Discipleship and the people called Methodists - BEH District

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Ready for all thy perfect will, My acts of faith and love repeat, Till death thy endless mercies seal, And make the sacrifice complete. (Charles Wesley) O thou who camest from above, Hymns & Psalms By Methodists I mean a people who profess to pursue holiness… of heart and life, inward and outward conformity in all things to the revealed will of God; who place religion in a uniform resemblance of the great object of it; in a steady imitation of Him they worship… particularly in justice, mercy and truth, or universal love filling the heart, and governing the life. (John Wesley) Consequently, the early Methodist movement became the key context in which these yearnings of the founders, and those who joined them, found shape and expression. ‘Methodism’ and ‘the People called Methodists’, what do these two terms signal and imply? Disciple-making ‘structures’ The initial ‘structures’ of Methodism were those which encouraged and enabled people to become better disciples of Jesus. That’s chiefly why they are as they are. The desire for discipleship came first, and the ‘structures’ quickly arose because they served the desired purpose well. Societies… John Wesley tells how people came to him seeking a deeper Christian faith. Today we’d describe them as ‘seekers’ or those on a ‘spiritual journey’. They asked him if he would “spend some time with them in prayer, and advise them how to flee from the wrath to come”. So he “appointed a day when they might all
come together; which, from thenceforward, they did every week viz., on Thursday, in the evening.” He advised, taught and encouraged them, always concluding the meetings with “prayer suited to their several necessities.” These were known as Methodist societies, a term in common use at that time to describe a meeting of people gathered for particular purposes or common interests. Wesley described a Methodist society as a company of men and women “having the form, and seeking the power, of Godliness; united in order to pray together, to receive the word of exhortation, and to watch over one another in love, that they may help each other to work out their salvation.” Classes Almost from the beginning the societies were divided into smaller groups of people called classes. Classes, like societies, were geared towards enabling better Christian discipleship. They consisted of about folk, both men and women, who met together. Each class had a leader who was expected to meet with their class at least once a week to inquire “how their souls prosper; To advise, reprove, comfort, or exhort” as appropriate. In the very first classes the leader visited individual members in their homes but very soon the members met together weekly. It was assumed and expected that Methodists would belong to and attend both society and class. This was signalled by membership for which a membership ticket was given, usually every three months. Bands Some Methodists belonged to even smaller groups known as ‘bands’. Once again the purpose was to deepen discipleship, particularly through confession, accountability and prayer. The bands tended to be self-selecting and ‘single-sex’ – men meeting with men and women with women. To what extent are the aims and activities of societies, classes and bands the aims and activities of your local church? Being in connexion The fast growing numbers of Methodist societies with their classes were not independent, freestanding groups. They were connected together in significant ways. Initially this came through the ministry of John Wesley himself. To be a
Page 1 and 2: By Martyn Atkins General Secretary
Page 3 and 4: With grateful thanks to many friend
Page 5 and 6: Scene setting - the last decade Thi
Page 7 and 8: ‘mere spin’ or ignore the chall
Page 9 and 10: Being better disciples… Roots and
Page 11 and 12: How is ‘divine disquiet’ presen
Page 13: Think about your local church. Whic
Page 17 and 18: Then take it from there. This will
Page 19 and 20: preaching, encouraging, sometimes d
Page 21 and 22: Every part of the body… For as in
Page 23 and 24: The itinerant system of Methodist o
Page 25 and 26: purposes of the kingdom of God. Per
Page 27 and 28: What do most want the Connexional T
Page 29 and 30: terms of commitment to and resourci
Page 31 and 32: deciding together how a contemporar
Page 33 and 34: who desire to join and can often br
Page 35 and 36: Rules… The demands, or possibly b
Page 37 and 38: Those who have noted echoes with th
Page 39 and 40: Bible - but this didn’t mean that
Page 41 and 42: 0 marks the 400 th anniversary of t
Page 43 and 44: century, individually and corporate
Page 45 and 46: Fasting is to do with seeking God
Page 47 and 48: I am no longer my own but yours. Yo
Page 49 and 50: Giving doesn’t only involve money
Page 51 and 52: Methodism is now certainly a ‘Chu
Page 53 and 54: in Britain, to workplace chaplaincy
Page 55 and 56: In what ways do you recognise these
Page 57 and 58: to be Christian disciples. Perhaps
Page 59 and 60: eceiving the Lord’s supper, fasti
Page 62: © Trustees for Methodist Church Pu

Discipleship and the people called Methodists - BEH District

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