With the formation of the Global Methodist Church, a reclaiming of the Methodist heritage is in order. Many voices are submitting ideas with respect to the particulars of Methodist identity. I have my own thoughts, which will be spelled out in a series of articles. This is the third of at least twelve. I introduced this series three weeks ago. You might read that article first in order to know how I have thought through this project and why I care about it.
The Good News Isn’t Good News For Everyone
The world is offended by the gospel. It is not good news to them. They don’t acknowledge the bad news so there is no way they can greet the good news as such. There are two interrelated points that we must insist upon: There is eternal punishment for sinners, and the only way out of such punishment has to do with Jesus.
Here is what the scriptures have to say about those who are condemned:
“He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.”
- John 3:18-21
Here is what Charles Wesley had to say about those who live and die outside of Christ:
“Full of all diseases as he is, he fancies himself in perfect health. Fast bound in misery and iron, he dreams that he is happy and at liberty. He says, ‘Peace, peace,’ while the devil as ‘a strong man armed’ is in full possession of his soul. He sleeps on still, and takes his rest, though hell is moved from beneath to meet him; though the pit, from whence there is no return, hath opened its mouth to swallow him up. A fire is kindled around him, yet he knoweth it not; yea, it burns him, yet he lays it not to heart.”
- Sermon: ‘Awake, Thou That Sleepest’
God’s Justice = Damnation for Sinners (Us)
The world is only somewhat offended by the notion of consequences. We live in the era of cancellation, in which individuals are sometimes singled out by society to be publicly shamed and punished. When one of my childhood heroes, Lavar Burton of Reading Rainbow, was asked about this, he said this was simply people refusing to acknowledge consequences for their actions. While I disagreed with him on the litmus test being used for judgment, I agreed that there are consequences to how we live. Eternal ones. The way we live matters. The difference between Methodists and Lavar Burton is that we fear only the consequences dispensed by God, not by men.
The notion of consequences hinges upon justice. As I learned in my high school debate class, the basic notion of justice is that people are given what they deserve. In a worldly framework, that means people who do bad things are punished, and people who do good things are rewarded. Of course, the bible is not the inverse of that, but it also does not mirror the worldly understanding of how justice works. Mercy figures in. The exact ways in which it does so, not compromising the justice, but perfecting it, is a large part of the ministry and teachings of Christ. It is beyond the scope of this article (and my small mind).
Breaking Bad & Joe Rogan
Breaking Bad, a series about a public school teacher who begins to make and sell methamphetamine in order to pay for his cancer treatments, was the brain child of a man named Vince Gilligan. In an interview of him that I read more than a decade ago, I remember him saying one of the kernel ideas for the show came from a conversation he had with his girlfriend. She said that she wasn’t sure if there is a heaven (a place of reward for the righteous), but she hopes to God there is a hell (a place of punishment for the wicked). The notion that evil goes unanswered and unpunished is too much to bear, even for the worldly. Some good news is that there is indeed punishment for evil. The bad news, of course, is that when we are all born in sin (which we are), that punishment rightly falls upon us. See the previous article in this series to understand more about this concept if it seems strange or wrong to you.
See also an article I wrote a year ago about whether or not damnation is eternal conscious torment or complete destruction.
That is what hurt me in a recent segment of the Joe Rogan Podcast, when Joe found himself hoping out loud that the second coming of Christ would take place so as to end this time of suffering and evil. I found myself simultaneously rejoicing at him saying it on such a large platform while simultaneously mourning that he was basically wishing for his own destruction. Why would the second coming of Christ bring about Rogan’s destruction? Because he is not in a faithful covenant relationship with Jesus. He has publicly said so. So many, like him, wish for Christ to return while spending their days in enmity with him. It will not end well for them. I hope Rogan repents and turns to the Lord. I like him a lot.
Justifying Loved Ones
Many people who claim to follow Christ today similarly love people in the world. Their love of these people often leads them to compromise the faith. I love gay people, so suddenly I imagine homosexuality is not a sin. I know and love a woman who in a season of desperation had an abortion, therefore abortion may not always be a sin. I love a man who divorced a woman because the love had grown cold. Divorce might not be so bad. Do you see how this works? We choose to see sin as something far less ugly than it actually is. Many choose to see the sin of Joe Rogan or Jordan Peterson or James Lindsay as not so bad, as they are still publicly making the case for Christ. Yet God doesn’t see things this way. This isn’t how salvation works.
