The Righteousness of Faith

5 For Moses writes that the man who practices the righteousness which is [b]based on law shall live [c]by that righteousness. 6 But the righteousness [d]based on faith speaks as follows: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ (that is, to bring Christ down), 7 or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).”8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, (Romans 10:5-8)

     In this sermon Wesley is contrasting "righteousness by works of the law" and "the righteousness of faith." In doing this, Wesley presents the Gospel of Christ in opposition to the prevailing legalism found in the Anglican church. In this sermon, Wesley unequivocally identifies himself with the the evangelical of salvation and righteousness by faith alone. So much so, that in this sermon, Wesley comes to the very edge of embracing Calvinism. It is not surprising that Wesley said that he only differed from Calvin's theology a "hairs breath." He was quick to add, however, it was an important hair! For an excellent treatment of this hair's breath of difference click here for a great blog post by Allan Bevere. 

     This sermon is broken down into three different sections:

1. Contrasting the two Righteousness
2. The folly of righteousness according to the law and wisdom of the righteousness of faith
3. What must we do in response?

Click here to read the whole sermon.

Contrasting "righteousness by the law" and "righteousness by faith"

     In this section and the introduction, Wesley expounds on the two covenants that these two kinds of righteousness come from. A covenant is an agreement between two parties. The greater party (God in this case) outlines what the lesser party (humanity) needs to do in order to be in 'right relationship.' I often tell folks that it is a little bit like a contract. The important distinction is that a contract is driven by transaction (you do this and I will do that) whereas a covenant is driven by relationship (I love you, and I will show you this way, to respond in love do this). 

     Here Wesley makes an observation that I had never thought of before. Typically, we associate the covenant of the law (and therefore righteousness by the law) with Moses and the covenant of faith with Jesus. However, Wesley places the covenant of the law, and righteousness from it, at the feet of Adam, before the fall. I think this is so helpful in understanding the contrast between the two. The righteousness of the law is based on what we can do. 

     Adam, before the fall, was righteous because he obeyed all of God's commandments. The righteousness of the law requires outward (right outward works) and inward (right pure and good motivation) holiness. It also requires that we preform all requirements laid on us positive and negative. This means that, under righteousness according to the law, we are held accountable for what we do and what we do not do. Put differently, we are held accountable for doing every loving thing toward God and others we can, never doing that which is unloving and never neglecting to do what we know we ought to do.

     In contrast, the righteousness of faith is not based on our performance to God's law, but upon God's love and grace and our dependence upon that reality. Righteousness according to the law is based on what we do whereas righteousness according to grace is base on who we believe in, or who we trust in. Wesley puts it this way:

strictly speaking, the covenant of grace doth not require us to do anything at all, as absolutely and indispensably necessary in order to our justification; but only, to believe in Him who, for the sake of his Son, and the propitiation which he hath made, "justifieth the ungodly that worketh not," and imputes his faith to him for righteousness. (italics mine)

     If we look through the covenant made with Moses, we begin to realize how it was a covenant of grace, and therefore prepared us for the ultimate covenant of grace with Christ. Over and over, when God gives commands to the Israelite people through Moses, they are to obey, because "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt." In other words, they are told to obey because they are loved, not to earn love! In the ministry of Jesus, we see Him most often arguing over, not the content of the law, but the application of it!
     The righteousness of faith trusts in the Lord's righteousness not ours. In fact, it acknowledges our disobedience to God's law in the past (we all know that none of us are perfect) and our inability to perfectly preform it in the future (we all know, without help, we will mess up again). The righteousness of faith trusts in Jesus Christ for not only taking away the guilt of past sins,but the power those sins have over us so, by His grace, we can reflect God's image within us more completely in the future.
     This leads to the difference between the righteousness from the law and faith. The difference is that the righteousness of the law assumes that we are in the condition Adam was before the fall. The condition of fully reflecting the image of God we were born with, without blemish. Righteousness of the law assumes that we must continue in the righteousness that we already have. It assumes that we are already holy (like God in character) and happy (content with who we are in Him). It assumes that all is right with the world and our hearts.
     The righteousness of faith, in contrast, assumes that we are broken sinners. It assumes that we are beings created in the image of God, but that image has been broken by our sinfulness. Where righteousness of the law assumes a perfect and interrupted obedience to God's holy law, the righteousness of faith assumes that we need a recovery of that wholeness. Where righteousness of the law demands obedience, the righteousness of faith requires trust that God loves us, even when we are sinners, and he can, and desires to, make us new.

Questions 

1. What causes people to mistakenly believe that Christianity teaches that we must do good works (law righteousness) for God to love us? 

