Name-Free Free Methodist Church

3 Commitments For Which John Wesley Thought All Christians Should Be Accountable
By Kevin Kinghorn - December 1, 2015
https://www.seedbed.com/3-commitments-john-wesley-thought-christians-accountable/


John and Charles Wesley preaching in Bristol
Mutual accountability was such a big emphasis for John Wesley. His famous precept that the Gospel of Christ knows “no holiness but social holiness” has largely to do with this idea of accountability. For Wesley, we simply won’t grow as individuals if we aren’t growing together within communities in which there is mutual accountability. And this goes for the ways we do (or don’t!) grow through our engagement in financial practices of various kinds: how we make money and how we spend it.

Within Wesley’s early Methodist communities, new converts were immediately placed in a Methodist Society. In fact, for those who were outside the faith and were at least interested in learning more about Christianity, the invitation was to attend a Methodist Society. Societies were local gatherings of Methodists that met about once a month and included testimonies, music, and teachings.

Becoming a member of a Methodist Society meant signing up for a certain level of accountability and growth. This accountability wasn’t reserved for the long-time, mature Christians who wanted to ‘go deeper’ in their faith. Again, Societies were the point of entry into the Methodist Church. For mature Christians who did want to go deeper, there were additional small groups of ‘bands’ and ‘classes’ that probed even deeper levels of Christian accountability. But the point is that Societies were for all people at whatever stage of their Christian walk; and the accountability within the Societies was for everyone.

More specifically, there were 3 commitments you had to agree to when joining a Methodist Society.

First, you had to agree to do no harm, by avoiding evil of every kind. These evils included fighting, drunkenness, and taking fellow Christians to court. There were also business and financial expectations. Wesley admonished business owners to refuse to engage in usury (lending at oppressively high interest rates) and to refuse to lend without reasonable assurance that the borrower would be able to make repayment. Equally, borrowers were warned not to take any good without the probability of paying for it.

Second, you had to agree to do works of mercy according to your means, as often as you could, for as many as you could. Works of mercy including providing food for the hungry and clothing for those who had little. It included visitation and caregiving to those who were sick and to those who were imprisoned. In short, you had to be committed to a regular, weekly pattern of reaching out to those who were struggling and on the margins.

Third, you had to agree to make use of the ordinances of God. The ordinances of God included services of public worship, public and private readings of the Bible, taking the Lord’s Supper, praying, and fasting. These were designed to keep one ‘plugged in’ to the transforming power of the Holy Spirit and plugged into the community of Christian disciples which God was directing and moving.

The ordinance of fasting seems the least popular today. But Wesley himself fasted every Friday during his adult life, and for a significant chunk of his life fasted also on Wednesdays, giving his food money to the poor. Wesley counseled regular fasting of some kind for all members of societies—which again includes very new and immature Christians! Wesley viewed fasting as, among other things, a safeguard against gluttony.

In the most general terms, the commitments of the Methodist Society members were aimed at helping them live by the tripart rule of life: “Do no harm, Do good, Stay in love with God.” It’s also an amazing thought experiment to think what our churches would look like today if every member were engaged in some group of mutual accountability, in which we asked each other about our weekly faithfulness to the 3 commitments of the Methodist Societies. So many modern issues—private indebtedness, childhood poverty, prison reform, dietary excess—seem directly linked to the commitments Wesley envisioned every Christian would regularly be asked about by other Christians. Something to think about.

3 Commitments For Which John Wesley Thought All Christians Should Be Accountable - Seedbed Becoming a member of a Methodist Society—at whatever point in your faith do it—meant signing up for a certain level of accountability and growth.

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The Articles of Religion
(Free Methodist)

Dennis Bratcher, ed.

Following are excerpts from The Book of Discipline, the official statements of doctrine of the Free Methodist Church. Included are the major sections that deal with doctrinal and theological positions. For more information, visit: The Free Methodist Church.

Preamble 4. Salvation
1. God 5. The Church
2. The Scriptures 6. Last Things
3. Humankind Scripture References
Preamble

A/100. In order that we may wisely preserve and pass on to posterity the heritage of doctrine and principles of Christian living transmitted to us as evangelicals in the Arminian-Wesleyan tradition, insure church order by sound principles and ecclesiastical polity, and prepare the way for evangelization of the world and the more effective cooperation with other branches of the church of Christ in the advancement of Christ's kingdom, we, the ministers and lay members of the Free Methodist Church, in accordance with constitutional procedure, do hereby ordain, establish, and set forth the following as the Constitution of the Free Methodist Church.

