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The Methodists were founded in London, England by John, and Charles Wesley in 1738. In similar fashion to many other denominations, they began as a ‘movement’. John Wesley was a staunch member of the Church of England until his death and is quoted as saying, “The Church of England has never had a more faithful son than I!”. However, in contrast to the Calvinist Church of England, Wesley would apply a more Arminian outlook on the Anglican Churches’ 39 articles of Religion.
The Wesley brothers only traveled to America once which was a missions trip in 1735. They quickly returned home, dejected and down about their experience. Then in 1738 they both would have a “religious experience” whereby they were awakened and began to preach a Christian lifestyle within the church, based on the “Methods” used by their grandmother and that of Pietism. Thus Methodism was born.
The most prolific of speakers for this movement, was a pupil of the Wesley brothers named George Whitefield. Whitefield was a thespian in his early years but came to preach against the theater. It is Whitefield’s preaching in America that is responsible for the growth of the largest Methodist population in the world. Whitefield drew large crowds wherever he preached and was responsible for much of the growth of Methodism in Scotland as well.
In 1735 John Wesley sailed for Georgia with his brother Charles to be a Pastor. While on the ship during the journey they encountered a storm which terrified John Wesley but in the midst of his fear he observed Moravian Bishop David Nitschman and twenty-six other Moravians on the ship who were calm and possessed great composure during this tragedy. This so impressed Wesley that he came to the conclusion that his conversion to Christ had been false and he therefore seek out a genuine faith in Jesus.
Upon arriving in Georgia, he tried to enforce heavy moral standards on his new flock in America which he received from his brother Charles’ “holy club” in England. This would have disastrous results whereby Wesley would return to England in failure along with his brother Charles and neither would ever return to the colonies.
Peter Boehler, Moravian Preacher
With the impression of the Moravian Pietists still on his mind in 1738, he was then encouraged by Moravian preacher Peter Boehler and at a, now famous, religious meeting at Aldersgate Street, London, Wesley had an experience wherby he felt his “heart was strangely warmed”. The Pietist message he heard was from Luther’s preface to Paul’s Epistle to the Romans. In hearing this, he realized that salvation is by faith alone in Christ alone and not by works. Thereafter he would become a devoted evangelist.
Although this would go down in history as John Wesley’s conversion experience, it is important to note that a genuine conversion to Christ is an awareness that we have sin against the Lord which is deserving of eternal separation from Him resulting in a cry for the mercy of God and the forgiveness of our sin against Him. We put our faith in the Lord Jesus (faith is the assurance of things hoped for) and believe the Lord at His word when He says that “All who call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Rom 10:13) and “If any man come to Me I will in no wise cast him out.” (John 6:37).
I feel it is necessary to point this out because many put their hope and faith in a ‘felt experience’ but feelings are arbitrary and untrustworthy. They change at the drop of a hat or a bad meal but the truth of God in His word is forever trustworthy. Also, there have been cults like the Charismatics and the Mormons which point to a “touch” or a “burning in the bosom” as evidence that their erroneous beliefs are somehow founded in truth.
In 1739 Wesley began to establish “Methodist Societies” throughout England which was a sort of early version of a “parachurch” movement within Anglicanism. Wesley organized these societies into classes consisting of 11 members and a leader. These classes would meet weekly to pray, read the Bible, discuss their spiritual lives, and to collect money for charity. Men and women met separately, but anyone could become a class leader; women could become leaders but their classes would only consist of other Christian women – which is consistent with scripture.
Wesley would then go on to study at Zinzendorf’s Herrnhut in Germany with Count Zinzendorf, resulting in a great deal of Pietist theology finding its way into the Methodist approach. There are testimonies from both Pietist and Methodist of direct communion with God which indicates that the Quaker mysticism found its way into Methodist theology. Also, Wesley’s doctrine of prevenient grace worked in a very similar way to Pietist and Quaker’s ‘inner Word or “inner light” which supposedly stirs up the gift of grace. In all fairness, Wesley at least stipulated that special revelations needed to be tested by scripture, other Christians, and the fruit of the Spirit. This still leaves the door wide open for mystic weirdness which would find its way into the Holiness and Pentecostal movements which followed.
