Motivations and
Consequences of Wesley's Warm Heart
Odilon Massolar Chaves
Copyright © 2024, Odilon Massolar Chaves
All rights reserved to the author.
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Article 184 of the Penal Code and Law 96710
of February 19, 1998.
Books published in the Wesleyan Library: 200
Books published by the author: 335
Booklets: 3
Address:https://bibliotecawesleyana.blogspot.com
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Cover: Travels With Wesley - facebook
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Odilon Massolar Chaves is a retired Methodist pastor, with a doctorate
in Theology and History from the Methodist University of São Paulo.
His thesis dealt with the Methodist revival in England in the eighteenth
century and its contribution as a paradigm for our days.
He was
editor of the official Methodist newspaper and coordinator of the Theology
Course
"The success of
these efforts ultimately led Wesley to conclude that the calling of women was a
key factor in determining this ministry."
Table
of Contents
·
Introduction
·
Wesley's motivations
·
Consequences of the Warm
Heart Experience
·
Extraordinary Dispensation of God's Providence
Introduction
"Motivations and Consequences of Wesley's Warmed Heart" is a book that deals with what motivated Wesley to seek and have the experience of a warmed heart, as well as the consequences that this experience brought to his life and ministry.
Being convinced by the Moravians, when he went to America as a missionary, that he did not have biblical faith, was Wesley's main motivation. He wanted to be sure of salvation.
After May 24, 1738, he felt that he had gone from being a servant to being a child of God. He was empowered and motivated to carry out missions and preach the Word of God and essentially spread biblical holiness throughout the earth.
A book that objectively deals with motivation and consequence.
The Author
Wesley's motivations
In 1735, John and Charles Wesley went to America as missionaries. It was disappointing for them. Wesley left Savannah on November 27, 1737, after his sentimental and spiritual failure, and arrived in England on February 1, 1738.
This whole episode, along with the experience on the ship with the storms, revealed to Wesley that he needed a profound spiritual change. On several occasions, he revealed the weakness of his heart. He was afraid of dying:
"Late at night, I woke up to the roar of the wind, I was frightened; such a fright revealed to me that I was afraid of dying."
He was not sure of his salvation. When he was in America, one of the Moravians asked him, "Have you the testimony within yourself? Do the Holy Spirit testify with your spirit that you are the son of God?"
João Wesley did not know how to answer. When asked again if he knew Jesus Christ and if he was sure of salvation, Wesley again hesitated.
Wesley lived among the Moravians where radicalism was exploited. He even stated that he was close to falling into darkness:
"I come to think that I am closer to that mystery of Satan (...); I was so close that I probably would have fallen into it, had it not been for the great mercy of God."
Wesley's spiritual demands would lead him to seek his experience with God in an almost obsessive way.
Some scholars interpret that Wesley did not consider himself a convert:
"I went to America to convert Indians; however, oh! Who will convert me?"
Because Wesley had set out to pursue holiness, he was very demanding of himself. Fifty years later, Wesley would recognize the mistake of his statement. Moravian influence had led him to understand that he had once had the faith of a servant and not of a son. The servant sought faith, while the son had the assurance of faith. Both sought Salvation.
At this time, for Wesley, the hope of salvation was based on his sincerity of living a holy life. As early as 1725, he had begun the search for perfection by reading Bishop Taylor's "Rules of Holy Living and Dying."
Wesley published, in 1733, Collection of Models of Prayer for Every Day of the Week. Therefore, Wesley was converted in the sense that we now consider a conversion. He did have many doubts before 1738. Moreover, his disastrous pastoral work in America had increased this doubt, but he did not seek conversion but sanctification. Writing about the year 1733, Wesley said:
"In the same year I published (the first time I tried to publish anything), for the use of my students, a 'Collection of Forms of Prayer'. And in this work I spoke explicitly of giving "my heart and life totally to God." This was then, as it is now, my idea of Perfection. . . ."
In the face of the failures he experienced in America, Wesley was very critical of himself and then noticed that his heart was corrupted.
Faced with this picture, Wesley perceived more clearly the state of his heart. Therefore, he said that he learned in America that his heart was corrupted:
“(...) that I have fallen short of the glory of God; that my heart is completely corrupted (...)."
Wesley left Georgia with bitterness and disappointment. As a positive, he became more cautious. He had learned to know from the Moravians God's fatherly direction; had overcome his fear of the sea. In addition, he had met many people who, like him, sought holiness and wanted to serve God.
Awareness of his situation led him to seek help and humble himself. He met a Moravian named Peter Bohler who taught him about living faith. Wesley said:
“(...) surprised me more and more with the explanation he gave me of the fruits of living faith, the holiness and happiness which he claimed attended such faith."