God

I. The Holy Trinity

A/101. There is but one living and true God, the maker and preserver of all things. And in the unity of this Godhead there are three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three are one in eternity, deity, and purpose; everlasting, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness.

II. The Son

His Incarnation

A/103. God was himself in Jesus Christ to reconcile people to God. Conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, He joined together the deity of God and the humanity of humankind. Jesus of Nazareth was God in flesh, truly God and truly human. He came to save us. For us the Son of God suffered, was crucified, dead and buried. He poured out His life as a blameless sacrifice for our sin and transgressions. We gratefully acknowledge that He is our Savior, the one perfect mediator between God and us.

His Resurrection and Exaltation

A/104. Jesus Christ is risen victorious from the dead. His resurrected body became more glorious, not hindered by ordinary human limitations. Thus He ascended into heaven. There He sits as our exalted Lord at the right hand of God the Father, where He intercedes for us until all His enemies shall be brought into complete subjection. He will return to judge all people. Every knee will bow and every tongue confess Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

III. The Holy Spirit

His Person

A/105. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity. Proceeding from the Father and the Son, He is one with them, the eternal Godhead; equal in deity, majesty, and power. He is God effective in Creation, in life, and in the church. The Incarnation and ministry of Jesus Christ were accomplished by the Holy Spirit. He continues to reveal, interpret, and glorify the Son.

His Work in Salvation

A/106. The Holy Spirit is the administrator of the salvation planned by the Father and provided by the Son's death, Resurrection, and Ascension. He is the effective agent in our conviction, regeneration, sanctification, and glorification. He is our Lord's ever-present self, indwelling, assuring, and enabling the believer.

His Relation to the Church

A/107. The Holy Spirit is poured out upon the church by the Father and the Son. He is the church's life and witnessing power. He bestows the love of God and makes real the lordship of Jesus Christ in the believer so that both His gifts of words and service may achieve the common good, and build and increase the church. In relation to the world He is the Spirit of truth, and His instrument is the Word of God.

The Scriptures

IV. Authority

A/108. The Bible is God's written Word, uniquely inspired by the Holy Spirit. It bears unerring witness to Jesus Christ, the living Word. As attested by the early church and subsequent councils, it is the trustworthy record of God's revelation, completely truthful in all it affirms. It has been faithfully preserved and proves itself true in human experience.

The Scriptures have come to us through human authors who wrote, as God moved them, in the languages and literary forms of their times. God continues, by the illumination of the Holy Spirit, to speak through this Word to each generation and culture.

The Bible has authority over all human life. It teaches the truth about God, His creation, His people, His one and only Son, and the destiny of humankind. It also teaches the way of salvation and the life of faith. Whatever is not found in the Bible nor can be proved by it is not to be required as an article of belief or as necessary to salvation.

V. Authority of the Old Testament

A/109. The Old Testament is not contrary to the New. Both Testaments bear witness to God's salvation in Christ; both speak of God's will for His people. The ancient laws for ceremonies and rites, and the civil precepts for the nation Israel are not necessarily binding on Christians today. But, on the example of Jesus we are obligated to obey the moral commandments of the Old Testament.

The books of the Old Testament are: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, The Song of Solomon, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi.

VI. New Testament

A/110. The New Testament fulfills and interprets the Old Testament. It is the record of the revelation of God in Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. It is God's final word regarding humankind, sin, and salvation, the world and its destiny.

The books of the New Testament are: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, James, 1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, Jude, Revelation.

Humankind

VII. Free Moral Persons

A/111. God created human beings in His own image, innocent, morally free and responsible to choose between good and evil, right and wrong. By the sin of Adam, humans as the offspring of Adam are corrupted in their very nature so that from birth they are inclined to sin. They are unable by their own strength and work to restore themselves in right relationship with God and to merit eternal salvation. God, the Omnipotent, provides all the resources of the Trinity to make it possible for humans to respond to His grace through faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. By God's grace and help people are enabled to do good works with a free will.

VIII. Law of Life and Love

A/112. God's law for all human life, personal and social, is expressed in two divine commands: Love the Lord God with all your heart, and love your neighbor as yourself. These commands reveal what is best for persons in their relationship with God, others, and society. They set forth the principles of human duty in both individual and social action. They recognize God as the only Sovereign. All people as created by Him and in His image have the same inherent rights regardless of s*x, race, or color. All should therefore give God absolute obedience in their individual, social, and political acts. They should strive to secure to everyone respect for their person, their rights, and their greatest happiness in the possession and exercise of the right within the moral law.

