Wesley Corpus

Part I.) “God give us grace to know these things, and feel them in our hearts I This knowledge and feeling is not of ourselves. Let us therefore meekly call upon the bountiful Spirit, the Holy Ghost, to inspire us with his presence, that we may be able to hear the goodness of God to our salvation. For with out his lively inspiration we cannot so much as speak the name of the Mediator: “No man can say, Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost. Much less should we be able to believe and know these great mysteries that be opened to us by Christ. “But we have received, saith St. Paul, ‘not the Spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God;’ for this purpose, ‘that we may know the things which are freely given to us of God.” In the power of the Holy Ghost resteth all ability to know God, and to please him. It is He that purifieth the mind by his secret working. He enlighteneth the heart to conceive worthy thoughts of Almighty God. He sitteth on the tongue of man, to stir him to speak his honour. He only ministereth spiritual strength to the powers of the soul and body. And if we have any gift whereby we may profit our neighbour, all is wrought by this one and selfsame Spirit.” (Homily for Roga tion Week. Part III.) Every proposition which I have anywhere advanced con cerning those operations of the Holy Ghost, which I believe are common to all Christians in all ages, is here clearly main tained by our own Church. Being fully convinced of this, I could not well understand, for many years, how it was that on the mentioning any of these great truths, even among men of education, the cry immedi ately arose, “An enthusiast, an enthusiast !” But I now plainly perceive, this is only an old fallacy in a new shape. To object enthusiasm to any person or doctrine, is but a de cent method of begging the question. It generally spares the objector the trouble of reasoning, and is a shorter and easier way of carrying his cause.