2. How do the differing assumptions about righteousness of law and faith change how we live?

Folly of righteousness of law and the wisdom of the righteousness of faith

     In this segment Wesley shows why it is foolish to rely on righteousness and wise to rely of faith for righteousness. He begins with three basic reasons why relying on our own righteousness is foolish. 

     First, righteousness according to the law starts with the wrong assumptions about our nature. As Wesley puts it, "They set out wrong." It assumes that we are in an innocent state like Adam was before the fall. According to traditional Christian doctrine, however, this assumption is wrong, we are all sinners, and we have all fallen short of the glory of God. While Wesley does not directly name it, he is talking about the doctrine of total depravity. This is the doctrine that we are all broken sinners and will fall to the temptation to do what is selfish and will please us or idolatrous and do what will please others rather than what is holy, right, loving to others and pleasing to God. 

     This understanding of humanity has been resisted since the fall. When having a discussion about this my wife, Brittany, brilliantly asked, "Have you ever had to teach a child to hit, lie, cheat, or steal?" Put differently, good parents have to teach their children to not do these things and to do the right thing. Another observation she had was, "Why is it, so often, easier to do the wrong thing (by omission or commission) than to do the right thing?" All one has to do is look at the news and human depravity is obvious. It is rather conceited and arrogant to think that while the world is falling apart because of human depravity "I am clearly not like those people on the news!" Malcolm Muggeridge put it better than anyone by writing “The depravity of man is at once the most empirically verifiable reality, but at the same time the most intellectually resisted fact.”

     The second reason righteousness of the law is foolish is intimately connected with the first. Because it assumes that we are all basically 'good people' (whatever that means) it falsely assumes that all we need to do is continue in what we have been doing. Righteousness of the law assumes a continuance of obedience whereas the righteousness of faith assumes the need for regeneration and restoration to the people God intended us to be.

     The third reason has to do with the law. In order to be righteous according to the law we must follow it to the perfect degree. We must never do what is wrong and never fail to do what is right. This demand is far too much for us. While Wesley does not address this, some could ask why is this? Why is God so demanding? One of my professors gave the best answer I have ever heard. Dr. Thobaben said, "any amount of unholiness (sin) will infinitely separate us from an infinitely holy God." 

     Wesley then launches into the wisdom of righteousness of faith. The first point he makes is simply a counterpoint of his first objection to righteousness from the law. Whereas righteousness of the law assumes we are alright the way we are, righteousness of faith assumes we are fallen sinners and need a savior. It accurately depicts our situation as Paul puts it in Romans 7 "what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate... For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want." If you have ever felt this way, the righteousness of faith can be yours!

     The second reason is simple, but powerful. It is the way God has ordained it! If we were beings created in the image of God the method of our restoration should be ordained by God. Put differently, if our problem is that God's image within us is broken, who better to trust to restore it than God Himself! Simple but profound.

     The final reason the righteousness of faith is wisdom is because "It is wisdom to aim at the best end by the best means." Our best end is to humble ourselves and accept Christ's righteousness and have restored loving relationship with God and others. It only makes sense that the best way to do this is not by giving us a checklist so that we can achieve it by our own works. A checklist is based on relationship and us accomplishing it will not create humility and gratitude toward God within our hearts. Instead, if we achieve a checklist we could become arrogant, and think God owes us for what we have done for Him. So righteousness of faith enables us to have a restored relationship with God that results in humble gratitude and love and compassion for others.

Questions

1. Why is the depravity of humanity "at once the most empirically verifiable reality but at the same time the most intellectually resisted fact?"

2. Which of the reasons for righteousness according to the law is the most persuasive? Which is the least?

3. Which of the reasons for the wisdom of the righteousness according to faith is most persuasive? Which is the least?

Exhortation

     Wesley finishes this sermon with an emotional and forceful appeal for us to stop relying on our own righteousness and come to Jesus, warts in all. Come to Him so that, by the Holy Spirit, we might be made new. Wesley does this in the form of asking questions about what excuses we may be making before coming to Christ.

     Some of the most forceful ones are asking, "Are you waiting to become righteousness enough before you come to Jesus? Are you thinking, 'I need to be more contrite, sorrowful over my sins, or clean up my act,' before coming to Jesus?" (my paraphrase). Wesley encourages his hearers, I would encourage us today, to STOP! Do not delay one more moment, run into His open arms. You and I do not deserve eternal life, that's the point of grace, that's the point of righteousness according to faith. As that great hymn, Come Ye Sinners, reminds us:

Come, ye weary, heavy laden
Lost and ruined by the fall;If you tarry till you’re better,
You will never come at all....
Let not conscience make you linger,
Not of fitness fondly dream;
All the fitness He requireth Is to feel your need of Him.

Rather than going out and trying to prove our righteousness by our works, let us withdrawal into His grace...

Question...