IX. Good Works

A/113. Good works are the fruit of faith in Jesus Christ, but works cannot save us from our sins nor from God's judgment. As expressions of Christian faith and love, our good works performed with reverence and humility are both acceptable and pleasing to God. However, good works do not earn God's grace.

Salvation

X. Christ's Sacrifice

A/114. Christ offered once and for all the one perfect sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. No other satisfaction for sin is necessary; none other can atone.

XI. The New Life in Christ

A/115. A new life and a right relationship with God are made possible through the redemptive acts of God in Jesus Christ. God, by His Spirit, acts to impart new life and put people into a relationship with Himself as they repent and their faith responds to His grace. Justification, regeneration, and adoption speak significantly to entrance into and continuance in the new life.

Justification

A/116. Justification is a legal term that emphasizes that by a new relationship in Jesus Christ people are in fact accounted righteous, being freed from both the guilt and the penalty of their sins.

Regeneration

A/117. Regeneration is a biological term which illustrates that by a new relationship in Christ, one does in fact have a new life and a new spiritual nature capable of faith, love, and obedience to Christ Jesus as Lord. The believer is born again and is a new creation. The old life is past; a new life is begun.

Adoption

A/118. Adoption is a filial term full of warmth, love, and acceptance. It denotes that by a new relationship in Christ believers have become His wanted children freed from the mastery of both sin and Satan. Believers have the witness of the Spirit that they are children of God.

XII. Entire Sanctification

A/119. Entire sanctification is that work of the Holy Spirit, subsequent to regeneration, by which the fully consecrated believers, upon exercise of faith in the atoning blood of Christ, are cleansed in that moment from all inward sin and empowered for service. The resulting relationship is attested by the witness of the Holy Spirit and is maintained by faith and obedience. Entire sanctification enables believers to love God with all their hearts, souls, strength, and minds, and their neighbor as themselves, and it prepares them for greater growth in grace.

XIII. Restoration

A/120. Christians may be sustained in a growing relationship with Jesus as Savior and Lord. However, they may grieve the Holy Spirit in the relationships of life without returning to the dominion of sin. When they do, they must humbly accept the correction of the Holy Spirit, trust in the advocacy of Jesus, and mend their relationships.

Christians can sin willfully and sever their relationship with Christ. Even so by repentance before God, forgiveness is granted and the relationship with Christ restored, for not every sin is the sin against the Holy Spirit and unpardonable. God's grace is sufficient for those who truly repent and, by His enabling, amend their lives. However, forgiveness does not give believers liberty to sin and escape the consequences of sinning. God has given responsibility and power to the church to restore penitent believers through loving reproof, counsel, and acceptance.

The Church

XIV. The Church

A/121. The church is created by God. It is the people of God. Christ Jesus is its Lord and Head. The Holy Spirit is its life and power. It is both divine and human, heavenly and earthly, ideal and imperfect. It is an organism, not an unchanging institution. It exists to fulfill the purposes of God in Christ. It redemptively ministers to persons. Christ loved the church and gave himself for it that it should be holy and without blemish. The church is a fellowship of the redeemed and the redeeming, preaching the Word of God and administering the sacraments according to Christ's instruction. The Free Methodist Church purposes to be representative of what the church of Jesus Christ should be on earth. It therefore requires specific commitment regarding the faith and life of its members. In its requirements it seeks to honor Christ and obey the written Word of God.

XV. The Language of Worship

A/122. According to the Word of God and the custom of the early church, public worship and prayer and the administration of the sacraments should be in a language understood by the people. The Reformation applied this principle to provide for the use of the common language of the people. It is likewise clear that the Apostle Paul places the strongest emphasis upon rational and intelligible utterance in worship. We cannot endorse practices which plainly violate these scriptural principles.

XVI. The Holy Sacraments

A/123. Water baptism and the Lord's Supper are the sacraments of the church commanded by Christ. They are means of grace through faith, tokens of our profession of Christian faith, and signs of God's gracious ministry toward us. By them, He works within us to quicken, strengthen, and confirm our faith.

Baptism

A/124. Water baptism is a sacrament of the church, commanded by our Lord, signifying acceptance of the benefits of the atonement of Jesus Christ to be administered to believers, as declaration of their faith in Jesus Christ as Savior.

