Baptism: Wesley

The Shepherd's Truth

Views on Baptism

John Wesley

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Many of the following comments and quotes were extracted from a thesis:

JOHN WESLEY'S VIEW OF THE SACRAMENTS:
A STUDY IN THE
HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF A DOCTRINE

by Irwin Reist, Th.M., S.T.D. (candidate) (Associate Professor, Bible and Theology, Houghton College)

The following are the primary texts referred to in the thesis from which quotes were taken:

1) John Wesley, "Farther Thoughts on Separation from the Church," The Works of John Wesley, 14 Vols.; 3rd. ed. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Pub. House n.d.), vol. XIII.

2) Wesley, "An Extract of the Rev. Mr. John Wesley's Journal"; Works, vol. IV.

3) John Wesley, "A Treatise on Baptism," The Works of John Wesley (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, n.d.), vol. X.

A copy of Wesley's Sermons can be downloaded from here.

Journal 1, p. 98.
the "washing of the Holy Ghost" given in baptism,

Notes, p. 712
Infant baptism is supported by Scripture, according to Wesley. Baptism and teaching or evangelism of candidates are to be determined by the nature of things. Children are to be baptized before they are taught, as the Jews circumcised their children.

Sermon LXXLX, Works vol. VI, p. 395.
"There is ONE BAPTISM...the OUTWARD SIGN our one Lord has been pleased to appoint of all that INWARD and SPIRITUAL GRACE which he is continually bestowing upon his Church...a precious means whereby this faith and hope are given to those that diligently seek him...

Notes, p. 311.
Baptism is an outward sign and means of inward change wrought by the Spirit (John 3:5).

Notes, p. 540.
Baptism is a dying and rising with Christ (Rom. 6:4).

Notes, p. 690.
Believers are to be baptized in token of their faith in Christ and are to TESTIFY to their faith in Christ BY BEING BAPTIZED.

Notes, p. 540.
The effect of baptism is to engraft into Christ, through faith, from whence a man draws new spiritual life (Rom. 6:3-4).

Notes, p. 519.
[Entering Christ] is done in baptism if, with the outward and visible sign, the inward and spiritual grace is received (Eph. 5:26).

Notes, p. 746.
If God's Spirit has not operated powerfully in our souls our baptism has not reached its goal (Col. 2:12).

The Treatise on Baptism, 1754-1756 [which he copied from his father's earlier treatise]

Treatise, p. 191.
"By baptism, we enter into covenant with God; into that everlasting covenant...we are admitted into the Church, and consequently made members of Christ, its head. .. we who were 'by nature children of wrath' are made the children of God.

Treatise, p. 188.
The matter of baptism is the water which has the natural power of cleansing and hence is fit for its spiritual use in cleansing.

Treatise, p. 190.
Just as Jews entered the covenant with God through circumcision, so Christians are admitted into the Church by baptism.

Wesley believed that infants should be baptized for the following reasons: 1) as taught in Deuteronomy 29:10-12, infants can make a covenant with God through their parents; [Treatise, p. 195]
2) circumcision as the SIGN of the Old Covenant has been replaced by BAPTISM as the SIGN of the New; [p. 194]
3) as Hebrew infants were circumcised, so infants of Christian parents being under the evangelical covenant should be baptized; [p. 195]
4) infants are guilty of original sin;
5) baptism washes away original sin;
6) therefore infants should be baptized; [p. 193]
7) the apostolic church baptized infants; [p. 196-197]
8) infants can come to Christ by no other way than baptism. [p. 195]

Treatise, p. 191.
"it is certain by God's word, that children who are baptized, dying before they commit actual sin, are saved."

This does not sound like the Evangelical position of baptism as a means of God's grace effected through faith. It rather sounds like children can be saved by being baptized!

Treatise, p. 190.
baptism is ". . .the ordinary instrument of our justification."

Treatise, p. 192.
"...in the ordinary ways, there is no other means of entering into the Church or into heaven."

Treatise, p. 192.
"By water then, as a means, the water of baptism, we are regenerated and born again; whence it is called by the apostles 'The washing of regeneration'...Nor does [the Church] ascribe it to the outer washing, but to the inward grace, which added thereto, makes it a sacrament."

The following quotations are taken directly from copies of Wesley's Sermons (#43 and #45):

Sermon 43, "The Scripture Way of Salvation" (Eph 2:8)
3.3 Justification is another word for pardon. It is the FORGIVENESS OF all our SINS;

3.4 And at the same time that we are JUSTIFIED, yea, in that very moment, sanctification begins. In that instant we are BORN AGAIN, born from above, born of the Spirit: there is a real as well as a relative change.

And, according to scripture (Acts 2:38; 22:16; Tit 3:5), when are our sins forgiven?

Sermon 45, "The New Birth" (John 3:3,5,7)
2.3 The expression, "being born again" was not first used by our Lord in his conversation with Nicodemus. It was well known before that time, and was in common use among the Jews when our Saviour appeared among them. When an adult Heathen was convinced that the Jewish religion was of God, and desired to join therein, it was the custom to baptize him first, before he was admitted to circumcision. And when he was baptized, he was said to be born again;

4.2 the new birth is not the same thing as baptism, so it does not always accompany baptism. They do not constantly go together. A man may possibly be "born of water," and yet not be "born of the Spirit." There may sometimes be the outward sign, where there is not the inward grace. I do not now speak with regard to infants. It is certain our Church [of England] supposes that all who are baptized in their infancy are at the same time born again; and it is allowed that the whole Office for the Baptism of Infants proceeds upon this supposition.

Note that Wesley identifies Jesus' words "born of water" (Jn 3:5) and "born again" [Jn 3:3,7] to refer to baptism with water!

4.1 the Large Catechism [of the Church of England - Q.'s #163, #165] declares:
Q. What are the parts of a sacrament?
A. The parts of a sacrament are two: The one an OUTWARD and sensible SIGN; the other, an INWARD and spiritual GRACE, thereby signified.

Q. What is baptism?
A. Baptism is a sacrament, wherein Christ hath ordained the WASHING WITH WATER, to be a SIGN and SEAL OF REGENERATION by his Spirit." Here it is manifest, baptism, the sign, is spoken of as distinct from regeneration, the thing signified.

...likewise, the judgment of our Church is declared with the utmost clearness:

Q. What meanest thou by this word, sacrament?
A. I mean an OUTWARD and VISIBLE SIGN of an INWARD and SPIRITUAL GRACE.

Q. What is the outward part or form in baptism?
A. WATER, wherein the person is BAPTIZED, in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Q. What is the inward part, or thing signified?
A. A death unto sin, and a new birth unto righteousness."

Nothing, therefore, is plainer than that, according to the Church of England, baptism is NOT the new birth.

While the distinction may be real, yet there is NO indication (in the Catechism or in Wesley) that the "inward grace" is ordinarily given or received prior to the "outward sign and seal" of baptism!

4.4..[To the person baptized as in infant, but who is living a sinful lifestyle:]
For in your baptism you renounced the devil and all his works. Whenever, therefore, you give place to him again, whenever you do any of the works of the devil, then you deny your baptism. Therefore you deny it by every wilful sin; by every act of uncleanness, drunkenness, or revenge; by every obscene or profane word;...Be you baptized or unbaptized, "you must be born again;" otherwise it is not possible you should be inwardly holy; and without inward as well as outward holiness, you cannot be happy...

Here again, Wesley connects being "born again" with baptism and with Jesus' words to Nicodemus. He advised the baptized man--whether wicked or moral--who is not "born again" to deny his prior baptism, in order, we suppose, that he might be (re)baptized. So, although Wesley often sounds like today's Evangelical in speaking of faith alone as the only means of salvation, he never denies the necessity of the "outward sign" in order to obtain the "inward grace"--unlike today's Evangelical.

1 Corinthians 12:13 "For by that one Spirit, which we received in baptism..."
from: John Wesley's Notes on the Bible

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This page last updated 31-Jul-2005.