Our Methodist Standards and Heritage: A Catechetical Commentary on the General Rules of the Methodist Societies and the Articles of Religion, as Well as the Other Beliefs of the Southern Methodist Church

By David M. Battle

Our Methodist Standards and Heritage calls all Methodist back the roots of Methodist teaching as shown in the General Rules of the Methodist Societies and in the Articles of Religion that John Wesley sent to America.

The book can be divided into three parts. The first two parts are for all Methodists, regardless of denomination. They cover the General Rules that governed the behavior of Methodists before the establishment of any Methodist church. These rules were actually an evangelistic tool that demonstrated our need for the grace of God. The second part explains how the Articles of Religion are an expression of basic Protestant Christian beliefs and how they still apply today. The last section begins by describing distinctive Methodist doctrines found in the Other Beliefs. Finally, Southern Methodist particulars are articulated and discussed.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Apr 16, 2023
• ISBN: 9781664296794

David M. Battle

David M Battle B.A. Southern Methodist College M.A.R. Evangelical Seminary M.A. The University of South Carolina Ph.D. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary Dr. David M. Battle is the President of Southern Methodist College. His diverse educational background enhanced his appreciation of John Wesley and the rich heritage that is found in the Articles of Religion. Dr. Battle is an ordained Elder of the Southern Methodist Church. He has severed in various ministries, including the pastorate for over thirty years. He is married to his only wife for over thirty years and has two grown boys. Both are accomplished actors and one is a published writer.

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The text of the General Rules, the Articles of Religion, and the Other Beliefs

comes from the 2022 Discipline of the Southern Methodist Church. The General

Rules and Articles of Religion are the same as those found in 1808 Discipline

of the Methodist Episcopal Church with the exception of Article XXI.

ISBN: 978-1-6642-9678-7 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-9680-0 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-9679-4 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2023907040

WestBow Press rev. date: 04/11/2023

Contents

Reading Roman Numerals

Preface

Surveying This Catechetical Study

Section 1: Obey!

The General Rules

Introduction

Background

Function

Rules for Living

Rule for Seeking

The Rules in the Life of the Believer

Section 2:

Believe!

PART ONE: Grades of Doctrine

PART TWO: The Articles of Religion

The Substance of Faith: Articles I-IV

The Rule of Faith: Articles V-VI

The Life of Faith: Articles VII-XII

The Household of Faith Articles XIII-XXV

The Nature of Ministry in the Church: Articles XIII-XV

The Sacraments: Articles XVI-XX

The Church and Civil Society: Articles XXI-XXV

PART THREE: Other Beliefs

Methodist Distinctives: Articles I-VIII

The Doctrines of Grace: Articles I-VI

The Efficacy of Grace: Articles VII-VIII

Evangelical and Fundamental Distinctives: Articles IX-XIV

Southern Methodist Distinctives:Articles XV-XVII

Section 3:

Love!

Summation

Apendencies

Apostles’ Creed and the Lord’s Prayer

Lord’s Prayer

Beatitudes

The Ten Commandments

The Ten Commandments- Metrical

Bibliography

Reading Roman Numerals

One of my readers asked me about changing the Roman numerals. I decided to keep the customary way of numerating the articles. Occasionally in the past, some disciplines have used paragraph numbers, but these numbering systems vary. The problem with Roman numerals is that many educated people cannot read them. So, here is a short introduction. As most know, Roman numerals are written with what appear to be letters. In the Articles, the capitals of I, V, and X are used.

I represents a one.

V represents a five.

X represents a ten.

To read Roman numerals requires the reader to add and subtract the values. When numerals of the same value are grouped together, they are added.

II is 1 + 1 = 2

III is 1 + 1 +1 = 3

We also add if the first numeral in the sequence has greater value than the following numeral.

VI is 5 + 1= 6

VII is 5 + 1 + 1 = 7

XI is 10 + 1= 11

XVI is 10 + 5 + 1 = 16

On the other hand, if a numeral with a smaller value comes first, it is subtracted from the following number with the greater value.

IV is 5 -1 = 4; IX is 10-1= 9;

and XIX is 10+10-1= 19

Finally, Roman numerals are built around the following units of I, V, X and so forth.

IV = 4; V = 5; VI = 6; VII = 7; VIII= 8.

IX=9; X = 10; XI = 11; XII = 12; XIII = 13; XIV = 14; XV = 15

Fortunately, we only need to count to XXV in this work, unless of course we are consulting Wesley’s LII Sermons. L represents a fifty.

Preface

We live in an age when doctrine is considered unimportant. People often do not care what a denomination teaches just as long as they preach Jesus and are friendly. Most post-truth church members do not have a systematic theology by which to evaluate contemporary preaching and movements. Many people do not even know what they believe, and some even believe in mutually exclusive teachings. A fellow graduate student once confided to me that he believed that there was only one God. Then he went on to describe how he believed in many of the Hindu gods and goddesses. Yet, he claimed to be a good Southern Baptist. The basic problem with his theology was that he sincerely believed he was a Christian while most of his core beliefs were Hindu. He was not a Baptist and much less a Christian, though he could not bring himself to accept his true identity. Such eclectic theological identities are common in the post-truth age. In the same graduate school, one professor, who was an ordained United Methodist preacher, affirmed Buddhism. Many denominations are not concerned about what their people or preachers believe, just as long as they support the denominational institutions with money.