Baptism is a symbol of the new covenant of grace as circumcision was the symbol of the old covenant; and, since infants are recognized as being included in the atonement, they may be baptized upon the request of parents or guardians who shall give assurance for them of necessary Christian training. They shall be required to affirm the vow for themselves before being accepted into church membership.

The Lord's Supper

A/125. The Lord's Supper is a sacrament of our redemption by Christ's death. To those who rightly, worthily, and with faith receive it, the bread which we break is a partaking of the body of Christ; and likewise the cup of blessing is a partaking of the blood of Christ. The supper is also a sign of the love and unity that Christians have among themselves.

Christ, according to His promise, is really present in the sacrament. But His body is given, taken, and eaten only after a heavenly and spiritual manner. No change is effected in the element; the bread and wine are not literally the body and blood of Christ. Nor is the body and blood of Christ literally present with the elements. The elements are never to be considered objects of worship. The body of Christ is received and eaten in faith.

Last Things

XVII. The Kingdom of God

A/126. The kingdom of God is a prominent Bible theme providing Christians with both their tasks and hope. Jesus announced its presence. The kingdom is realized now as God's reign is established in the hearts and lives of believers.

The church, by its prayers, example, and proclamation of the gospel, is the appointed and appropriate instrument of God in building His kingdom.

But the kingdom is also future and is related to the return of Christ when judgment will fall upon the present order. The enemies of Christ will be subdued; the reign of God will be established; a total cosmic renewal which is both material and moral shall occur; and the hope of the redeemed will be fully realized.

XVIII. The Return of Christ

A/127. The return of Christ is certain and may occur at any moment, although it is not given us to know the hour. At His return He will fulfill all prophecies concerning His final triumph over all evil. The believer's response is joyous expectation, watchfulness, readiness, and diligence.

XIX. Resurrection

A/128. There will be a bodily resurrection from the dead of both the just and the unjust, they that have done good unto the resurrection of life; they that have done evil unto the resurrection of damnation. The resurrected body will be a spiritual body, but the person will be whole and identifiable. The Resurrection of Christ is the guarantee of resurrection unto life to those who are in Him.

XX. Judgment

A/129. God has appointed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness in accordance with the gospel and our deeds in this life.

XXI. Final Destiny

A/130. Our eternal destiny is determined by God's grace and our response, not by arbitrary decrees of God. For those who trust Him and obediently follow Jesus as Savior and Lord, there is a heaven of eternal glory and the blessedness of Christ's presence. But for the finally impenitent there is a hell of eternal suffering and of separation from God.

A/131. The doctrines of the Free Methodist Church are based upon the Holy Scriptures and are derived from their total biblical context. The references below are appropriate passages related to the given articles. They are listed in their biblical sequence and are not intended to be exhaustive.

Scripture References

I. Holy Trinity

Genesis 1:1-2; Exodus 3:13-15; Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19; John 1:1-3; 5:19-23; 8:58; 14:9-11; 15:26; 16:13-15; 2 Corinthians 13:14

II. Son

His Incarnation - Matthew 1:21; 20:28; 26:27-28; Luke 1:35; 19:10; John 1:1, 10, 14; 2 Corinthians 5:18-19; Philippians 2:5-8; Hebrews 2:17; 9:14-15

His Resurrection and Exaltation - Matthew 25:31-32; Luke 24:1-7; 24:39; John 20:19; Acts 1:9-11; 2:24; Romans 8:33-34; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Philippians 2:9-11; Hebrews 1:1-4

III. Holy Spirit

His Person - Matthew 28:19; John 4:24; 14:16-17, 26; 15:26; 16:13-15

His Work in Salvation - John 16:7-8; Acts 15:8-9; Romans 8:9, 14-16; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 2 Corinthians 3:17-18; Galatians 4:6

His Relation to the Church - Acts 5:3-4; Romans 8:14; 1 Corinthians 12:4-7; 2 Peter 1:21

IV. Authority

Deuteronomy 4:2; 28:9; Psalm 19:7-11; John 14:26; 17:17; Romans 15:4; 2 Timothy 3:14-17; Hebrews 4:12; James 1:21

V. Authority of the Old Testament

Matthew 5:17-18; Luke 10:25-28; John 5:39, 46-47; Acts 10:43; Galatians 5:3-4; 1 Peter 1:10-12

VI. New Testament

Matthew 24:35; Mark 8:38; John 14:24; Hebrews 2:1-4; 2 Peter 1:16-21; 1 John 2:2-6; Revelation 21:5; 22:19

VII. Free Moral Persons

Genesis 1:27; Psalm 51:5; 130:3; Romans 5:17-19; Ephesians 2:8-10

VIII. Law of Life and Love

Matthew 23:35-40; John 15:17; Galatians 3:28; 1 John 4:19-21

IX. Good Works

Matthew 5:16; 7:16-20; Romans 3:27-28; Ephesians 2:10; 2 Timothy 1:8-9; Titus 3:5.

