John & Charles Wesley: A Heart Strangely Warmed — and a World Set on Fire

23 hours ago
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Today, as we begin our long walk through Paradise Lost, the Church also pauses to remember two brothers who helped awaken England from spiritual slumber: John Wesley (d. 1791) and Charles Wesley (d. 1788).

In the calendar of the Anglican Church in North America, their memory is honored not because they left the Church of England, but because they sought to revive it.

They were Anglican priests.

They loved the liturgy.

They believed in the new birth.

And they would not let the fire go out.

John: The Reluctant Convert

John Wesley was disciplined from childhood — earnest, methodical, serious. At Oxford he formed what others mockingly called the “Holy Club.” They fasted. They prayed. They visited prisoners. They examined their souls.

But discipline is not the same as assurance.

On May 24, 1738, at a meeting on Aldersgate Street in London, while listening to a reading from Martin Luther’s preface to Romans, John wrote in his journal:

“I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation…”

That sentence changed history.

From that night forward, Wesley preached justification by faith with boldness and clarity.

He rode thousands of miles on horseback. He preached in fields when churches closed their doors. He organized societies for discipleship and accountability.

He did not aim to start a new denomination. He aimed to awaken sleepy Christians.

Charles: The Singer of the Revival

If John organized the movement, Charles gave it a voice.

Charles Wesley wrote over 6,000 hymns. Not shallow choruses, but rich, doctrinal, Christ-exalting hymns that still fill our churches today:

“And can it be that I should gain

An interest in the Savior’s blood?”

“Hark! the herald angels sing…”

“Love divine, all loves excelling…”

Charles understood what every revival needs: truth must be sung into the heart.

His hymns teach incarnation, atonement, assurance, sanctification — not as cold doctrine, but as living praise.

Their Gift to Us

The Wesleys preached repentance and faith.
They insisted on the holiness of life.
They organized small groups long before the term was fashionable.
They crossed social boundaries to reach miners, laborers, and the forgotten.

They also faced fierce opposition. Mobs disrupted meetings. Clergy denounced them. Yet they continued.

When John Wesley died in 1791, he left behind not an empire, but a movement rooted in Scripture, discipline, and grace.

His final words were simple:

“The best of all is, God is with us.”

Why Remember Them Now?

As we begin Milton’s grand meditation on obedience and rebellion, the Wesleys remind us that theology must lead to life.

Paradise Lost shows us the ruin of pride.

The Wesleys show us the power of grace.

Milton asks us to consider the fall of man.

The Wesleys call us to the new birth.

And perhaps that is fitting.

For what is revival but the answer to Eden’s loss?

What is a “heart strangely warmed” but the Spirit restoring what sin has chilled?

A Final Word on the Wesley Brothers

We do not honor the Wesleys as flawless men. They had blind spots, tensions, and controversies. But they loved Christ. They preached the cross. They sang the gospel into the streets.

And through them, countless souls found assurance in the Savior.

May their memory stir us — not to nostalgia, but to faithfulness.

Sadly, the United Methodist Church has forsaken holiness for sodomy and has become a friend of the world and enemy of God.

But still, millions of Methodists around the world honor the "holiness unto the Lord" the Wesley brothers taught us.

Closing Prayer

Lord Jesus,

As You warmed John Wesley’s heart, warm ours.

Teach us to sing like Charles, to preach with courage, and to walk in holiness.

Let Your grace awaken us again.

Amen.

*************************

And can it be that I should gain

An int'rest in the Savior's blood?

Died He for me, who caused His pain?

For me, who Him to death pursued?

Amazing love! how can it be

That Thou, my God, should die for me?

Refrain:

Amazing love! how can it be

That Thou, my God, should die for me!

2 'Tis mystery all! Th'Immortal dies!

Who can explore His strange design?

In vain the firstborn seraph tries

To sound the depths of love divine!

'Tis mercy all! let earth adore,

Let angel minds inquire no more. [Refrain]

3 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;

'Tis mercy all, immense and free;

For, O my God, it found out me. [Refrain]

4 Long my imprisoned spirit lay

Fast bound in sin and nature's night;

Thine eye diffused a quick'ning ray,

I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;

My chains fell off, my heart was free;

I rose, went forth and followed Thee. [Refrain]

5 No condemnation now I dread;

Jesus, and all in Him is mine!

Alive in Him, my living Head,

And clothed in righteousness divine,

Bold I approach th'eternal throne,

And claim the crown, through Christ my own. [Refrain]