This current situation is a tragedy because people are thrown about by every wind of teaching (Eph. 4:14). They have no consistent moral compass, and their only reference point is their personal perceptions, gut reactions, and the emotions of the crowds. The people perish because they do not have a sure word from the Lord (Pro. 29:18; 2 Peter 1:19). Without the knowledge of the holy and pure, the people lose discernment to anchor their thoughts or to guide their actions.

Historically, the Church maintained and transmitted orthodoxy and doctrinal clarity through the catechism. It was a natural extension of discipleship and began early in the history of the Church (See Gal. 6:6). New believers and Christian youth received instruction in the Word and doctrine of the Faith so that they could live the Christian life in a pagan world. Catechisms helped preserve the Church under pagan rule, preserved the purity of the Church when it became popular during the late Roman Empire, enabled the Faith to survive the barbarian invasions and the resulting Dark Ages. The practice of catechizing flourished during the Reformation with the Lutheran Heidelberg Catechism and Luther’s shorter catechism, which was designed for young children. Calvinists developed the Westminster Catechism. Wesley even edited the Westminster Catechism for use by Methodist teachers.¹ While learning a catechism does not give salvation, it is a means of grace that exposes one to the pure Gospel.²

This catechetical commentary is an attempt to give Southern Methodists in particular, but also Methodists in general, an anchor for their theology and ministries. If we understand where Methodism fits within Christianity, we may have a clearer understanding of the Christian religion and of the Christian’s place in the world. My prayer is that no longer will the Methodist people be tossed about by a plurality of belief, by every social movement, or by whims of the world. Instead, Methodists should navigate the challenges of their age as wisely and precisely as John Wesley did in his own age. We will know the apostolic doctrines and hold firm to them. We will be loyal to our Methodist distinctives and our Anglican and Protestant heritage while being gracious to brothers and sisters who share the same evangelical or catholic spirit, though they come from other denominations or other Christian traditions. The goal of this commentary is to catechize Methodist leaders and laity in the primary doctrines of our heritage. We are seeking not only to teach Christian doctrines and Methodist distinctives, but to also provide a sound framework for Methodists to relate with other Christians and the world without losing either our Methodist or Christian identity. As Rev. Dr. William R. Dean said:

"The creeds make us Christian. The Articles

of Religion make us Protestant, and the four

Methodist doctrines make us Methodist."³

Before concluding this section, I want to thank those who helped with this work. The project began as a Wednesday night Bible study at Johns Island Southern Methodist Church. The give and take between me and Mrs. Doris Hiot, Mrs.Mary Lott, and Mr. Ray Walton contributed to the formulation of the commentary on Articles of Religion. Others whom I want to thank are Dr. Vic Reasoner, Rev. Dan Plunkett, and Rev. Ellison Evans III. Brother Reasoner helped with the Introduction to the Other Beliefs. He, Dan Plunkett, and Rev. Ellison Evans reviewed the work before publication. Mrs. Dale Clark, Rev. George A. Somervell, and Damon Heinrich helped with the editing of the work while John Hucks, Jr. helped with some particulars.

Surveying This

Catechetical Study

This catechism is designed for Methodists in general but will also be focused on Southern Methodists in particular. The catechism will incorporate the motto of Believe! Love! Obey! reflecting Wesley’s teaching. The motto will be reordered to Obey! Believe! and Love!⁴ We will begin with the call to flee from the wrath of God which teaches how one should live. Until an individual understands that good works will not exonerate him before God, there is no cause for repentance. The General Rules of the Methodist societies call us to obedience and show us the futility of a works righteousness. We will always fall short. God is our Lord, but we still have no Savior. We are unprofitable servants.

Once we discover that good works are deficient, then we are called to believe God and His revelation. This is where we begin the renewing of our minds (Rom. 12:2) so that we gain an understanding of who God is and what He has done for us. The Articles of Religion define the Christian Faith and what it means to understand ourselves and the created world. An important realization is that, on the one hand, the whole Godhead participates in our salvation. The Holy Trinity has provided the Son, who came and lived a sinless life in perfect harmony with the Father and offered Himself as a substitute for us, as the atonement for our sin. On the other hand, we have no power or ability to save ourselves. We harm one another. We omit doing all the good we can, and we become lax in seeking God. Our best is not good enough. Only by believing God’s revelation concerning the Son and ourselves are we then truly open to receive the gift of the promised salvation.

In the Other Beliefs, we come to a Methodist understanding of the doctrines of grace. The Holy Spirit knows when each soul is ready and will apply saving grace to the repentant soul. From that moment, the Father adopts the individual into the family of God. An adopted child may struggle with the assurance of his membership in the family, but membership is based upon the application of Christ’s atoning blood and not an individual’s feelings. A believer has true assurance when the Holy Spirit witnesses to his spirit that he is a child of God, and the experience liberates and enables the believer joyfully to obey and to love Him freely.

The following is what we can expect to learn in this study.

SECTION ONE: OBEY!

1 The General Rules of the Methodist Societies: We are taught actively to wait on God’s grace through The General Rules of the Methodist Societies. On the one hand, we must actively seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness (Matt. 6:33). On the other hand, we must wait upon the Lord to lift us up (cf. Isa. 40:31).

a. Individuals who desired to join the Methodist societies did not have to profess an assurance of salvation, but they had to declare at least their desire to escape the wrath or judgment of God. Today this seems harsh to us because we do not want to believe that God would judge anyone. We say He is in the business of giving people a second chance. This may sound nice, but we lose the urgency and the seriousness of God’s call to individuals to settle our accounts between us and God before the final audit of life.

i. The early Methodists believed that if one wanted to settle accounts with God before the Day of Judgment, one would live according to three basic