Wesley eventually distanced himself from Moravian Pietism writing the following quote in his journal:
Greaves Methodist Church (Lancaster Methodist Church) by Rude Health, CC BY-SA 2.0
"Those three grand errors run through almost all those (Moravian) books, viz. Universal Salvation, Antinomianism, and a kind of new-reformed Quietism."
In life, Wesley began to teach a new doctrine of “Entire Sanctification” or “Christian Perfectionism”. He declared in his written work “Scripture Way of Salvation” that sanctification was every bit a work of grace through faith as much as justification and that God gives sanctification gradually for some and instantaneously for others. That we can seek for this “perfection” as a “second gift” of grace and should earnestly desire it.
Although Wesley referred to this as a “Second Blessing” while his associate John Fletcher went a step further in referring to it as a “Baptism in the Holy Spirit”. This bizarre new doctrine of a ‘second’ baptism was defined in Wesley’s own words on page 12 of his writing “A Plain Account of Christian Perfectionism”:
“…that habitual disposition of the soul which, in the sacred writings, is termed holiness; and which directly implies being cleansed from sin, ‘from all filthiness both of flesh and spirit’; and, by consequence, being endued with those virtues which were in Christ Jesus; being so ‘renewed in the image of our mind,’ as to be ‘perfect as our Father in heaven is perfect’."
And a few pages further into this work he continues:
“In this is perfection, and glory, and happiness: the royal law of heaven and earth is this, ‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all they heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength.’ The one perfect good shall be your one ultimate end” (Ibid.). Lastly, perfection is “deliverance from inward as well as from outward sin” (ibid., p. 26) and “a Christian is so far perfect as not to commit sin” (ibid., p. 25).
This view of an “instantaneous” sanctification is contrary to scripture particularly in 1 John:
"But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us."
This doctrine Christian perfectionism was taken up by the Holiness and Pentecostal movements which followed and this doctrine is behind the charismatic avoidance of denying self and taking up our cross daily. Because of this, sexual infidelity, perversion and monetary greed scandals are rampant amongst charismatic preachers more than any other pseudo Christian group.
Wesley would travel and preach encountering opposition and persecution on a regular basis. Meanwhile his old friend from Charles Wesley’s Holy Club had become a very popular preacher drawing record-breaking crowds due to a theatrical and emotional delivery.
Whitefield invited Wesley to come help him preach to the multitudes that were starting to overwhelm him. Although Wesley did not care for Whitfield’s “theatrical” presentation style, emotionalism and new outdoor preaching venues, Wesley accepted but the ministry partnership was short-lived. In addition to their ecclesiological differences, their soteriological frameworks would soon prove to be incompatible. Wesley was mostly Anglican Arminian and Whitfield was more Separatist Reform or Puritan Calvinist. In 1741 – They would part ways amicably but would have a bit of an antagonistic relationship after.
In 1770, after the death of George Whitefield, Wesley sermonized Whitefield’s qualities and acknowledged their differences: “There are many doctrines of a less essential nature … In these we may think and let think; we may ‘agree to disagree.’ But, meantime, let us hold fast the essentials…”
In 1784 Wesley gave the Methodist societies a legal constitution and then ordained Thomas Coke for ministry in America, beginning the Methodist course for denomination status.
In 1788, his brother Charles Wesley, famous for his many church hymns still sung throughout Christian churches today, passed away, remaining an Anglican Pastor at St Mary Lebone Church to the very end.
John Wesley passed away in 1791 also remaining an Anglican until his death leaving behind a well-known quote: “The best of all is, God is with us!”.
Wesley’s organizational skills would result in massive growth for the denomination seeing 294 preachers, 71,668 British members, 19 missionaries (5 in mission stations) and 43,265 American members with 198 preachers after his death.
No one receives eternal life and eternal presence with God, from who all good things come (James 1:17), by belonging to the right church, denomination, world religion, or by having a particular world view. Rather only those who trust in the Lord Jesus preached by the Apostles in the Bible, for their own sin. We will not trust in a Savior for sins that we either don’t believe we have or that we think aren’t deserving of hell. But the Bible says that ALL have sin and the wages of that sin is eternal separation from God (death). The good news is that the Bible says that you can know that YOU have eternal life. Click the button below to see if you are genuinely saved from your sins according to the Bible: