Wesley's View of Baptism and the Lord's Supper

Wesley's View of Baptism and the Lord's Supper

This reasoning on Wesley's part clearly indi­cates that he did not consider baptism to guarantee salvation. Rather, he held it to give the recipient an opportunity (which he would not otherwise have) of choosing to become a son of the heavenly Father.

WEBB B. GARRISON, Reprinted, by permission from the "Christian Advocate

God's grace, said Wesley, must have a channel through which to operate. That channel he declared to be baptism, the sacrament being but an outward symbol of an inner cleansing. For him, the rite was far from a mere dedication. It involved certain benefits inevitably conferred by baptism, and available in no other way.

Baptism he declared to be "the washing away the guilt of original sin, by the application of the merits of Christ's death." Until that guilt is washed away, one is not a child of God. Once he is cleansed by baptism, and forgiven for the sin which he inherited from the human race, the individual person is eligible for adop­tion into the household of God.

This reasoning on Wesley's part clearly indi­cates that he did not consider baptism to guarantee salvation. Rather, he held it to give the recipient an opportunity (which he would not otherwise have) of choosing to become a son of the heavenly Father.

Experience proved that baptized persons were not immune from temptation and sin.

Though freed of inherited guilt, they soon accumulated actual guilt through their own misdeeds. How, one might ask, could the ledger possibly be balanced?

Wesley had a ready answer. His view of the Lord's Supper made it the agency of cleansing for postbaptismal sins. In his thought the rite is far more significant even than baptism. He himself ate the Supper of the Lord very frequently—indeed, at every opportunity. Most parish priests communed only three or four times a year; Wesley communed at intervals of about four or five days, throughout his long career. Only four of the Wesleyan hymns deal with baptism, while more than 166 are con­cerned with the Lord's Supper.

In Wesley's thinking, the role of the major sacrament is threefold. First, he regarded it as a memorial of the suffering and death of Christ. He considered it, as such, to be a vivid and arresting symbol, through which men may be continually re­minded of the sacrificial self-giving of the Son of God. This theme runs through many of the Wesleyan hymns.

Again, Wesley regarded the Lord's Supper as having been "ordained by God to be a means of conveying to men either preventing, or justifying, or sanctifying grace, according to their necessities."

Finally, Wesley considered the Lord's Supper to be "an infallible pledge of glory to come."

In his thought, this guarantee of heaven is not magical, since the communicant must "rightly, worthily, and with faith" receive the bread and wine. Indeed, he declared that any­one who receives the Supper unworthily "pur­chases condemnation."

But when the one condition, faith, is met, "to heaven the mystic banquet leads." Wesley nowhere made the direct statement that it is impossible to find salvation except through the Lord's Supper. He clearly believed, however, that frequent communion makes it a great deal easier for one to be saved. He implied that there is no substitute.

Baptism and the Lord's Supper, in Wesley's thought, are complementary rites. One cleanses man of the guilt he inherits because of his very humanity; the other cleanses him of the guilt he acquires by his own acts.

Both sacraments depend for their effective­ness upon the atonement of the Son of God.

They are channels through which the merit of that atonement may be applied to the indi­vidual sinner. No other function of the church, not even the preaching of the Word, is so effec­tive in bringing God's grace to sin-burdened man.


Ministry reserves the right to approve, disapprove, and delete comments at our discretion and will not be able to respond to inquiries about these comments. Please ensure that your words are respectful, courteous, and relevant.

comments powered by Disqus

WEBB B. GARRISON, Reprinted, by permission from the "Christian Advocate

April 1955

Download PDF
Ministry Cover

More Articles In This Issue

The Voice of Prophecy Benefits All Branches' of the Work

The Voice of Prophecy radio broadcasts and Bible correspondence schools complement and promote the work of all the other regular departments in our denominational program.

Radio in Southern Asia

The voice of Prophecy is on the lips and in the hearts of Southern Asia's listening audience.

Radio Bible Correspondence School Interests Bring Results

For this special issue of THE MINISTRY, which honors twenty-five years of con­tinuous broadcasting by H. M. S. Richards, your editors have asked two con­ference presidents, two conference home missionary secretaries, and several pastors to tell of the value of Voice of Prophecy interests sent to them.

The Only Men Who Can Preach the Word Effectively

Fourth in a series of addresses to the faculty and student body of the Theological Seminary.

To the Wives of Our Workers

The monthly shepherdess column.

The Short Campaign

Discussion of an excellent reaping program. The second and last installment discussing short campaigns.

Summarizing Short Campaigns

Recapping the distinctive advantages of the short campaign.

Public Relations Evangelism in Canada

For several years denominational leaders in Canada have given study to more effective ways of acquainting the public with Adventists, their beliefs and activities. Here are some results of their efforts.

Small-Town Evangelism

Translated from Seroir, French-language bulletin of the Ministerial Association of the Southern European Division.

The Jews and the Pentateuch

Messianic Echoes in Jewish Traditions—Part I

View All Issue Contents

Digital delivery

If you're a print subscriber, we'll complement your print copy of Ministry with an electronic version.

Sign up
Advertisement - RevivalandReformation 300x250

Recent issues

See All