John Wesley – converted to Christ, May 24, 1738

Two hundred and seventy-one years ago this evening in London, England, a very religious man was converted to Jesus Christ.  His name?

John Wesley.  On May 24^th, 1738 (about 8:45 PM we are told) Wesley felt his heart “strangely warmed.”  It would be difficult to find one, let alone two men, who were more “religious” yet unconverted, than John and Charles (Charles was converted before John, 5/21) Wesley.  They had Disciple with a capital “D,” they were reading some of the right things, they were active in helping others but were not truly converted.

 

Quakers know (others should know more than they do) that George Fox was advocating holiness a century (round figures) before Wesley.  But Wesley and Wesley (and others) saw a greater surge toward heart purity in their day.  While we are not Wesleyan in name, we can appreciate the dramatic and lasting influence the Wesleys had on England and (via Asbury, et al) on our native, needy land.

 

Personally, I could wish John had had a happier marriage (Charles did), and would have had more haircuts.  He is not on a pedestal with me as with some men, but I’m very glad for his salvation, his emphasis on heart purity, and his view of and practice of evangelism.  Thank God for the 24^th of the 5^th month in the year of our Lord one thousand, seven-hundred and thirty eight.  Thank God for John (and Charles) Wesley!

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What concerns you?

People who think they have authority

          are concerned about others gaining authority

 

People who think they have money

          are concerned about others gaining money

 

People who think about higher things

          aren’t greatly concerned about either.

– eab, 5/20/09               

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Side-stage

Life is the dingy, green side-stage room [1]

Tall but small and cold;

Basically bare, for the stage (out there) [2]

Is where it is all truly told.

          – eab, 1/05

 

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^[1] This reflects my childhood impression of the side-stage rooms at the school I attended ‘50-‘57, Somerset, Ohio.

^[2] Eternity is the real stage, not earthly life.

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Herbert Hoover – wrote, May 23, 1932

Herbert Hoover, President of the United States, on this date, 5/23/1932 is reported to have written a letter to the New York Theological Seminary. 

He is said to have hoped the school “shall continue its interdenominational work of training Bible inspired preachers, teachers, missionaries and other Christian workers.  No institution doing the work this Seminary is doing should be allowed to fail, particularly in times like these.”

 How refreshing that a sitting President would be speaking of Bible training, preachers, missionaries, and Christian workers.  This was, of course, during what has been called the great depression.

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Sin? – Selfishness!

Sin is selfish.

 

          Selfishness is sin.  

–eab, 5/20/09

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SPLITS? – NONE!

Like a face covered with zits,

The modern church has had splits;

(Sad result of carnal fits!)

Dividing it into bits.

The TRUE church is always one,

Redeemed by God’s only Son,

Whose past work was/is still done.

Number of splits?  Zero.  None.

          – eab, 5/22/09

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William Newell – birth, May 22, 1868

“At Calvary”

 Years I spent in vanity and pride,
Caring not my Lord was crucified,
Knowing not it was for me He died on Calvary.

Refrain:

Mercy there was great, and grace was free;
Pardon there was multiplied to me;
There my burdened soul found liberty at Calvary.

2.

By God’s Word at last my sin I learned;
Then I trembled at the law I’d spurned,
Till my guilty soul imploring turned to Calvary.

3.

Now I’ve given to Jesus everything,
Now I gladly own Him as my King,
Now my raptured soul can only sing of Calvary!

4.

Oh, the love that drew salvation’s plan!
Oh, the grace that brought it down to man!
Oh, the mighty gulf that God did span at Calvary

 

William Reed Newell was born this date 5/22/1868 at Savannah, Ohio.

Dwight Moody invited him to join the faculty of the Moody Bible Institute (with Dr. R. A. Torrey).  Newell had an extraordinary gift for Bible exposition. Audiences in Chicago, St. Louis and Toronto loved his weekly Bible classes.  He wrote Romans, Verse-By-Verse; Hebrews, Verse-By-Verse; and The Book of The Revelation. Newell died 4/1/1956 at De­Land, Flor­i­da.

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Will? Oh, yes.

The very fact that Calvinists will to believe in Calvin

 

          IS an act of  their will. 

 

                                                – eab, April ‘09

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Prodigal

He ended up in a pig pen.

How did all this begin?

Were wine, women, and song

The start of his wrong?

No. “His way” was his first sin.

                (Luk 15.12) – eab, 4/2/05

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Charles Wesley – Converted to Christ, May 21, 1738

“O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing”

O for a thousand tongues to sing
My great Redeemer’s praise,
The glories of my God and King,
The triumphs of His grace!

My gracious Master and my God,
Assist me to proclaim,
To spread through all the earth abroad
The honors of Thy name.

Jesus! the name that charms our fears,
That bids our sorrows cease;
’Tis music in the sinner’s ears,
’Tis life, and health, and peace.

He breaks the power of canceled sin,
He sets the prisoner free;
His blood can make the foulest clean,
His blood availed for me.

He speaks, and, listening to His voice,
New life the dead receive,
The mournful, broken hearts rejoice,
The humble poor believe.

Hear Him, ye deaf; His praise, ye dumb,
Your loosened tongues employ;
Ye blind, behold your Savior come,
And leap, ye lame, for joy.

In Christ your Head, you then shall know,
Shall feel your sins forgiven;
Anticipate your heaven below,
And own that love is heaven.

Glory to God, and praise and love
Be ever, ever given,
By saints below and saints above,
The church in earth and heaven.

On this glad day the glorious Sun
Of Righteousness arose;
On my benighted soul He shone
And filled it with repose.

Sudden expired the legal strife,
’Twas then I ceased to grieve;
My second, real, living life
I then began to live.

Then with my heart I first believed,
Believed with faith divine,
Power with the Holy Ghost received
To call the Savior mine.

I felt my Lord’s atoning blood
Close to my soul applied;
Me, me He loved, the Son of God,
For me, for me He died!

I found and owned His promise true,
Ascertained of my part,
My pardon passed in heaven I knew
When written on my heart.

Look unto Him, ye nations, own
Your God, ye fallen race;
Look, and be saved through faith alone,
Be justified by grace.

See all your sins on Jesus laid:
The Lamb of God was slain,
His soul was once an offering made
For every soul of man.

Awake from guilty nature’s sleep,
And Christ shall give you light,
Cast all your sins into the deep,
And wash the Æthiop white.

Harlots and publicans and thieves
In holy triumph join!
Saved is the sinner that believes
From crimes as great as mine.

Murderers and all ye hellish crew
In holy triumph join!
Believe the Savior died for you;
For me the Savior died.

With me, your chief, ye then shall know,
Shall feel your sins forgiven;
Anticipate your heaven below,
And own that love is heaven.

Charles Wesley was converted to Jesus Christ this date 5/21/1738.

On 5/21/1739 Wesley wrote this hymn on the first anniversary of his conversion.  He wrote 6000 hymns across some fifty years or an

average of 120 a year.  This means he wrote (on the average) between

two and three a week.  And, as seen here, some were not short!

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