Wesley Corpus

10. If your Lordship designed to show my real sentiments concerning the last doctrine which you mention, as one would imagine by your adding ‘These are his own words’ (page 18), should you not have cited all my own words -- at least, all the words of that paragraph, and not have mangled it as Mr. Church did before It runs thus: ‘Sat. 28. -- I showed at large, in order to answer those who taught that none but they who are full of faith and the Holy Ghost ought ever to communicate: (1) That the Lord’s Supper was ordained by God to be a means of conveying to men either preventing, or justifying, or sanctifying grace, according to their several necessities. (2) That the persons for whom it was ordained are all those who know and feel that they want the grace of God, either to restrain them from sin, or to “show their sins forgiven,” or to “renew their souls” in the image of God. (3) That inasmuch as we come to His Table, not to give Him anything, but to receive whatsoever He sees best for us, there is no previous preparation indispensably necessary but a desire to receive whatsoever He pleases to give. And (4) That no fitness is required at the time of communicating but a sense of our state, of our utter sinfulness and helplessness; every one who knows he is fit for hell being just fit to come to Christ in this as well as all other ways of His appointment.’ (Journal, ii. 361-2.)