1. What is stopping us from coming to Him?

Justification by Faith

 5 But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness (Romans 4:5)

     This is the first of eight sermons that Wesley believed were the core and center of what he called "evangelical doctrine." These eight sermons contain the non-negotiable aspects of doctrine, in Wesley's mind. So much so the Wesley said that "the Christian Church stands or falls upon it."

     In this first sermon of the series, Wesley talks about justification by faith. He breaks it down into these four segments:

1. What is the ground of the doctrine of justification?

2. What is the definition of justification?

3. Who are they that are justified?

4. What are the terms of justification? (What must we do to be justified?)

If you would like to check out the original text of this sermon click here.

The ground of Justification

     This is an excellent question to begin with because here the question addressed is, why do we need to be justified? Wesley rightly starts in the garden of Eden to address this question. He makes the observation that humanity was created in the image of God. This means that, in the garden, we were merciful as God is merciful, holy as He is holy, morally perfect as He is perfect! We were created for perfect loving relationship with each other and our Creator!

     This understanding of humanity blows a huge hole in the excuse that many use that "I'm only human!" So often this is meant to excuse sin, as if being human inherently means being a sinner. Jesus was fully human and did not sin. In the same way, Adam, before the fall, was sinless and fully human. To be human, fundamentally, is to be an image bearer of God, not to be a broken sinner. When we do something to break loving relationship with God, who's image we bear, or other fellow image bearers, we are actually being less human than what we were created for. For an excellent treatment on this, I highly recommend Allan Bevere's blog post on this topic (click here). 

     As we are all painfully aware, however, we as a race did not stay in this state. Instead, Adam was tempted to "become as God." I have heard it said that being image bearers of God means being like Him in character but not His essence! In our own lives and on the world stage we can see the devastation this has caused. Individuals and groups of individuals trying to grasp at being like God in that we, so often, want to be the deciders of what is right and wrong, and not allow God to tell us. 

     Because Adam, as representative of us all, wanted control and power apart for the giver of life, he got what he was asking for. We live in Adam's world! A world created good by a good Creator, but a world that has rejected His good purposes. A world in which death and its many vile agents are constantly on the prowl. If we think about it, we know this to be true. Every religion, and even many non-religious worldviews, know that something is desperately wrong. We try to blame it on our upbringing, corrupt structures, political parties, and everything else outside of us. While these things certainly play a factor, Aleksander Solzhenitsyn was absolutely correct when lamenting that:

“If only it were all so simple! If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessary only to separate them from the rest of us and destroy them. But the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?

     Because of this, God sent His only Son to come down here and live the life we should have lived and die the death we should have died. This then is the ground of justification. That God, in Christ Jesus, allowed his heart and his very life to be destroyed to show us the ugliness of our sin, and to begin a new covenant with us. A covenant in which we can share in Christ's crucifixion by dying to our sinful self, the first Adam within us, so that we can then live in the unmerited grace of Christ, the second Adam. In this, Jesus becomes our new representative, standard, and way to reconciliation to our Father in Heaven. This offer is a free gift offered to us by Christ.

Questions

1. How does understanding sin as, not part of being human but, as making us less human change how we feel about the nature of humanity, God, and our relationship with Him?

2. Throughout Romans Paul talks about the first Adam and the second Adam (Jesus). Upon reflecting on this, Martin Luther notes that in baptism the Old Adam is drowned so that the New Adam can share in Jesus' Resurrection power. However, Luther notes "old Adam is a mighty good swimmer!" Even after we are Justified by faith in Christ, old Adam often pops up, why is that?

3. When looking at the devastation of our world, why is it so much easier to blame the evil without than own up to the evil within?

What is Justification?

     Here Wesley starts by explaining what justification is not. First, he explains that it is linked to but not the same as sanctification. Wesley explains it like this, justification is what God does for us and sanctification is what God does in us. Wesley wanted to keep these separate in an effort to highlight the fact that good works (the kind of works we expect in sanctification) are not a prerequisite to justification.

     Justification also does not mean we are free from accusation against 'the accuser' (the Devil). This is important to note because being justified does not free us from being tempted and taunted by the Devil. After all, Jesus was the only one to be justified by His works and He was tormented by the Devil. 

     The second thing justification is not us being excused from God's law. Rather the offence is still there and real, just as Jesus' crucifixion is still real. However, just as Jesus' resurrection is real, the forgiveness that we can find in Him is real. 

     Justifications also does not "imply, that God is deceived in those whom He justifies; that He thinks them to be what in fact they are not." Here Wesley was specifically addressing an abuse of the doctrine of 'Imputed Righteousness.' This is the doctrine that states that we, before our conversion, are not actually righteousness but, after conversion, Jesus' righteousness is imputed, or placed upon us. 