The Moravians said that there are no degrees of faith. Either you have faith or you don't. Wesley did not have the faith that the Moravians had, so he thought he was an unbeliever. Peter Bohler taught him about living faith.
Wesley was sad that his friends had had experiences with God and he had not yet. George Whitefield had had a spiritual experience in 1735, and Benjamin Ingham had also experienced a transformation. Charles Wesley had also felt a "throbbing of the heart" on May 21, 1738, but John Wesley had not yet had his experience.
Wesley was conscious
of the state of his heart. He knew he needed an action from God in his life. He
had learned that living faith could restore his life. Through the influence of
the Moravians, Wesley thought that he had no faith and that he was an unbeliever.
He learned that he must have a living faith.
Faced with the crises, Wesley decided to seek out the Moravians, who had shown him a superior faith.
"A week after returning to England, Wesley met with Peter Bohler, a Lutheran minister (later ordained by Zinzendorf to the Moravian ministry) who had recently arrived from Germany and was on his way to America. Wesley's contact with Bohler during the next four months would provide models for both the spiritual renewal and the organizational development of Methodism."
Wesley, however, remained concerned about the lack of assurance of faith, which had become evident in his voyage during the two ocean crossings. Wesley's life began to take a new turn when he unwillingly went to a society meeting on May 24, 1738. In the service, someone commented on the change that God works through faith in Jesus.
Wesley described his experience as follows, when he said he felt his heart warm:
“(...) I felt that I now trusted in Christ, in
Christ alone, for salvation; and I was given assurance that Christ had forgiven
my sins, even mine, and that I was saved from the law of sin and death."
Wesley celebrated the experience with a testimony in front of those present. Later, he continued in Carlos Wesley's room with a hymn. The teachings of his Moravian mentors became a public confession.
In his experience,
Wesley felt security: He felt that he now trusted in Christ. Only in him for
salvation. He was given assurance that Christ had forgiven his sins. He came to
have the assurance that he had been saved from the law of sin and death.
Consequences of the
Warm Heart Experience
After his experience, Wesley went to Germany to get a closer look at the lifestyle of the Moravians.
He met and
interviewed several people. He paid close attention to the Moravian
organization and found what he was looking for.
He said:
"And here I continually met with what I
sought, namely, living proofs of the power of faith: people saved from inward
and outward sin, by the love of God shed abroad in their hearts; and from all
doubt and fear, by the abiding witness of the Holy Ghost which was given
them."[1]
Years later, however, Wesley would say that after May 24, 1738, he went from being a servant to being a son of God.
"His experience of the warmed heart had
occurred on a Wednesday. The following Sunday, Wesley preached twice on a theme
new to him: "This is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith"
(1 John 5:4) in the morning, and on the God "who justifies the
wicked" (Romans 4:5) in the evening."
Wesley began to live his faith free from fear and doubt.
Another strong religious experience occurred shortly after the warming heart experience and was recorded by Wesley himself:
"January 1, 1739. Mr. Hall, Kinchin, Ingham, Whitefield, Hutchins, and my brother Charles were present at our friendship party at Fetter Lane, with sixty of our brethren. About 3 o'clock in the morning, while we were in prayer, the power of God came mightily upon us, so that many cried out for joy unspeakable, and many fell to the ground. As soon as we have recovered a little of that astonishment and awe which came upon us from the presence of the Divine Majesty, we chanted with one voice, "We praise Thee, O God, we acknowledge Thee as Lord."
Edward P. Thompson claims that George Whitefield and other preachers succeeded in impressing more than Wesley. However, Wesley had his recognition as well:
"But it was Wesley who was the most energetic and skilful organizer, administrator, and organizer. It managed to combine in the exact proportions of democracy and discipline, doctrine and emotion (...)."
Wesley was dynamic and preached more than 40,000 sermons. He visited Wales 24 times; Ireland, 21 times and Scotland, 20 times.
"Wesley's travels were incessant. In 1764, between May 19 and August 4, a period of 77 days, he traveled from Bristol to Inverness in Scotland, and returned preaching in 122 cities, holding 300 services, in addition to the meetings of the united societies."
Wesley grew up with the Methodist movement. By the end of 1738, he had come to understand the function of the Holy Spirit as central, both as a source of self-knowledge (internal evidence, witness of the Spirit) and also as a source of fruit (external evidence – fruits of the Spirit).
On several occasions, he described the moving of the Spirit with expressions such as these: "God hath manifested His power"; "While we were in prayer, the power of God came mightily upon us"; "God has poured out His Spirit abundantly upon us." To him, this was real revival.
