may now also ‘cast out devils’; yea, and every minister of Christ does cast them out, if his Lord’s work prosper in his hand. By the power of God attending his Word he brings these sinners to repentance: an entire inward as well as outward change, from all evil to all good. And this is in a sound sense to ‘cast out devils,’ out of the souls wherein they had hitherto dwelt.” 14. “All this is indeed the work of God. It is God alone who can cast out Satan. But he is generally pleased to do this by man, as an instrument in his hand.”
II. What does Mark 9: 38-39 mean by “He followeth not us.” 1. At one level, it means it is someone we do not know. 2. At another level it may mean, “He is not of our party.” 3. Third, it may mean, “He differs from us in our religious opinions.” Given the variety of Christian traditions, it is not surprising that there are many different opinions in the Christian church. 4. Fourth, the phrase may refer to difference in practice (such as the administration of the sacrament). “Now the unavoidable consequence of any of these differences will be that he who thus differs from us must separate himself with regard to those points from our society. In this respect therefore ‘he followeth not us;’ he is ‘not (as we phrase it) of our church.'” 5. “In a far stronger sense ‘he followeth not us’ who is not only of a different church, but of such a church as we account to be in many respects anti scriptural and antichristian: a church which we believe to be utterly false and erroneous in her doctrines, as well as very dangerously wrong in her practice.” 6. Once there is disagreement in opinions and practice, sharpness and bitterness often arise. “An almost necessary consequence of this will be, they will speak in the same manner as they think of us. They will set themselves in opposition to us, and, as far as they are able hinder our work, seeing it does not appear to them to be the work of God, but either of man or of the devil.” 7. Wesley thinks the Gospel of Mark means it in a lower sense, but he put it in the strongest terms possible so that “being forewarned of the temptation in its full strength we may in no case yield to it and fight against God.”
III. An explanation of Jesus’s command “Forbid him not.” 1. If we see someone we don’t know and is not a part of our Church, who differs from us in judgment, practice, and affection, “casting out devils” we should not interfere with their work. 2. Because of our own prejudices, it will be very difficult for us to believe someone who is not apart of us is indeed “casting out devils.” 3. What is the proof that someone has “cast out devils?” “The answer is easy. Is there full proof, first, that a person before us was a gross, open sinner? Secondly, that he is not so now; that he has broke off his sins, and lives a Christian life? And thirdly, that his change was wrought by his hearing this man preach? If these three points be plain and undeniable, then you have sufficient, reasonable proof, such as you cannot resist without willful sin, that this man casts out devils.” 4. If so, “forbid him not.” If you succeeded in interfering with this work and convinced the person to stop, “many souls might perish in their iniquity, but their blood would God require at your hands.” 5. Don’t forbid laity from “casting out devils.” 6. Wesley engages the concern “I do not know that he is sent of God.” He responds by citing John 9: 30, 33. 7. Wesley argues that it is “highly expedient” that preachers have and outward as well as an inward call. But he denies that it is “absolutely necessary.” 8. Wesley argues that the apostolic age gives warrant for lay preaching. [Wesley used lay preachers extensively, which was controversial within the Church of England.] 9. Before someone is ordained, their lives should be examined to see if they are “holy and unblameable.” And they should be given a chance to preach to see “whether they have such gifts as are absolutely and indispensably necessary in order to edify the church of Christ.” 10. “‘But what if a man has these? And has brought sinners to repentance? And yet the bishop will not ordain him?’ Then the bishop does ‘forbid him to cast out devils.’ But I dare not forbid him.” 11. “And whosoever thou art that dearest God, ‘forbid him not,’ either directly or indirectly.” 12. “Yea, if you would observe our Lord’s direction in its full meaning and extent, then remember his word, ‘He that is not for us is against us, and he that gatherers not with me, scattereth.’ He that gathereth not men into the kingdom of God assuredly scatters them from it. For there can be no neuter in this war: everyone is either on God’s side or on Satan’s.”