     While Wesley never rejects this doctrine, he rejects an abusive interpretation of it. The abuse goes like this, since God looks at me and sees Jesus' righteousness, it does not matter if I ever become actually righteous, so I can do whatever I want! What I believe Wesley would say, and I know I would say, is that Jesus' righteousness is imputed upon us (justification) even though we are not righteous so that we can grow in Christ's righteousness (sanctification). 

     In the final part of is segment Wesley talks about what justification is. Justification is, simply put, the forgiveness of sins. Wesley puts it like this "It is that act of God the Father, whereby, for the sake of the propitiation made by the blood of His Son, He "'shows his righteousness (or mercy)by the remission of the sins that are past.'" Here, because of Christ's willing sacrifice, sinners are able to be free from the guilt of sin and its power! 

Questions

1. What are some misconceptions that we have heard on what justification means?

2. In what way have we seen justification (what God does for us) and sanctification (what God does in us) as linked?

Who is Justified?

     Wesley's answer to this question, and the answer of scripture, is simple. Only sinners are justified! Why would someone who is already righteous (holy) need be made right with God? If justification breaks the guilt and power of sin why would someone who is not guilty or under the power of sin need it? 

     In this section Wesley aggressively attacks the notion that you have to be somewhat sanctified to receive justification form God. In other words, he attacks the notion that we have to be 'good enough' for God to forgive us. So the question is not "how can my good works balance out my bad works?" Instead the question is, "How on earth to I die to this evil inward disposition that causes me to do evil things so that the image of God within me can be made whole?"

What are the terms of Justification?

     The final question in the last segment leads us to the closing part of the sermon. What must we do to make things right with God? Wesley's answer, nothing! We must 'do' nothing instead we must have faith! This faith is one-hundred percent a work of God. This faith is both intellectual assent and trust. It is the supernatural insight that God gives us the knowledge that we are sinners in need of saving. God graciously enables us to realize that we cannot do it on our own. Finally, He enables to trust in Christ's sacrificial death to pay for our sins, and His resurrection to ensure that we can live new lives.

     Our role is simply to trust in and submit to His design. Wesley goes into the nature of good works as it relates to this design. He notes that "Whatever good someone does, from that hour when that person first believes in God through Christ, faith does not 'find,' but 'bring.' This is the fruit of faith. First the tree is good, and then the fruit is good also." In other words, God changes us from the inside out. We do not find faith, worth, dignity, value, or justification by being 'good people.' Instead, God, by the power of the Holy Spirit, changes our hearts, our desires so that we, by Gods grace, bring forth good works.

     Wesley closes with an interesting point and a plea. First, he asks the question why? Why is it God's design that it is not by our works that we are saved, but we are justified by faith in Christ Jesus alone? He rightly observes that it is to eliminate a chance for pride within us. After all, the temptation that the first Adam, and the rest of us, fell to is to 'be as God.' 

     Put differently, what got us in this mess was trying to grasp at God's authority, so the solution is giving up authority in our own lives. That giving up of authority to the Lord is us saying, "Lord, I do not have any righteousness of my own! Please save me, by your grace!" We are, therefore made right with God not by us coming up to God (with our good deeds) but by Him coming down to us (in Jesus' sacrificial death and resurrection mediated to us by the Holy Spirit). John's brother, Charles put it better than I ever could by writing:

He left his Father's throne above
(so free, so infinite his grace!),
emptied himself of all but love,
and bled for Adam's helpless race.

     So Wesley closes this sermon with a plea. A plea to anyone who knows, in his or her heart that they are a vile wretched sinner, anyone who has tried to justify oneself, be a good person, and ended up exhausted and defeated. Wesley pleads with them that they would give up on their good works and, "go straight to him with all of our ungodliness!" Wesley remarks that if you feel fit for hell, you are on the right track! You are on the right track because you know you cannot save yourself!
     So, with all of your sins, and sinful dispositions, do not delay, run straight to His arms of mercy. Do not trot out your good works or attempts to justify yourself! Instead, trust that in Christ Jesus our debt is paid in full. That in Him we can find forgiveness and life and life abundantly!

Questions

1. Even when we accept the doctrine of justification by faith, we still, often, try to justify ourselves. Why?

2. Which is harder to believe, that we are all deserving of hell or that Jesus died so that we might not have to taste what we deserve? Why?

3. The kind of faith that justifies us believes in Christ and trusts in His merits to save us. Is it harder to believe (have intellectual assent) or trust? Why?

Scriptural Christianity

then if anyone hears the trumpet but does not heed the warning and the sword comes and takes their life, their blood will be on their own head. (Ezekiel 33:4)

After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.(Acts 4:31)

     This sermon was preached at St. Mary's, Oxford, before the facility and students of the institution. This sermon is broken into four parts. The first three parts are a discrimination of how Christianity began to exist in individuals, spread from person to person, and how it spread through the earth. The final section was the application of this teaching. Put differently, where does Christianity now exist? 

