Wesley Brothers Stained Glass
A close-up of the stained glass window of John and Charles Wesley located inside the Wesley Memorial Methodist Church in Epworth, England. (UM News photo/Kathleen Barry)
Oboedire | June 17, 2026
Wesleyan renewal is seen from multiple vantage points: theology, sociology, and missiology being the three key ones. Simply put, the content (Gospel) poured into the containers (system) ignites in us the desire to share what we have been given with others. To be an Easter people is to be a missional community. Having looked at the message and methodology of the Methodist movement in the first two posts, I turn to its mission–then and now.
I see the essence of our mission when I combine two quotes–one from John Wesley and the other from Charles Wesley. John said that God expressly raised up the people called Methodist “to spread scriptural holiness across the land.” Charles brought the message into song in his hymn A Charge To Keep, when he said that we must “serve the present age” in what we say and do. Putting these two quotes together, I see the our renewal mission through three key words.
Love—Wesleyan theology is a theology of love. Full stop. Summed up in the two great commandments (Matthew 22:34-40) and the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). In our day, Paul Chilcote’s book, Multiplying Love and the book co-authored with his wife, Janet, On Love, are the starting-point resources for seeing this.
Liberation—Emancipation (Galatians 5:1) is the missional aim of the Gospel. The Wesleys knew this, and they designed both the message and methodology of Methodism to advance freedom. They were liberation theologians long before the term was coined. In our day, Joerg Rieger’s book, No Religion But Social Religion and the book he co-edited with Upolu Lumā Vaai, Methodist Revolutions, are the starting-point resources for seeing this.
Locality—John Wesley said the world was his parish, but the locale was his ministry field. Knowing and serving the peopke nearby was a sign of being faithful to Jesus’ words, “the kingdom of heaven is at hand”-imminent and near. The Societies and Classes had a distinct “close by” flavor, with an on-the-ground focus. Lovett Weem’s book, An Aura of Hope, is a starting-point resource for this.
All the referenced books are published by Abingdon Press and are available at the Cokesbury site: cokesbury.com
But apart from resources and studies, missiology in the Wesleyan tradition arises from Gospel-formed convictions: the great commission (Matthew 28:16-20), by Jesus’ reminder that to whom much is given, much is required (Luke 12:48), and by Paul’s reminder that “it is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).
When message, method, and mission of early Methodism is embraced by us today, our hearts will be strangely warmed, our mouths opened, our hands moving, and our feet walking. O, the places we will go!
Steve Harper 2024
Courtesy Photo
The Rev. Dr. Steve Harper is retired seminary professor who taught for 32 years in the disciplines of Spiritual Formation and Wesley Studies. Author and co-author of more than fifty books.. He is also a retired elder in The Florida Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church.