IV. “If we willingly fail in any of these points, if we either directly or indirectly forbid him ‘because he followeth not us,’ then we are ‘bigots.'” 1. “This is the inference I draw from what has been said. But the term ‘bigotry,’ I fear, as frequently as it is used, is almost as little understood as ‘enthusiasm.’ It is too strong an attachment to, or fondness for, our own party, opinion, Church, and religion. Therefore he is a bigot who is so fond of any of these, so strongly attached to them, as to forbid any who casts out devils, because he differs from himself in any or all these particulars.” 2. “You beware of this.” Do not directly or indirectly forbid anyone from “casting out devils.” 3. “Examine yourself: ‘Do I not indirectly, at least, forbid him on any of these grounds? Am I not sorry that God should thus own and bless a man that holds such erroneous opinions? Do I not discourage him because he is not of my Church?… Do I show no anger, contempt, or unkindness of any sort, either in my words or actions?” 4. Wesley puts it as strongly as he can by naming groups his audience would be most likely to despise if they were “casting out devils.” 5. “If you will avoid all bigotry, go on. In every instance of this kind, whatever the instrument be, acknowledge the finger of God. And not only acknowledge but rejoice in his work, and praise his name with thanksgiving.” 6. A final caution: someone else’s bigotry does not justify your own.
I highly recommend the critical edition of Wesley’s sermons, which has excellent references that show his reliance on Scripture throughout his preaching. There are four volumes if you want every known Wesley sermon. The sermon outlined in this post is in volume II. These books aren’t cheap, but this is the most important publication by Abingdon since its release. And they are designed to last. Highly recommended!
There is also a three volume edition of Wesley’s sermons in modern English, which is easier to read if you find the 18th century English frustrating. Here is the first volume.
Kevin M. Watson is a professor at Candler School of Theology, Emory University. He teaches, writes, and preaches to empower community, discipleship, and stewardship of our heritage. Click here to get future posts emailed to you. Affiliate links used in this post.
This is the 32nd sermon in this series. It is very encouraging to see how many people are reading these posts and clicking through to read the sermon itself. Just joining the growing number of people reading these sermons? Feel free to start at the beginning by reading the first sermon by John Wesley in this series, “Salvation by Faith,” or jump right in with us!
Background:
Did you know that many of John Wesley’s sermons are part of the formal doctrinal teaching of multiple Wesleyan/Methodist denominations? Wesley’s sermons have particular authority because these were the main way he taught Methodist doctrine and belief.
“The Nature of Enthusiasm” is the 32nd sermon of the Wesleyan Standard Sermons. This sermon describes enthusiasm, imagining you are someone you are not. Wesley applies this in a variety of ways, some of which will likely be surprising and convicting to many contemporary Christians.
In hopes of sparking interest in Wesley’s sermons and Methodism’s doctrinal heritage, here is my very short summary of “The Nature of Enthusiasm.” I hope it will inspire you to read the sermon in its entirety yourself. Links to the sermon and other resources are included at the end of this post.
Key quote:
But the most common of all enthusiasts… are those who imagine themselves Christians and are not… That they are not Christians is clear and undeniable, if we believe the oracles of God. For Christians are holy; these are unholy. Christians love God; these love the world. Christians are humble; these are proud. Christians are gentle; these are passionate. Christians have the mind which was in Christ; these are at the utmost distance from it. Consequently they are no more Christians than they are archangels. Yet they imagine themselves so to be; and they can give several reasons for it. For they have been called so ever since they can remember. They were ‘christened’ many years ago. They embrace the ‘Christian opinions’ vulgarly termed the Christian or catholic faith. They use the ‘Christian modes of worship’, as their fathers did before them. They live what is called a good ‘Christian life’, as the rest of their neighbours do. And who shall presume to think or say that these men are not Christians? Though without one grain of true faith in Christ, or of real, inward holiness! Without ever having tasted the love of God, or been ‘made partakers of the Holy Ghost’! [16]
One sentence summary:
This sermon describes the dangers of enthusiasm: imagining you are someone you are not.
Scripture passage for the sermon:
“And Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, thou art beside thyself.”
– Acts 26:24
Concise outline of “The Nature of Enthusiasm”
1. “If you aim at the religion of the heart, if you talk of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, then it will not be long before your sentence is passed: ‘Thou art beside thyself.'”