     It is this final section that makes this, without a doubt, John's most controversial, and challenging sermon. In this sermon he puts a challenge before those in attendance to examine themselves. Ask the tough questions, are we living in a truly 'Christian country,' is this (a nominally Christian institution) a truly 'Christian city' and 'Christian University?'

     In this sermon Wesley urgently calls all the hearers to examine their hearts. Are they kind, compassionate, merciful, or, if not, are these things they desire to grow into by the grace of God? Wesley suggests that they are not in such a place. Almost as if they wanted to prove him right, they kicked him out of his Alma-mater forever. Rather than examining themselves they, chose to forbid Wesley from ever preaching there again. As we digest this challenging sermon my hope is that we would not be like the folks at Oxford. 

     My hope is that, rather than dismissing Wesley as a fundamentalist, madman, or extremest, we would prayerfully consider the questions he raises. Do I live in full abandonment to Christ's rule and reign? Is my life different because I call myself a Christian? In asking these tough but important questions of ourselves, perhaps we can allow the Holy Spirit to call us into an even closer loving relationship with our Creator through the forgiveness and transformation we find in Christ Jesus!

     I will break the discussion of this sermon down into the four segments of it, then pose several discussion questions. If you would like to read the original text click here.

Christianity as it began in individuals

     Here Wesley takes back to that first Pentecost by having us consider one of those who's heart was pricked by Peter's "bold preaching" that was referred to out of the Acts reading. This person's heart would have been pricked for the conviction of his or her sins, turned to Christ for the remission of that sin, and receive the spirit of adoption. This spirit is an inward and invisibly interaction where the Spirit witnesses to our spirit that we are children of God and in our distress we can call out to Him "Abba, Father." For Wesley this was the evidence of saving faith. The essence is that "the love of God the Father, through the Son of His love, to him or her a sinner, now accepted in the Beloved." 

     This love is not just the love of God in one's heart but is also the love of neighbor. It is not a puffed up love, but is humble and this love saves one from pride, lust, ambition, covetousness, and vanity. It causes the one saved to desire and be empowered to avoid evil and to do good, so much as the person is able. The world is crucified to this person in such a way that he or she desires to share their time, talents, and treasures for God's glory and the aid of neighbor.

Questioins

1. What is the closest human relationship you have ever had? How has this relationship changed how you feel, and what you do?

2. How does understanding God as "Abba" (an Aramaic word that combines the reverence of Father and warmness of Daddy) change how we view Him and how we are to relate to Him?

Christianity spreading from person to person

     The Christian faith is a relational faith and is therefore transmitted in a relational way. This means that the faith spreads gradually from person to person. The impetus for a believer to share his or her faith is that, as we grow deeper in love with the Lord, we begin to have His heart for the world. We see the brokenness of this world and of the people in it. Because we have experienced wholeness in Christ we are compelled, out of compassion, to share it with others. 

     Wesley recognized that this sharing in the Scriptures, and in our day, is not one size fit all. Indeed Wesley says that the apostles "endeavored to speak to everyone severally as they had need." A more modern way that I have heard it stated is that we are called to "Comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable!" To those who pridefully assume their own righteousness and seem to find fault in everyone but themselves, we need, at times, to speak frankly and firmly to them. This, of course, is not to hold it over the person, or to only make them feel guilty. Instead, if the Holy Spirit does use us to convict a persons heart, it's design is to point them away from their sins and toward Christ. On the other hand, if there is a person who is all torn up over his or her brokenness we do not need to confront them. Instead our role is to assure them that they have an advocate in Christ Jesus, He has paid it all, and they can be reconciled to their loving Father, and the Spirit will witness to their spirit that they have been adopted as His son or daughter. 

     As the early Christians shared their faith, they were not only successful in encouraging others to put their faith in Christ, but they were also successful in offending everyone else. Wesley tells us that those who were "men of pleasure" were offended because their assumptions about the meaning of life were challenged and some of their companions were converted and not longer lived as hedonists. This is such an appropriate word for us today. In our North American context, how often do folks just assume the purpose of life is to avoid pain and absorb pleasure? In other words, the mantra "If it feels good, do it" reigns for many around us. If we are allowing the reign of Christ to rule in our lives, the purity of our lives may offend them, just ask a kid in high school who tries to live in abstinence. 

     These early Christians also, offended "men of esteem" in Wesley's words. These were folks that were used to the red carpet treatment, they were used to folks bowing down to their power and prestige. Naturally, when Christians refused to bend their knee to people like this because they would only bow to Christ as Lord, it did not go over very well. In the same way for us, many times people will not know what to do with us when we do not bow to the Cesar of the media, political parties, or corporations.

