John Wesley's The Almost Christian

“The Almost Christian” – This is one of Wesley’s sermons from 1741 in which he illustrates what nominal or “almost” Christians look like as compared to the real, “altogether” Christians. Firstly, he identifies common traits of the “almost” Christians by saying that they have heathen honesty, sincerity, and that they are very much so focused on possessing the “form of godliness” or rather the outward appearance of a Christian. These people may approach the faith and perform the mechanics of it correctly and have good intentions, but their hearts are not really in it. They do not have true faith and love in their hearts, as the real Christians do. The true Christians have first the overwhelming love for God and then for their neighbor. The reason why “altogether” Christians do any good work is because they have true faith in their hearts that in effect influences their actions to do good. Wesley begs his …show more content…
Firstly, Wesley lays the foundation on which the doctrine of justification is built. He explains how humanity was originally created without sin and with a heart for God. However, as a result of the first sin in the Garden, humanity was no longer able to be in communion with the Father. Therefore, God sent his only Son, Jesus Christ, to die for the sins of human beings in order to reconcile the world with himself. Secondly, Wesley defines justification as being the pardon, or forgiveness, of sins. Thirdly, he identifies those who are justified. They are the ungodly sinners because they are the ones who truly need forgiveness. This idea is different from what others may have believed in Wesley’s time in that he says that no work/deed done before justification is “good” and that one must be justified first before one can be sanctified. And lastly, Wesley determines on what terms a person is justified in saying that they are justified on account of their true faith in