2. “It is no compliment which the men of the world pay you herein. They for once mean what they say. They not only affirm but cordially believe that every man is beside himself who says the love of God is shed abroad in his heart by the Holy Ghost given unto him, and that God has enabled him to rejoice in Christ with joy unspeakable and fully of glory.”
3. The thing the world counts as madness is “the whole spirit and life and power of the religion of Jesus Christ.”
4. The “madness” Christians are accused of is of a specific kind and is called “enthusiasm.”
5. Enthusiasm is much used but seldom understood.
6. Wesley discusses the questionable Greek origins of the word.
7. The word may have been untranslated because it always had a “loose, uncertain sense.”
8. “It is not therefore at all surprising that it is so variously taken at this day, different persons understanding it in different senses quite inconsistent with each other.”
9. Others understand it to mean “uncommon vigour of thought.”
10. But most people use it to mean something “evil… this is plainly the sentiment of all those who call the religion of the heart enthusiasm. Accordingly I shall take it in the following pages as an evil – a misfortune, if not a fault.”
11. “As to the nature of enthusiasm, it is undoubtedly a disorder of the mind, and such a disorder as greatly hinders the exercise of reason.” An enthusiast “imagines himself to be what he is not.”
12. “Enthusiasm in general may then be described in some such manner as this: a religious madness arising from some falsely imagined influence or inspiration of God; at least from imputing something to God which ought not to be imputed to him, or expecting something from God which ought not to be expected from him.”
13. The sermon shifts to describing the most common forms of enthusiasm. The first is “those who imagine they have the grace which they have not.”
14. “The foundation of all their reveries is this: they imagine themselves to have faith in Christ.”
15. “There are many other enthusiasts of this sort.”
16. “But the most common of all enthusiasts… are those who imagine themselves Christians and are not… That they are not Christians is clear and undeniable, if we believe the oracles of God. For Christians are holy; these are unholy. Christians love God; these love the world. Christians are humble; these are proud. Christians are gentle; these are passionate. Christians have the mind which was in Christ; these are at the utmost distance from it. Consequently they are no more Christians than they are archangels.”
17. “Ah, poor self-deceivers! Christians ye are not. But you are enthusiasts in an high degree.”
18. “A second sort of enthusiasm is that of those who imagine they have such gifts from God as they have not.”
19. “To the same class belong those who in preaching or prayer imagine themselves to be so influenced by the Spirit of God as in fact they are not.”
20. It is also enthusiasm to attribute things to God in one’s private life that are without “any rational or scriptural ground.”
21. “To this kind of enthusiasm they are peculiarly exposed who expected to be directed of God, either in spiritual things or in common life, in what is justly called an extraordinary manner.”
22. The point is not that Christians shouldn’t want to know the will of God. The point is that the primary way they should seek to know the will of God is through Scripture.
23. What if Scripture doesn’t directly speak to a specific circumstance? “The Scripture itself gives you a general rule, applicable to all particular cases: ‘The will of God is our sanctification.’ It is his will that we should be inwardly and outwardly holy; that we should be good and do good in every kind, and in the highest degree whereof we are capable.”
24. When faced with different choices in life, we ought to ask, “In which of these states can I be most holy, and do the most good?”
25. The assistance of the Holy Spirit is present throughout this process of discernment.
26. “This is the plain, scriptural, rational way to know what is the will of God in a particular case.”
27. A third sort of enthusiasm is when people seek to “attain the end without using the means, by the immediate power of God… Such are they who expect to understand the Holy Scriptures without reading them and meditating thereon.”
28. Some say enthusiasm is “imagining those things to be owing to the providence of God which are not owing thereto.” But Wesley argues everything that happens can be ascribed to the providence of God, so the charge of enthusiasm does not apply here.
29. “Don’t you see that he who believing this imputes anything which befalls him to providence does not therein make himself any more the favourite of heaven than he supposes every man under heaven to be?”
30. Enthusiasm leads to pride.
31. “Together with pride there will naturally arise an unadvisable and unconvincable spirit; so that into whatever error or fault the enthusiast falls there is small hope of his recovery.”