     For the early Christians the people who are most offended by the gospel are religious people. Is it not always true that the most offended at God's mercy are those who believe that they have earned it!? Just as the elder brother in the prodigal son was furious, many people at the start of the Christian movement and now, become uncomfortable when considering the possibility that God's love and forgiveness and love might actually extend to 'those people.'

     Paul reminds us, but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness,  Because of this, we should not be surprised that Christians in the book of Acts and today, experience persecution. Wesley finishes this segment by talking about the persecution of the early church. What I often marvel at, and what Wesley seems to marvel at, is that the church not only survives but thrives in the midst of, and perhaps because of, the persecution.

Questions

1. The groups of people that the early Christians offended are often temptations we can fall into. For example, we can be tempted to value our pleasure, our power, or the power of others, or our religious 'good deeds' over our relationship with God. Which one of these temptations (pleasure, celebrity, cold religion) do we tend to fall into?

2. The gospel is offensive, when we are spreading it people will be offended. However, we want our only offence to be the gospel. How do we allow the gospel to be offensive in our lives, but not cause offence for other reasons? 

3. Have you ever experienced 'persecution' for your faith? What was it like, or what was it like when you came into contact with, Christian persecution?

Christianity spreading throughout the world

     In this short segment of the sermon Wesley considers what it might look like if Scriptural Christianity would be lived out in community. It is interesting to see Wesley's picture of what the kingdom of God might look like. Here Wesley does not infuse any controversial or complex doctrine into this vision. Instead it is simply a picture of people living in love of God and their neighbors. One incredible thing about Wesley's vision is that it is not a high pie in the sky vision of golden streets or pearly gates. Instead, the things Wesley seems to envision were bringing about the kingdom of God here and now. In other words, we do not need to wait to live out the kingdom of heaven. Instead we can live in love with God and peace with others in our daily lives.

Questions

1. How does understanding God's kingdom as a current reality that we are called to live into change how we live?

2. What are some ways in which the kingdom of Heaven can come through us?

The Application 

     Now we have come to the part of the sermon that caused Wesley to never be invited back. This is the part where John asks the question, does this picture look like us? In this section Wesley endeavored to speak to the people plainly. In these plain questions Wesley is clear that he is not saying, that "the question moved is not concerning doubtful opinions of one kind or another, but concerning the undoubted, fundamental branches of our common Christianity." In other words, this is not a question of people having the most informed theological opinions on complex doctrines. Instead, Wesley is raising the question about whether we believe, practice and live out the most basic and fundamental doctrines of the Christian faith. 

     In this section Wesley says that this Christian life is not just to be lived out by clergy, or the professors or students studying to become ministers. Instead it is for everyone who claims the name of Christian. Here Wesley challenges all people who want to be Christians to examine themselves. Wesley asks the listeners to bring Christ's Lordship to bear in all areas of their lives. Essentially, he asks them "where are your passions, where is your time spent, and where do you spend your money?"  

     Admitting that he was once one, Wesley almost begs them "do not be a generation of triflers! Do not trifle your passion away on lesser things! Do not trifle away your time on a kingdom that will not last! Do not trifle your money away by investing it in a things that are not eternal." I think this is a powerful word for us in our culture. In every area, accept for our faith, people assume that if we are committed to something it will take our passion, time, and financial resources. 

     Imagine an athlete who claims to be committed to his or her sport. This athlete eats junk food, never disciplines his or herself to work out, and never goes to team practice. How committed is this person as an athlete? Yet someone can be considered a 'committed Christian' and never concern themselves with what kind of spiritual food they are ingesting, never dive into spiritual disciplines, and go to our 'team meetings' of worship and bible study half of the time. There is a disconnect there. 

     My point, and I think Wesley's, is not to cause people to try to earn their salvation. Instead, these are questions that we need to ask ourselves in terms of trust and commitment. The fundamental requirement of being a Christian is to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. Trust that He has taken away the guilt and power by His crucifixion and trust that in His resurrection power we can live new lives. Part of trusting Jesus as Lord is being committed to our relationship with Him.

     Wesley closes with this appeal to his hearers and to the Lord:

Lord, save, or we perish! Take us out of the mire, that we sink not! O help us against these enemies! for vain is the help of man. Unto thee all things are possible. According to the greatness of thy power, preserve thou those that are appointed to die; and preserve us in the manner that seemeth to thee good; not as we will, but as thou wilt!

     So, when we feel as if we are sinking, when our faith walk has become a crawl, let us turn to Jesus. Let us turn to Him by trusting in His Lordship and committing ourselves to growing in Him. Growing into the people, families, groups, and churches that God has called us to be!

