Pastor John Wright

Wesley pays much attention to justification and faith in his early sermons in the Standard Sermons. Wesley lived in a day that was opposite in many ways than ours. Whereas we live in a world that collapses all the Christian life to a private location within an individual, empty of any cognitive or behavioral content, Wesley lived in a day of behavioral practices and cognitive assent to doctrine that never shaped individuals other than during times of their public performance. Wesley presupposed this content as normative, but again and again called to develop the right inner affections and dispositions to sustain these practices. Thus in his sermon, "The Way to the Kingdom", he defines the kingdom of God by Romans 14:17: 'The kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness and peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit'.

Wesley defines righteousness/justice in terms of love of God and neighbor -- an inner disposition of the heart. But he is not afraid at all to tell us what this looks like. The following excerpt is Wesley's description of love of neighbor -- basically defined in terms of the teaching of Jesus in the Gospels. Thus love of neighbor arises from faith in God in Christ. Love of neighbor, for Wesley, cannot be separated from a concept of the Good, and goodness cannot be separated from God. To convert Wesley's words into a prayer is a very good thing to do. May God's love be so spread abroad in our hearts that Wesley's description is our reality.

The second commandment is like unto this; the second great branch of Christian righteousness is closely and inseparably connected [with love of God]; even, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' You shall love -- you shall embrace with the most tender good-will, the most earnest and cordial affection , the most inflamed desires of preventing or removing all evil, and of procuring for him every possible good. Your neighbor -- that is, not only your friend, your kinsman, or your acquainance; not only the virtuous, the friendly, him that loves you, that prevents or returns your kindness; but every child of humanity, every human creature, every soul which God has made; not excepting him whom you never have seen in the flesh, whom you know not, either by face or name; not excepting him whom you know to be evil and unthankful, him that still despitefully uses and persecutes you; him you shall love as yourself; with the same invariable thirst after his happiness in every kind; the same unwearied care to screen him from whatever might grieve or hurt either his soul or body.

Now is not this love 'the fulfilling of the law'? the sum of all Christian righteousness? of all inward righteousness -- for it necessarily implies 'bowels of mercies, humbleness of mind' (seeing 'love is not puffed up'), 'gentleness, meekness, longsuffering' (for love is not provoked' but 'believes, hopes, endures all things'): and of all outward righteousness -- for 'love works no evil to his neighbor,' either by word or deed. It cannot willingly hurt or grieve any one. And it is zealous of good works. Every lover of humans, as he has opportunity, 'does good unto all humans,' being (without partiality and without hypocrisy) 'full of mercy and good fruits.'