32. “Being thus fortified both against the grace of God and against all advise and help from man, he is wholly left to the guidance of his own heart, and of the king of the children of pride. Nor marvel then that he is daily more rooted and grounded in contempt of all mankind, in furious anger, in every unkind disposition, in every earthly and devilish temper.”
33. Take care that you do not talk of enthusiasm without knowing what you are talking about. “Know the meaning of this hard word; and then use it if need require.”
34. Second, “beware of judging or calling any man an enthusiast upon common report.”
35. “If enthusiasm be so great an evil, beware you are not entangled therewith yourself.”
36. “Beware you are not a fiery, persecuting enthusiast.”
37. “Beware you do not run with the common herd of enthusiasts, fancying you are a Christian when you are not.”
38. Do not fall into the snare of “fancying you have those gifts from God which you have not.”
39. “Beware, lastly, of imaging you shall obtain the end without using the means conducive to it. God can give the end without any means at all; but you have no reason to think he will… Thus expect a daily growth in that pure and holy religion which the world always did, and always will, call enthusiasm; but which to all who are saved from real enthusiasm – from merely nominal Christianity – is the wisdom of God and the power of God.”
I highly recommend the critical edition of Wesley’s sermons, which has excellent references that show his reliance on Scripture throughout his preaching. There are four volumes if you want every known Wesley sermon. The sermon outlined in this post is in volume II. These books aren’t cheap, but this is the most important publication by Abingdon since its release. And they are designed to last. Highly recommended!
There is also a three volume edition of Wesley’s sermons in modern English, which is easier to read if you find the 18th century English frustrating. Here is the first volume.
Kevin M. Watson is a professor at Candler School of Theology, Emory University. He teaches, writes, and preaches to empower community, discipleship, and stewardship of our heritage. Click here to get future posts emailed to you. Affiliate links used in this post.
This is the 31st sermon in this series. It is very encouraging to see how many people are reading these posts and clicking through to read the sermon itself. Just joining the growing number of people reading these sermons? Feel free to start at the beginning by reading the first sermon by John Wesley in this series, “Salvation by Faith,” or jump right in with us!
Background:
Did you know that many of John Wesley’s sermons are part of the formal doctrinal teaching of multiple Wesleyan/Methodist denominations? Wesley’s sermons have particular authority because these were the main way he taught Methodist doctrine and belief.
“The Law Established through Faith, II” is the 31st sermon of the Wesleyan Standard Sermons. This sermon builds on the previous sermon, “The Law Established through Faith, I” and outlines a more positive vision for how the law is established in the lives of followers of Jesus Christ.
In hopes of sparking interest in Wesley’s sermons and Methodism’s doctrinal heritage, here is my very short summary of “The Law Established through Faith, II.” I hope it will inspire you to read the sermon in its entirety yourself. Links to the sermon and other resources are included at the end of this post.
Key quote:
Can you say, ‘Thou art merciful to my unrighteousness; my sins thou rememberest no more’? Then for the time to come see that you fly from sin, as from the face of a serpent. For how exceeding sinful does it appear to you now! How heinous above all expression! On the other hand, in how amiable a light do you now see the holy and perfect will of God! Now, therefore, labour that it may be fulfilled, both in you, by you, and upon you. Now watch and pray that you may sin no more, that you may see and shun the least transgression of his law. You see the motes which you could not see before when the sun shines into a dark place. In like manner you see the sins which you could not see before, now the sun of righteousness shines in your heart. Now, then, do all diligence to walk in every respect according to the light you have received. Now be zealous to receive more light daily, more of the knowledge and love of God, more of the Spirit of Christ, more of his life, and of the power of his resurrection. Now use all the knowledge and love and life and power you have already attained. So shall you continually go on from faith to faith. So shall you daily increase in holy love, till faith is swallowed up in sight, and the law of love established to all eternity. [III.6]
One sentence summary:
The moral law of God is established in our lives through sound doctrine, faith in Christ, love of God and neighbor, and holiness of heart and life.
Scripture passage for the sermon:
“Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid! Yea, we establish the law.”
