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John Wesley (/ ˈ w ɛ s l i / WESS-lee; [1] 28 June [O.S. 17 June] 1703 – 2 March 1791) was an English cleric, theologian, and evangelist who was a principal leader of a revival movement within the Church of England known as Methodism. The societies he founded became the dominant form of the independent Methodist movement that continues to ...
Memorial to John Wesley and Charles Wesley in Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford. Wesleyan theology, otherwise known as Wesleyan–Arminian theology, or Methodist theology, is a theological tradition in Protestant Christianity based upon the ministry of the 18th-century evangelical reformer brothers John Wesley and Charles Wesley.
John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, advocated Christian perfection that held that entire sanctification was indeed a definite work that was to follow conversion (the New Birth). Wesley drew on the idea of theosis to suggest that sanctification would cause a change in motivation that if nurtured would lead to a gradual perfecting of the believer.
John Wesley was assured of both justification and sanctification because he had experienced them in his own life. What Christianity promised (considered as a doctrine) was accomplished in his soul. Furthermore, Christianity (considered as an inward principle) is the completion of all those promises.
John Wesley left for Georgia in October 1735 to become a missionary for the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. Wesley made contact with members of the Moravian Church, led by August Gottlieb Spangenberg. Wesley was impressed by their faith and piety, especially their belief that it was normal for a Christian to have assurance of faith.
The most important leaders included Methodists John Wesley, George Whitefield and hymn writer Charles Wesley. [ 6 ] [ 7 ] [ 8 ] Movements occurred inside the established state churches, but there was also a centripetal force that led to partial independence, as in the case of the Methodist and Wesleyan revivals.
The power over sin received at regeneration was just the lowest stage of Christian perfection according to Wesley. Based on 1 John 2, Wesley proposed three stages in the Christian life: little children, young men, and finally fathers. [47] Young men were defined as those who had experienced victory over temptation and evil thoughts.
The Twenty-five Articles of Religion are an official doctrinal statement of Methodism—particularly American Methodism and its offshoots. John Wesley abridged the Thirty-nine Articles of the Church of England, removing the Calvinistic parts among others, reflecting Wesley's Arminian theology.