On Sin in Believers "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature." 2 Cor. 5:17.
I. 1. Is there then sin in him that is in Christ? Does sin remain in one that believes in him? Is there any sin in them that are born of God, or are they wholly delivered from it? Let no one imagine this to be a question of mere curiosity; or that it is of little importance whether i ...read
On Temptation "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: And God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it." 1 Cor. 10:13.
1. In the foregoing part of the chapter, the Apostle has been reciting, on the one hand, the u ...read
On the Danger of Increasing Riches "If riches increase, set not thine heart upon them." Ps. 62:10.
1. From that express declaration of our Lord, "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven," we may easily learn, that none can have riches without being greatly endangered by them. But if the danger of barel ...read
On the Death of Mr. Whitefield Preached at the Chapel in Tottenham-Court Road and at the Tabernacle, near Moorfields, on Sunday, November 18, 1770.
"Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his!" Num. 23:10.
1. "Let my last end be like his!" How many of you join in this wish? Perhaps there are few of you who do not, even in this numerous congrega ...read
On the Death of Rev. Mr. John Fletcher Preached on Occasion of
THE DEATH OF THE REV. MR. JOHN FLETCHER,
Vicar of Madeley, Shropshire
To the Reader
It was a consciousness of my own inability to describe in a manner worthy of the subject such a person as Mr. Fletcher, which was one great reason of my not writing this sooner. I judged only an Apelles was proper to paint an Alexander. B ...read
On the Deceitfulness of the Human Heart "The heart of man is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: ~Who can know it?" Jer. 17:9.
1. The most eminent of the ancient Heathens have left us many testimonies of this. It was indeed their common opinion that there was a time when men in general were virtuous and happy; this they termed the "golden age." And the account of th ...read
On the Discoveries of Faith "Now~ faith is the ev~idence of things not seen." Heb. 11:1.
1. For many ages it has been allowed by sensible men, _N~ihil est in intellectu quod non fuit prius in sensu_: That is, "There is nothing in the understanding which was not first perceived by some of the senses." All the knowledge which we naturally have is originally derived from o ...read
On the Education of Children "Train up a child in the way wherein he should go: And when he is old, he will not depart from it." Prov. 22:6.
1. We must not imagine that these words are to be understood in an absolute sense, as if no child that had been trained up in the way wherein he should go had ever departed form it. Matter of fact will by not means agree with this: So ...read
On the Fall of Man "Dust thou are, and unto dust shalt thou return." Gen. 3:19.
1. Why is there pain in the world; seeing God is "loving to every man, and his mercy is over all his works?" Because there is sin: Had there been no sin, there would have been no pain. But pain (supposing God to be just) is the necessary effect of sin. But why is there sill in the w ...read
On the Holy Spirit ^Preached at St. Mary's, Oxford, on Whitsunday~, 1736. "Now the Lord is that Spirit." 2 Cor. 3:17.
The Apostle had been showing how the gospel ministry was superior to that of the law: The time being now come when types and shadows should be laid aside, and we should be invited to our duty by the manly and ingenuous motives of a clear and full ...read
On the Omnipresence of God "Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord." Jer. 23:24.
1. How strongly and beautifully do these words express the omnipresence of God! And can there be in the whole compass of nature a more sublime subject? Can there be any more worthy the consideration of every rational creature? Is there any more necessary to be considered, and to be u ...read
On the Resurrection of the Dead Written in the year 1732
[This Sermon was originally written by Benjamin Calamy, D.D., Vicar of St. Lawrence, Jewry, London. It occurs, p. 275, in a volume of Sermons which bears his name, published in 1704; and is here abridged and revised by ~Mr. Wesley.~ -- EDIT.] "But some man will say, how are the dead raised up? and with~ what body do they ...read
On the Single Eye "If thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. Therefore, if the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!" Matt. 6:22, 23.
1. "Simplicity and purity," says a devout man, "are the two wings that lift the soul up to heaven: Simplicity, wh ...read
On the Trinity Some days since I was desired to preach on this text. I did so yesterday morning. In the afternoon I was pressed to write down and print my sermon, if possible, before I left Cork. I have wrote it this morning; but I must beg the reader to make allowance for the disadvantages I am under; as I have not here any books to consult, nor indeed any time ...read
On the Wedding Garment "How camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? Matt. 22:12.
1. In the verses preceding the text we read, "After these things, Jesus spake to them again in parables, and said, A certain king made a supper for his son. And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw one who had not on a wedding garment. And he saith unto him, Friend ...read
On Visiting the Sick "I was sick, and ye visited me." Matt. 25:36.
1. It is generally supposed, that the means of grace and the ordinances of God are equivalent terms. We commonly mean by that expression, those that are usually termed, works of piety; viz., hearing and reading the Scripture, receiving the Lord's Supper, public and private prayer, and fasting. And ...read
On Working out Own Salvation "Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; For it is God that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure." Phil. 2:12-13.
1. Some great truths, as the being and attributes of God, and the difference between moral good and evil, were known, in some measure, to the heathen world. The traces of them are to be found in al ...read
On Worldly Folly "But God said unto him, Thou fool!" Luke 12:20.
But one of these fools is commonly wiser in his own eyes "than seven men that can render a reason." If it were possible for a Christian, for one that has the mind which was in Christ, to despise any one, he would cordially despise those who suppose "they are the men, and wisdom shall die with t ...read
On Zeal "It is good to be always zealously affected in a good thing." Gal. 4:18.
1. There are few subjects in the whole compass of religion, that are of greater importance than this. For without zeal it is impossible, either to make any considerable progress in religion ourselves, or to do any considerable service to our neighbour, whether in temporal ...read
Original Sin 'And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.'
Gen. 6:5.
1. How widely different is this from the fair pictures of human nature which men have drawn in all ages! The writings of many of the ancients abound with gay descriptions of the dignity of ...read
John Wesley