The Methodist revival brought in its message justification, sanctification and, consequently, works of mercy. In his sermon Biblical Christianity, Wesley states:
"The love of God was also poured into his heart by the Holy Spirit who was given to him ... And God's filial love was continually increased by the witness he had in himself... Those who thus love God cannot but also love their brethren, "not in word only, but in deed and truth."
Wesley restored the doctrine of Christian perfection and led the church to see the need for the Holy Spirit in the life of the Christian and in the life of the church.
It made room for lay
preaching and leadership and for women's ministry in teaching and in the Word.
Extraordinary Dispensation of God's Providence
In the course of Methodism's progress, Wesley was faced with new facts, which he had to overcome. One of these novelties was open-air preaching, which he had initially opposed.
In February 1739, George Whitefield began preaching in the open air in Bristol and attracted immense crowds.
He "asked his friend, John Wesley, to continue his work at Bristol. At first, Wesley was reluctant to preach outdoors because the Church disapproved of such behavior, but later he became convinced of his value when he saw the impact Whitefield was making."[2]
On Monday, April 2, Wesley went to a brickyard in the St. Philips area and preached to a crowd of about three thousand people: "At four o'clock in the afternoon I submitted to be more vile, and proclaimed on the highways the good news of salvation," Wesley said.
Another new activity and mission for Wesley was to start visiting prisoners and convicts in the Castle Prison. It all started with the Holy Club.
Wesley realized that poor children needed better care and permanent organization. At the end of June 1731, Wesley hired Mrs. Plat to take care of the children.
When the evangelistic movement brought new pastoral challenges, Wesley knew how to make new decisions:
"The growing need for structure and organization, as the movement grew in size and complexity, is reflected in the summary of a meeting held in late June 1732, and recorded in Wesley's diary: 'I have separated men and tasks.'"
The bands were important in the process of forming the Methodist organization. They were small groups of five to ten people who met for edification and spiritual support.
"His main activities were confession and prayer; Their goal was spiritual growth. The bands were homogeneous, according to the Moravian model; there were bands of women, men and even boys (...)."
Wesley sought to justify and explain the emphasis on Christian Perfection, as well as the openness to authorization for the preaching of women as a concession and delegation from God to Methodism, in the eighteenth century, beginning in 1738.
"In 1738, when God began his great work in England, I began to preach at the same hours, summer or winter, and there was no lack of hearers."
He called this moment the "Extraordinary Dispensation of God's Providence."
The Methodist leader came to this conclusion, especially when he realized that some women could preach in Methodism. God was allowing an exception to be made to the traditional rules existing in England.
Beginning with Susanna Wesley and continuing with preachers such as Mary Bosanquet, Sarah Crosby, Sarah Ryan, and others, Methodism may have been the first religious movement to make room for women's ministry.
"If Susannah lit the fuse of revival, John Wesley fanned the flame until it turned into a real fire. Their characteristic practicality played an important role in the revivals, including the modification of their views on women's participation."
According to Stanley J. Grenz, initially, Wesley gave permission for women to only "exhort" and not "preach".
However, they moved from exhortation to preaching.
Within the Sunday School movement, Methodist Ana Ball stood out:
"Miss Anne Ball, of High Wycombe, is regarded as the founder of the first Methodist Sunday School, in the very sense of the term. Organized in the year 1769, its Sunday School operated for many years."
"John Wesley was conscious of being involved in something extraordinary that God Himself was doing in the world."
The very rescue of the doctrine of Christian perfection, according to Reily, was part of the responsibility given by God to Methodism in the eighteenth century:
"Christian perfection," Wesley believed, "was the depositum which God had given to the Methodists as his special responsibility."
The very expansion of Methodism, beyond England, must be seen within Wesley's understanding. In 1746, he defined his vision as follows:
“(...) "a sufficient call from Providence" to new places, such as Dublin or Edinburgh: "1: An invitation from... a serious God-fearing man, who has a home to receive us. 2. The probability of doing better by going further, than staying longer where we are."
Lay participation and all Methodist work were looked upon as an extraordinary dispensation of God's providence.
Wesley said, "It is clear to me that the whole work of God called Methodism is an extraordinary dispensation of His providence. So I don't wonder if several things happen in it that don't fit the normal rules of discipline." [3]
Methodism participated in the formation of the English working class. The English Marxist historian Edward Palmer Thompson, in his book The Making of the English Working Class, stated that "the strictly organized hierarchy of the Methodist church," says Thompson, "taught the workers a thing or two about the organization of groups of people, which they utilized very well in the later labor movement."
And Wesley believed that it was Methodism raised up by God to change the current situation, that is, to: "(...) to reform the nation ... and to spread biblical holiness over the earth."
It was this vision
and purpose that Wesley had in his ministry: to reform the nation, particularly
the Church, and to spread biblical holiness throughout the earth.
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