Charles Wesley 

By: Pastor Dennis

I dedicate this week’s devotion to the celebration of the birthday of Charles Wesley. Charles was born on December18, 1707, the youngest and third surviving son of Samuel and Susanna Wesley. He was elected to Christ Church College in Oxford where he translated Greek and Latin classics into English verse. During the winter of 1728-28 he underwent a spiritual awakening and initiated the Holy Club with two other undergraduates and included his brother John and they were dedicated to frequent Holy Communion and Bible study. John came to lead the group who became known as “Methodists” because of their methodical devotion to study. In 1735, Charles accepted holy orders in order to accompany John in a mission to the Georgia colony. 

After only a few months in Georgia, Charles returned to England where, like his brother, he found spiritual peace with the help of the Moravians. He became an eloquent preacher for the Methodist cause, and he translated the gospel message into hymns which became his primary means of evangelism. Charles published more than 4,500 hymns and left some 3,000 in manuscript for which Handel wrote music to complete. In 1749 he married Sarah Gwynne. They had eight children, of which only three survived. Charles died on March 29, 1788.