Questions

1. What are you most tempted to 'trifle away' (passion, time, or money)?

2. When considering this challenge, how do you feel (offended, nervous, excited etc.)?

3. What are ways God may be leading you to trust Christ and become more committed to His Lordship? 

Awake, Thou That Sleepest

“Wake up, sleeper,  
rise from the dead,  
and Christ will shine on you.”
(Ephesians 5:14)

     One of the things I have always admired about John Wesley is that from all the evidence we have, he was a very self effacing man. While his opinions were strong, he never wanted God to be on his side, instead he wanted to be sure he was on God's side. We see this in his preface to the 52 standard sermons. Here he is giving his life work and theology. Those things he holds most dear he is about to share and instead of dogmatically saying it's my way  or the highway, he writes, "Are you persuaded you see more clearly than me... Then treat me as you would desire to be treated yourself upon a change of circumstances. Point me out a better way than I have yet known."

     Perhaps one of the most interesting examples of Wesley's self effacing personality is the fact that not all of his 52 standard sermons are his sermons. Instead, John honors and acknowledges the theological and poetic abilities of his little brother Charles by including this sermon. As one reads this sermon, it is obvious that John was the mind of the Methodist but Charles was the heart. This sermon is full of poetic and emotional imagery he borrowed from scripture. Images that he hoped would stir our hearts to wake up out of our sinful slumber. Waking up so that the Holy Spirit may open our eyes to see our need for God's grace, mercy, and transformation through Jesus Christ. 

     In this sermon, Charles breaks this waking process in three stages. First, he describes what it means to be 'spiritual asleep.' Second, he attempts to wake us up! Here he attempts to shake anyone listening out of that sleep. Finally, he talks about the promise of forgiveness and transformation we have if we turn toward Christ in our awakened state. I will now summarize each of these points with some discussion questions afterward. If you are interested in reading the full sermon you can click here.

Who are the the sleepers?

     Charles tells us, and I think he is correct, that the people who are spiritually asleep are people who are not 'awake' to their own broken relationship with God nor are they aware of how that relationship can be healed. Charles says that this person, "sees no necessity for the one thing needful' and later says that they are "ignorant of both the disease, and of the only remedy for it."

     We can see this today in folks who say, "I'm a good person, isn't that enough?" The reason I think they are asleep is because if you start probing this statement you discover how unthought-out it is. For example, why do you want to be a 'good person?' What does it mean to be a 'good person?' Put differently, what standard are you using? Many times people will respond by saying something like, "I try hard to be nice and I'm not like all those bad people," then list bad people to highlight how 'good they are.' This, I believe is the draw of shows like Jerry Springer. I have heard people saying that they watch it to feel better about themselves. Charles calls this person a "wretched self deceiver" and "thanks God that he or she, 'is not as other people are; adulterers, unjust, extortioners."

     Under the surface, however people in Wesley's day and our day, know that something is wrong. Charles says the Holy Spirit is a sinner "made sensible of his or her lost estate." We might believe that folks do not talk or think in these categories anymore. It may be argued that since 'sin' and 'being lost' are not ways people think and talk, how can it possibly be true that people are awakened to their sin or lostness. To illustrate this I am reminded of a scene from the movie Forest Gump. Lt. Dan asks Forest "Have you found Jesus, Gump?" To which Forest answers, "I didn't know I was supposed to be looking for Him sir." In other words, how can God judge us for not finding Jesus if no one knows they are supposed to be looking for him.

    To this I would make some observations. We live in the wealthiest, safest, and most comfortable country in the history of the world. Now, there are folks that are unsafe, genuinely poor, hungry, and lack the basic necessities in our country. However, they are more the expedition here than in any other country ever. Despite this fact we people cannot beat down the doors of therapists, buy self-help books, or ingest medication (prescribed or otherwise) fast enough!

     I want to be very clear on what I am and am not saying in this observation. I am not saying that medicine and professional councilors are never needed. Indeed, the Lord works mightily through these things to help make people whole again. What I am saying is that we are kidding ourselves if we think everything is alright! We are asleep to our need of a savior if we continue to use pills, professionals, and self-help books to numb our soul to the reality that we are broken and in need of a savior!

Questions

1. Why is it so easy to be 'asleep' to how much we need transformation in Christ?

2. What are some things that act as 'sleeping pills' for our souls? Put differently, what are those distractions that keep us from admitting to God that we are broken sinners in need of His mercy and transformation?

3. Have you ever had a 'wake up call' for your soul? What was it like?

Wake Up Call!

     In this section, Charles has a flurry of poetic and powerful appeals for us to WAKE UP from our spiritual slumber. He begins it by reminding us of the text from which this sermon was inspirit. Charles says:

Wherefore, "awake, thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead." God calleth thee now by my mouth; and bids thee know thyself, thou fallen spirit, thy true state and only concern below. "What meanest thou, O sleeper Arise! Call upon thy God, if so be thy God will think upon thee, that thou perish not." A mighty tempest is stirred up round about thee, and thou art sinking into the depths of perdition, the gulf of God's judgements. If thou wouldest escape them, cast thyself into them. "Judge thyself, and thou shalt not be judged of the Lord."