X. Christ's Sacrifice

Luke 24:46-48; John 3:16; Acts 4:12; Romans 5:8-11; Galatians 2:16; 3:2-3; Ephesians 1:7-8; 2:13; Hebrews 9:11-14, 25-26; 10:8-14.

XI. The New Life in Christ

John 1:12-13; 3:3-8; Acts 13:38-39; Romans 8:15-17; Ephesians 2:8-9; Colossians 3:9-10.

Justification - Psalm 32:1-2; Acts 10:43; Romans 3:21-26, 28; 4:2-5;; 5:8-9; 1 Corinthians 6:11; Philippians 3:9

Regeneration - Ezekiel 36:26-27; John 5:24; Romans 6:4; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 4:22-24; Colossians 3:9-10; Titus 3:4-5; 1 Peter 1:23

Adoption - Romans 8:15-17; Galatians 4:4-7; Ephesians 1:5-6; 1 John 3:1-3

XII. Entire Sanctification

Leviticus 20:7-8; John 14:16-17; 17:19; Acts 1:8; 2:4; 15:8-9; Romans 5:3-5; 8:12-17; 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:11; 12:4-11; Galatians 5:22-25; Ephesians 4:22-24; 1 Thessalonians 4:7; 5:23-24; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; Hebrews 10:14

XIII. Restoration

Matthew 12:31-32; 18:21-22; Romans 6:1-2; Galatians 6:1; 1 John 1:9; 2:1-2; 5:16-17; Revelation 2:5; 3:19-20

XIV. The Church

Matthew 16:15-18; 18:17; Acts 2:41-47; 9:31; 12:5; 14:23-26; 15:22; 20:28; 1 Corinthians 1:2; 11:23; 12:28; 16:1; Ephesians 1:22-23; 2:19-22; 3:9-10; 5:22-23; Colossians 1:18; 1 Timothy 3:14-15

XV. The Language of Worship

Nehemiah 8:5, 6, 8; Matthew 6:7; 1 Corinthians 14:6-9; 1 Corinthians 14:23-25

XVI. The Holy Sacraments

Matthew 26:26-29; 28:19; Acts 22:16; Romans 4:11; 1 Corinthians 10:16-17; 11:23-26; Galatians 3:27

Baptism - Acts 2:38, 41; 8:12-17; 9:18; 16:33; 18:8; 19:5; John 3:5; 1 Corinthians 12:13; Galatians 3:27-29; Colossians 2:11-12; Titus 3:5

The Lord's Supper - Mark 14:22-24; John 6:53-58; Acts 2:46; 1 Corinthians 5:7-8; 10:16; 11:20, 23-29

XVII. The Kingdom of God

Matthew 6:10, 19-20; 24:1; Acts 1:8; Romans 8:19-23; 1 Corinthians 15:20-25; Philippians 2:9-10; 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17; 2 Thessalonians 1:5-12; 2 Peter 3:3-10; Revelation 14:6; 21:3-8; 22:1-5, 17

XVIII. The Return of Christ

Matthew 24:1-51; 26:64; Mark 13:26-27; Luke 17:26-37; John 14:1-3; Acts 1:9-11; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 9:27-28; Revelation 1:7; 19:11-16; 22:6-7, 12, 20.

XIX. Resurrection

John 5:28-29; 1 Corinthians 15:20, 51-57; 2 Corinthians 4:13-14

XX. Judgment

Matthew 25:31-46; Luke 11:31-32; Acts 10:42; 17:31; Romans 2:15-16; 14:10-11; 2 Corinthians 5:6-10; Hebrews 9:27-28; 10:26-31; 2 Peter 3:7

XXI. Destiny

Mark 9:42-48; John 14:3; Hebrews 2:1-3; Revelation 20:11-15; 21:22-27

http://www.crivoice.org/creedfm.html

Free Methodist Church: Theological and Doctrinal Positions Selections from The Book of Discipline of the Free Methodist Church, a church in the Wesleyan tradition, illustrating theological and positions.