Salvation does not take place according to a worldly way of thinking. The world wants to believe that only the most exceptionally evil among humanity will be found in hell. The rest of us, we who are basically good (see previous article in this series) are rewarded for being better than all those child molesters and warmongers. God likes us and wants to be with us because we are pretty fun and charming in our own ways, so the bar for heaven cannot be set too high.
God’s Word exposes how wrong the worldly mind is. God does not like us. Our sin separates us from him. It offends him. He does not find us charming or fun. We should take no comfort in having neglected to commit any number of heinous sins. As we are warned in James, “For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all” (James 2:10). Jesus likewise warns that even committing sins internally (not even acting on them) is grounds for condemnation (Matt. 5:28). Moreover, our corrupt and sinful estate poisons everything we do, such that we can do no good works that please the Lord (Isa 64:6). We must be justified and purified if we are to exist and conduct ourselves in a way that pleases the Lord.
Consider the warning about supererogation in our Articles of Religion:
“Article XI - Voluntary works—besides, over and above God's commandments—which they call works of supererogation, cannot be taught without arrogancy and impiety. For by them men do declare that they do not only render unto God as much as they are bound to do, but that they do more for his sake than of bounden duty is required; whereas Christ saith plainly: When you have done all that is commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants.”
There is no base level, basically good way to be. One is either born again and rooted in Christ, or one is damned.
Christians Believe in Blood Atonement & Christ’s Sinlessness
The only way for this to be accomplished is for the blood of Jesus to be applied to our hearts. Christ, the sacrificial lamb who takes away the sins of the world, is the one way to find peace with the Father. “I am the way, the truth, and the life,” Jesus said, “No man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6).
Christ alone is the fully-God, fully-man being. He alone led a sinless life. He alone had the fullness of God dwelling in him. He is the author and the pioneer of our salvation. No other man approaches his power or glory. Not Buddha, not Mohammad, not Moses, not your grandmother. No other is deserving of worship. No other can save you.
Your family cannot save you. Sports, money, friends…nobody can save you from you sin except for Jesus. That is why idolatry is such a common sin: We take more comfort in things and people that cannot save us than we should. The only joy and comfort we should take in this life should be from those things and people connected to us through Christ. Everything else will be burned away in the coming Day of the Lord (2 Peter 3:10). On that day, a great many will weep, as their entire lives were invested in things and people who do not save.
Christ is the main character of all creation. All things were made in, through, by, and for him (Col. 1:16-17). When he lived among us, he took the form of a slave and was spurned by the world. Therefore God lifted him up to the highest place in all creation (Phil. 2:6-9). It is only his blood that is able to satisfy the righteous demands of the Father for a propitiating sacrifice to blot out the nastiness of our sin. Without the atoning blood of Christ applied to one’s heart, one cannot be saved. Nothing and no one else can save.
The Narrowness & Exclusivity of Christianity
A worldly person, unconvicted of sin, might be scandalized that the way to salvation is so narrow. Christ himself acknowledges that the gate is narrow and way is difficult that leads to salvation (Matt. 7:13-14). When one learns to see humanity and its sin for what it is, one comes to see that the scandal is that there is any way to the Father at all. Despite our wretchedness and awfulness, the Lord has never given up on us, and he extends his hand in friendship even to this day.
Methodists today are known for emphasizing God’s love to the exclusion of his judgment. They are known for their openness to the goodness of the world and the beauty of other religious traditions. This is not where we began. Rather, early Methodists were very familiar with the doctrines of sin and damnation. Hellfire and brimstone was regularly preached from Methodist pulpits. Shame and guilt were wielded as weapons rightly leading to repentance. They were not allowed to set at odds God’s justice and mercy. Rather, they understood themselves to be sinners in the hands of an angry God, deserving of wrath outside of the merits of Christ Jesus. This was on the front end of even being able to become a Methodist: Every person seeking entry into the Methodist society had to only confess a sincere desire to flee from the wrath to come and be saved from their sins. John Wesley himself argued for the utility of preaching condemnation even to the elect, regularly, as the duty of any responsible preacher.
Exhortation to Methodists
A compelling Methodism for the present and future will reclaim firm convictions about punishment for sin and the exclusivity of Christ. If we shy away from the justice of God, or if we convey any openness to salvation outside of Christ, we not only betray our heritage, but we also create a counterfeit Christian faith. Such an alternative faith has no power to save and is an exercise in vanity.