     Here Charles is begging us to not lead an examined life.  Most believe in God but few reflect on who He is and what He created us for. To this Charles encourages us to "Awake, thou everlasting spirit, out of thy dream of worldly happiness! Did not God create thee for Himself" (Italics mine)? If we are created beings, what were we created for? The Christian answer is that we were created for loving relationship. Loving relationship with our creator that flows out into loving relationship with our fellow image bearers!
     Being engaged in this relationship is being asleep to one thing that we were created for, the one thing needful in our lives. Charles goes on to ask penetrating questions about our relationship with the Lord. These questions center around whether we earnestly desire, even mourn over the lack of, reconciled relationship with God. Do we feel the separation? Do we earnestly want reconciliation? Charles finishes the section by saying:

O that in all these questions ye may hear the voice that wakes the dead; and feel that hammer of the Word, which breaketh the rocks in pieces! "If ye will hear his voice to-day, while it is called to-day, harden not your hearts." Now, "awake, thou that sleepest" in spiritual death, that thou sleep not in death eternal! Feel thy lost estate, and "arise from the dead." Leave thine old companions in sin and death. Follow thou Jesus, and let the dead bury their dead. "Save thyself from this untoward generation." "Come out from among them, and be thou separate, and touch not the unclean thing, and the Lord shall receive thee." "Christ shall give thee light."

Questions

1. Have you ever missed someone so much that it hurt? Why did you miss that person?

2. What is it like whenever you have been reconciled with someone you love? 

3. Have you ever felt a rift between you and God? What causes that rift?

4. What might reconciliation to the Lord look like if that rift were healed?

The Promise

     If we feel this rather jolting wake up call of that one thing necessary, Charles closes with a word of encouragement. If we are awakened to the the one thing needful, a reconciled relationship to our creator, we should be of good cheer! For, in the words of Charles, "whosoever you are who obeys His call, you cannot seek His face in vain" (updated language and italics mine)!  Did you catch that? If you seek His face you cannot fail! That is good news!

     Charles closes with this good news by reminding us that "God is light, and will give Himself to every awakened sinner that waits for Him." If we wait on Him, the Holy Spirit will witness to our spirit that we are redeemed sons and daughters of the Lord. However, there are times when we all do not feel that witness. Charles closes with this promise to encourage us that, if we are awakened to our sin, we need to be patient and alert in waiting on the Lord. Alert in that "he hath given us long space to repent" so we should take advantage and search our own hearts. Search them to be sure that we are not "resisting the last effort of divine grace to save us. 

     In this alertness of being awakened we also need to be patient by waiting on Him while being in, what both of the Wesley's called the means of grace. These means are things like prayer, Christian conferencing, the reading and exposition of scripture, Communion and acts of mercy. If we are awakened to lost state and desire God's mercy and reconciliation, God has set out certain ways in which He communicates His mercy and reconciliation. 

     While not in this sermon, the Wesley's were careful to remind us that these things are not God's mercy in and of themselves. Put differently, it is not as if doing these things will 'earn' our salvation. Instead our salvation is a gift wrought for us on Calvary's Hill by Christ's sacrificial death and victorious resurrection. However, this does not mean that God has left us to do nothing while waiting on Him. Instead, these means of grace are normal ways in which the Holy Spirit communicates God's mercy and transformation. 

     I use the analogy of a cell phone. Imagine you are separated from someone you love and the only way you can communicate with them is your cell phone. That phone becomes vitally important to you, and you want to avail yourself to it whenever possible. However, that phone is not important for its own sake. Rather it is important because it is your means of connecting with that person. In the same way, means of grace to not earn our salvation. However, once we are awakened to our need for salvation we wait in these means of grace for the Holy Spirit to bring us back into reconciled loving relationship with our Lord. As we stay in these means of grace they not only communicate saving grace but also the transformation grace that enables us to become who we were created to be!

     So let us all call upon His name, mercy, grace and salvation. Call upon Him to awaken us to all of those areas of our hearts and lives that are separated from Him. Let us call upon Him to awaken us to the reality that we can trust in the Lord Jesus Christ to send His Holy Spirit so to turn us away from that brokenness toward His hope, healing, and wholeness!

Questions

1. Have you ever had to 'wait on the Lord?' What was it like?

2. What is it like when you have been 'awakened' to something you were unaware of? What did you do when being awakened? 

3. Have you felt the saving and transforming grace of Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit in the means of grace that our Heavenly Father has ordained? What was it like?