Charles Wesley is much better known for his hymns than his sermons. The sheer volume of hymns compared to sermons makes this no surprise. His poetical writings including those published during and after his life, in addition to his unpublished works, is approximately 8,900 hymns and poems.
How many sermons did Charles write? Scholars disagree on the exact number. The best evidence suggests that Charles Wesley composed twenty-three written sermons. Charles also preached many sermons without notes or manuscript, especially during his open-air ministry. These have not survived because they were never written down.
The surviving sermons represent different stages of Charles’s life, ministry, and theology. There is a clear shift in tone in the sermons written following his evangelical conversion when compared to the sermons written before. All of them are valuable in understanding the true Charles Wesley.
The Sermon Texts
- Philippians 3:13-14
- 1 Kings 18:21
- Psalm 126:7
- 1 John 3:14
- Titus 3:8
- Romans 3:23-24
- Romans 3:23-25
- Ephesians 5:14
- Psalm 46:8
- John 8:1-11
- John 4:41
- Luke 18:9-14
- Acts 20:7
- Luke 16:10
- Matthew 5:20
- Matthew 6:22-23
- Luke 16:8
- John 13:7
- Exodus 20:8
- Mark 12:30
- Luke 10:42
- Proverbs 11:30
- Psalm 91:11
*List source The Sermons of Charles Wesley: A Critical Edition with Introduction and Notes by Kenneth G.C. Newport (Oxford, 2001).
The Sermon Collection
The list above is a compilation made by Kenneth G.C. Newport. He examined all of the available lists and manuscripts to arrive at these twenty-three sermons.
In 1816, there was a volume printed that included thirteen sermons. One of those was labeled as a work of Charles’s brother, John Wesley. Therefore, that one has been removed in this list of sermons by Charles Wesley.
It was common practice for ministers to read and preach sermons composed by others. However, when Charles used John’s material he also edited it for his own use. His editing essentially made the sermon his own.
Much can be learned by comparing the material that Charles left unchanged. Even more by what he did change.
In addition to the twelve sermons from the 1816 publication, Newport includes two sermons that were published by Charles during his own life and ministry.
A collection of six sermons written in shorthand also made the list. These sermons were never written with the purpose of being published. They were written to be preached.
All six of these shorthand sermons have been made available for modern readers due to the diligent scholarship of Thomas Albin and Oliver Beckerlegge. They transcribed and published these sermons in a publication for the Wesley Historical Society.
Newport makes an important observation about the shorthand sermon collection. Even though there are only six of them, they represent a very important window into the heart of Charles Wesley.
[T]hey are vibrant and give unmistakable voice to his own evangelical experience. These six sermons, then, have a real claim to being the heart of the surviving homiletic corpus.
Kenneth G.C. Newport, The Sermons of Charles Wesley, p. 73.
Three additional sermons are included in the list from separate manuscripts that exist in Charles’s own writing. One of these, number 11 above, was never published anywhere until it was published by Newport.
The list of twenty-three sermons includes three individual manuscripts, twelve sermons from the 1816 collection, two sermons published by Charles during his lifetime, and the six shorthand sermons.
Charles kept some records of his preaching ministry. Many of these sermons were preached multiple times over the years. Often, Charles would go off script and add material for the moment and particular audience.
An example:
Preached “The One Thing Needful” at Islington, and added much extempore.
-Charles Wesley, MS Journal entry Sunday, October 15, 1738, bold added.
“The One Thing Needful” is Charles’s sermon on Luke 10:42. Number 21 on the list above. While we have the main substance in the written material, the extempore sections that would make each individual preaching unique is missing.
Charles also preached in the open-air on many occasions. Throughout his manuscript journal Charles labels many of these proclamations as expounding rather than preaching.
Preached with strength at St George’s, then at Ironmongers’ Almshouses, and at night expounded Rom. 5 to a large audience in the Minories.
-Charles Wesley, MS Journal entry Sunday, October 29, 1738, bold added.
These expounded sermons were never written down. It is possible to capture a sense of Charles’s style by what has survived.