Why would someone follow a savior who is optional or unnecessary? Because of God’s justice in the face of our sin, we need to be saved. Because of the unique nature of who Christ is and what he did for our salvation, only he can save us. If either of these theological truths is downplayed, sold short, or neglected, then the very necessity of the Christian faith is rightly questioned.
If Methodism is defined by contemporary people who claim the title ‘Methodist,’ then our tradition is only barely Christian, depending on which Methodists we are talking about. But if Methodism is defined by that first generation, then we fit squarely within a biblical understanding of the faith. Early Methodists were not reticent to proclaim the universality and ugliness of human sin, nor were they squeamish about the exclusive nature of the Christian faith. It is only moderns, desiring the approval of the world, who have softened the hard and clear language of the bible around these things.
Methodists need to reclaim our countercultural heritage, warning the world of its sin and pointing them to the Father exclusively through Christ. As we proclaim the good news of Christ, we also make clear that there is very bad news for those who are not in Christ. What is to be done with Methodists who refuse to tell the bad news? We must remove them from leadership and help them get back to The United Methodist Church or another tradition that has similarly promoted a lukewarm counterfeit faith. If we cannot count on them to speak the whole truth, then we cannot trust them to lead responsibly in our tradition.
Words mean something. To say that we are biblical Christians means that we are not squeamish about doctrines that offend the world. Faithful Jesus-followers are not afraid of causing offense, nor of living in ways that go against the world. Jesus himself warned that the world would hate us (John 15:18-25). This is why. It is because we preach damnation for those outside of Christ. Our short lives are best spent, not pursuing friendship of the world, but warning the wicked about their sin and offering salvation to all. Everything else will be burned away in the end.
Methodists who are afraid of these doctrines should be shown the door. They will not have what it takes to minister to this generation. Even when they make converts, these will not have the power of godliness, for they will not know such power for what it is (1 Cor. 1:24). Now is the time to reclaim a high standard. If we cannot reclaim these doctrines loudly and proudly, then Methodism should not survive.
Years ago I realized that I needed to memorize John 3:17-19, if only to inform those who stop at John 3:16. It forced me to take a sober view that has no gray area. First, I started compiling a chart that includes all of Christ’s binary expressions. For your brother was lost & now he is found, he was dead & now he is alive. Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish., etc. Jesus does not provide a vast gray area, with black pushed to a narrow side of the rectangle and white pushed to a sliver of the opposite side & a sea of gray in the middle. In Christ’s descriptions, he does not include the American notion of “the presumption of innocence.” That would be a gray area where people could take solace. Maybe they can find a Pastor who also shares that notion. Then I illustrated what you have described here by taking a blank sheet of paper & drawing a verticals line down the middle, then a horizontal line across the top about 1” down. At the header for the left column, I write the negative symbol. To the right half header, I write the positive symbol. As Jesus & you explain things, because of the events in Genesis 2, we all find ourselves in the minus column from birth. There is no “presumed innocent” column. We do not work ourselves into the + column, genuine belief in Jesus brings us from the “lost” column to the “found” column. Many passages confirm Christ’s expressions. Great article, again stressing our total depravity and His all - sufficiency for each of us.
I’m with you 100% up to the point about eternal conscious torment in hell. I was raised to believe in ECT and did up until a few years ago. I came across an article about conditional immortality on a Baptist Pastor’s blog in Enid Oklahoma. His name is Wade Burleson. In this well documented post he listed many well known conservative Christian theologians down through the centuries that believed that God alone was immortal ( 1 Timothy 6:16) and that for humans to experience eternal conscious torment that God would have to “gift” them with immortality simply so that they would live in that state. Those who have this belief, state that the natural man possessing an immortal soul was an idea imported in from Greek philosophy, and not to be found in Scripture. Personally, for me, Genesis 3:22 where man was expelled from Eden so as to prevent him from eating from the tree of life proves that man naturally does not have immortality. John 3:16 states that faith in Christ prevents the soul from perishing. Matthew 10:28 states that God is able to destroy both body and soul in hell. Revelation 20:14 indicates that the lake of fire is the second death. And verse 15 states that those whose names are not written in the book ok of life will be thrown into the lake of fire. Finally Romans 6:23 states: For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. The article that Pastor Burleson wrote stated that Martin Luther himself believed in conditional immortality, but Calvin did not, and Calvin’s view won out. I offer this as food for thought. I realize it’s the minority opinion.