Wesley once stated that early on the Oxford Methodists were tenaciously orthodox, “firmly believing not only the three creeds, but whatsoever they judged to be the doctrine of the Church of England, as contained in…
Wesley, John
Wesley’s 22 questions
These are 22 questions the members of John Wesley’s Holy Club asked themselves every day in their private devotions over 200 years ago. Interesting how they are still relevant today. 1. Am I consciously or…
John Wesley’s Explanatory Notes on Romans 9
The Book of Romans Chapter 9Chapter Overview: In this chapter St. Paul, after strongly declaring his love and esteem for them, sets himself to answer the grand objection of his countrymen; namely, that the rejection…
James Pedlar, “John Wesley on Predestination”
All his life, John Wesley stood within the tradition of English Arminianism, but from the early days of the Methodist revival, his position on predestination became a particularly important and divisive issue. Of course, his…
Matt O’Reilly, Entire Sanctification in the Early Church
[Please note that SEA does not necessarily endorse Wesley’s doctrine of Entire Sanctification, but it is a position that SEA members can hold.] I’ve often heard that John Wesley’s emphasis on Entire Sanctification (or Christian Perfection)…
Assessing John Hendryx on Prevenient Grace
Monergism.com hosts articles by various Calvinists, some of which present arguments against Arminianism based on a Calvinistic hermeneutic, and others of which are a pure misrepresentation of Arminian doctrine. Having read “A Short Response to…
How John Wesley Spent the New Year in 1785
From the Journal of John Wesley: Saturday January 1, 1785. — Whether this be the last or no, may it be the best year of my life! Sunday, January 2, 1785. A larger number of…
J. Matthew Pinson, “Thomas Grantham an Influence on Wesley’s View of Predestination”
Recently a friend and former student, Jesse Owens (now a Ph.D. student in historical theology at Southern Seminary) told me about a statement Herbert McGonigle had made about Wesley “raising the ghosts” of John Goodwin…
Eric Geiger, “THE FAITH OF A SERVANT OR A SON?”
Please click on the link to view Eric Geiger, “THE FAITH OF A SERVANT OR A SON?”
Jerry Walls, “God’s Love and Predestination”
After considering sovereignty and human freedom, we are now in a position to understand the heart of Wesley’s theology, and how profoundly it differs from Calvinism. I reiterate that the difference is not that Calvin believed in divine…
Charles Gutenson, “John Wesley’s Order of Salvation: Seven Minute Seminary”
From the video’s YouTube page: “Dr. Charles Gutenson here outlines John Wesley’s order of salvation—that work of God which begins with prevenient grace and ends with glorifying grace.” A brief bio from Seedbed on Dr.…
Jerry Walls, “Divine Predestination and Human Freedom”
Like divine sovereignty as we previously discussed here, predestination is not a Calvinist doctrine, it is a biblical doctrine. And indeed, as a theologian steeped in Scripture, Wesley not only affirmed the doctrine, he affirmed a…
David Martinez, “Old Debate, New Day: Calvinism” (Review of the Fischer/Zahnd vs. Montgomery/Jones Debate)
By David Martinez On the night of Wednesday, August 27, 2014, Arminians squared off against Calvinists at Missio Dei Church in Chicago for a theological debate. The participants were: Brian Zahnd and Austin Fischer (Arminians)…
Susanna Wesley on Predestination
The following is from a letter written by Susanna Wesley to her son John. This quotation has been taken from John Kirk, The Mother of the Wesleys: A Biography (London: Henry James Tresidder, 1864), 284-86. Explanatory…
Seven Minute Seminary Video: Chuck Gutenson, “What Is Prevenient Grace?”
Dr. Chuck Gutenson teaches on prevenient grace and its place in the Order of Salvation as understood by John Wesley. Youtube: https://youtu.be/nG-AUaFgFbM?si=I2YzFn5miUJmBN38
John Wesley and William Carpenter, *Wesleyana, Or A Complete System of Wesleyan Theology Selected from the Writings of the Rev. John Wesley*
Please click on the link to view John Wesley and William Carpenter, Wesleyana, Or A Complete System of Wesleyan Theology Selected from the Writings of the Rev. John Wesley (Revised, enlarged, and an index added; New…
Who Believes in Total Depravity?
The following 10 quotes come from different authors surrounding the doctrine of total depravity. Their order has been randomly generated, so read to the end to find out the author and their respective soteriological standing!…
“Whatever that Scripture proves, it never can prove this…” – John Wesley’s Sermon on Free Grace
John Wesley SERMON 128 (text from the 1872 edition) FREE GRACE Preached at Bristol, in the year 1740 TO THE READER Nothing but the strongest conviction, not only that what is here advanced is “the…
Arminian Timeline
Date Remonstrant Anglican/Methodist Baptist 1600’s James Arminius (1560-1609) Theologian and leader of the opposition of Calvinism in Amsterdam and Leiden Jan Uytenbogaert remonstrant led the meeting that produced the 5 Points of the Remonstrants – 1610 Simon Episcopius (1583-1643) –…
Excellent New Book about Calvin and Wesley
[Taken from here, where comments can be made.] by Roger Olson A few months ago Abingdon Press (the United Methodist publisher) sent me the manuscript of a forthcoming (now published) book by my friend Don Thorsen…