The Bursting Of The Methodist Wineskin
SEPTEMBER 17, 2019 BY MORGAN GUYTON

One of the most uncomfortable and least talked about parables of Jesus is his parable of the wineskins. Jesus says that new wine cannot be poured into old wineskins without bursting them; it requires new wineskins. The implications of this parable for the continuity of apostolic tradition are highly problematic. Which is why they are usually qualified, explained away, and bracketed. Otherwise Jesus’ parable might be held guilty of Marcionism, the heresy that says Christianity must throw away the old wineskin of its context within the story of Israel (which would not be an unreasonable straightforward interpretation of what Jesus is saying).

But there is a truth in Jesus’ parable that cannot be ignored. The Holy Spirit does new things that cannot be seamlessly assimilated into the old tradition. When the household of Cornelius started speaking in tongues, it was enough to convince Peter that Cornelius and his family did not need to take a mikvah bath, get circumcised, and become Jews before they could be Christian. But there was no basis within the old spiritual framework to justify this spiritual innovation.

No justification could be found within the old law to revise the law to accommodate Gentiles. The apostle James rather found a prophecy that could be reinterpreted in light of the Spirit’s testimony through the charismatic gifts of Cornelius’ house (though nothing about the prophecy explicitly permitted the revocation of the circumcision covenant). A new wineskin was discovered for the new wine that burst the old wineskin..

Methodism is the product of a renegade Anglican priest who wanted to remain in good standing with the Church of England on his own terms. When John Wesley said, “I look upon the world as my parish,” he wasn’t solely casting a vision for the revitalized evangelism his words are appropriated for today; he was also importantly defying an Anglican church hierarchy that wanted him to stay out of other priests’ parishes.

The decisions and discernment of the original Methodist annual conferences may have institutional authority for Methodists today, but in terms of their relationship to the church in which John Wesley was ordained, they would be analogous to the annual gatherings of the caucus groups within Methodism today like the Wesleyan Covenant Association and the Reconciling Ministries Network.

Methodism did not form by an edict of the British Parliament, the legislative body entrusted with official decision-making for the church in which John Wesley was ordained. Methodism simply established itself alongside the institutional structure of the Church of England. It was a movement of the Spirit that didn’t ask anyone’s permission to exist; the original Methodists certainly felt they were obeying God but they did not consider themselves beholden to the institution out of which they emerged. John Wesley remained Anglican for pragmatic reasons, not out of loyal institutionalism.

This is why it’s puzzling to me that so many moderate Methodists take moral offense at their colleagues who are convinced that obeying God requires violating the Book of Discipline. Why is conformity to the protocols and polity of our institution so assuredly equated with following the will of God? Why are we pretending that people who mostly lack authentic personal relationships with one another are in any semblance of covenant when they gather every four years to exercise the hyper-centralized power of our entire denomination?

When in the 1700’s John Wesley asked a series of questions of his annual conference of traveling preachers as a basis for their collective decision-making, he was creating a new wineskin that fit the new wine he had discovered better than solely submitting to the politics of the Anglican hierarchy or the British Parliament itself. But now United Methodists find ourselves in the reality that our General Conference has become an old wineskin that cannot hold the new wine the Holy Spirit is pouring..

The old wineskins are going to have to be shredded for the new wineskins to be discovered. In other words, the way forward is going to happen when a critical mass of Methodists decide upon an “illegal” course of action according to our polity... And we should become what God wants us to become whether General Conference ever officially decides to do so or not.

The Holy Spirit does not need the endorsement and confirmation of ... Methodism’s official legislative process to evolve our church how God wants to do so. As long as Methodists equate institutional fidelity with obedience to God, we will persist in our impossible quagmire. It is only by shredding the old wineskin that the new Methodist wine can be poured.

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/mercynotsacrifice/2019/09/17/the-bursting-of-the-methodist-wineskin/?utm_medium=social&utm_source=share_bar .01

The Bursting Of The Methodist Wineskin One of the most uncomfortable and least talked about parables of Jesus is his parable of the wineskins. Jesus says that new wine cannot be poured into old wineskins without bursting them; it requires new wineskins. The implications of this parable for the continuity of apostolic tradition are highly...