– Romans 3: 31
Concise outline of “The Law Established through Faith, II”
1. A summary of the previous sermon. This sermon asks, positively, “How do we establish the law through faith?”
2. Establishing the moral law is not the condition of our justification. And yet, “we still, in the Aposle’s sense, ‘establish the law.'”
I. We Establish the Law by Our Doctrine
1. We establish the law by offering “the whole counsel of God” with “great plainness of speech.”
2. The law is established by our doctrine when “we declare every part of it, every commandment contained therein, not only in its full, literal sense, but likewise in its spiritual meaning; not only with regard to the outward actions which it either forbids or enjoins, but also with respect to the inward principle, to the thoughts, desires, and intents of the heart.”
3. The law must be established through doctrine because “as important as these things are, they are little considered or understood.
4. “The law of God, as to its inward spiritual meaning, is not hid from the Jews or heathens only, but even from what is called the Christian world.”
5. Even though it is offensive to many who hear it, “All that is written in the Book of God we are to declare, not as pleasing men, but the Lord. We are to declare not only all the promises but all the threatenings, too, which we find therein. At the same time that we proclaim all the blessings and privileges which God had prepared for his children, we are likewise to ‘teach all the things whatsoever he hath commanded.'”
6. “It is our part thus to ‘preach Christ’ by preaching all things whatsoever he hath revealed… We are not ourselves clear before God unless we proclaim him in all his offices.”
II. We Establish the Law by Preaching Faith in Christ in a Way that Leads to Holiness of Heart and Life
1. Even faith in Christ is not the end result God aims at. “God hath given this honor to love alone. Love is the end of all the commandments of God.”
2. Faith “is the great temporary means which God has ordained to promote that eternal end [love].”
3. Faith cannot be preached so as to “swallow up all things” and become more important than love.
4. “Nor is it certain… that faith, even in the general sense of the word, had any place in paradise.”
5. Faith was necessary before the fall. “It was only when love was lost by sin that faith was added, not for its own sake, nor with any design that it should exist any longer than until it had answered the end for which it was ordained – namely, to restore man to the love from which he was fallen.”
6. “Faith then was originally designed of God to re-establish the law of love.”
III. The Most Important Way of Establishing the Law Is by Establishing It in Our Own Hearts and Lives
1. It would serve no purpose to preach the law through our doctrine and preach Christ in all of his offices if it “were not established in our hearts.”
2. “How may we establish the law in our own hearts so that it may have its full influence on our lives?… This can only be done by faith… Faith in general is the most direct and effectual means of promoting all righteousness and true holiness; of establishing the holy and spiritual law in the hearts of them that believe.”
3. “There is no motive which so powerfully inclines us to love God as the sense of the love of God in Christ.”
4. “Nor does faith fulfill either the negative or positive law as to the external part only; but it works inwardly by love to the purifying of the heart, the cleansing it from all vile affections.”
5. “Let us thus endeavor to establish the law in ourselves; not sinning ‘because we are under grace’, but rather using all the power we receive thereby ‘to fulfill all righteousness.'”
6. Can you say, ‘Thou art merciful to my unrighteousness; my sins thou remeberest no more’? Then for the time to come see that you fly from sin, as from the face of a serpent…. Now use all the knowledge and love and life and power you have already attained. So shall you continually go on from faith to faith. So shall you daily increase in holy love, till faith is swallowed up in sight, and the law of love established to all eternity.”
I highly recommend the critical edition of Wesley’s sermons, which has excellent references that show his reliance on Scripture throughout his preaching. There are four volumes if you want every known Wesley sermon. The sermon outlined in this post is in volume II. These books aren’t cheap, but this is the most important publication by Abingdon since its release. And they are designed to last. Highly recommended!
There is also a three volume edition of Wesley’s sermons in modern English, which is easier to read if you find the 18th century English frustrating. Here is the first volume.
Kevin M. Watson is a professor at Candler School of Theology, Emory University. He teaches, writes, and preaches to empower community, discipleship, and stewardship of our heritage. Click here to get future posts emailed to you. Affiliate links used in this post.
Kevin M. Watson 