Reading the available sermons, especially the six shorthand messages, in conjunction with Charles’s manuscript journal and his poetic selections gives a clear picture of the style, manner, and zeal with which Charles preached. This is true even though the exact words of many sermons preached were never recorded in full.
Published By Charles
The two sermons published by Charles during his lifetime were on Ephesians 5:14 and Psalm 46:8. These are numbers 8 and 9 on the above list.
The sermon on Ephesians 5:14 is noteworthy. It was widely circulated and had a large appeal during the lives of both John and Charles Wesley.
Indeed, it was destined to become the most frequently published Methodist tract during the lifetime of either of the Wesleys, a fact which itself bears adequate witness to the appeal of Charles’s sermons to a wide audience.
Newport, Sermons of Charles Wesley, p. 72.
The 1816 Collection
The sermons from the 1816 collection are numbers 1, 2, 3, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, and 23 on the above list.
In the critical edition by Newport, published in 2001, there are several important differences noted between the existing manuscripts and the versions printed in 1816.
The critical edition is a better and more complete resource than the original 1816 publication. Anyone looking to do a serious study of Charles’s sermons should consult Newport’s critical edition.
The Shorthand Sermons
Six shorthand sermons are included on the above list. They are sermons number 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, and 12.
This short collection includes one sermon that Charles preached more than twenty times in1738-1739 alone according to his manuscript journal. This was his sermon on 1 John 3:14, “The Threefold State.”
This group of shorthand sermons also includes Charles’s longest written sermon. This is number 7 on the above list. His sermon on Romans 3:23-25.
My personal favorite sermon is also included in this group. The sermon on John 8:1-11. This message about the woman caught in adultery is powerful. It demonstrates Charles’s style of first law, then grace to great effect. Charles includes both God’s holy justice and loving grace expressed in Christ.
The balanced nature of this sermon shows the care Charles took to demonstrate to his hearers both the seriousness of sin and God’s great love in sending His Son to reconcile sinners to Himself.
The Final Three
The final three sermons are on John 4:41, Acts 20:7, and Luke 16:8. These are the sermons listed above at 11, 13, and 17 respectively.
The sermon on John 4:41 (number 11) has been published for the first time anywhere in Newport’s critical edition.
The sermon on Acts 20:7 (number 13) is more academic than applicational. It may not be truly a sermon, but a more rigorous teaching treatise intended for some other use. It is still helpful for understanding the preaching and teaching ministry of Charles Wesley.
The Sermons Regrouped
The following table regroups the collections together.
| Published By Charles | 1816 Edition | Shorthand Sermons | The Final Three |
| Ephesians 5:14 | Philippians 3:13-14 | 1 John 3:14 | John 4:41 |
| Psalm 46:8 | 1 Kings 18:21 | Titus 3:8 | Acts 20:7 |
| Psalm 126:7 | Romans 3:23-4 | Luke 16:8 | |
| Luke 16:10 | Romans 3:23-5 | ||
| Matthew 5:20 | John 8:1-11 | ||
| Matthew 6:22-3 | Luke 18:9-14 | ||
| John 13:7 | |||
| Exodus 20:8 | |||
| Mark 12:30 | |||
| Luke 10:42 | |||
| Proverbs 11:30 | |||
| Psalm 91:11 |
Poetic Commentary
The largest collection of Charles Wesley’s poetry on the Scriptures was published in 1762. This publication in two volumes was titled, Short Hymns on Select Passages of the Holy Scriptures.
This collection included more than 2,300 poems and hymns. It covered every book of the Bible.
Another collection of poems and hymns on Scripture was published in 1990. This book, by Kimbrough and Beckerlegge, is titled The Unpublished Poetry of Charles Wesley: Hymns and Poems on Holy Scripture. This book is volume two in a three volume collection.
This later publication focuses on poetic commentary from Charles Wesley on each of the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), Acts, and 15 other books in Scripture.
These hymns and poems serve as a commentary and window into the theology of Charles Wesley. When read together with the sermons, you can gain further insight into the mind, heart, and spirit of Charles Wesley.
Related Questions
What is Charles Wesley famous for? Charles Wesley is most famous for his hymns. Often forgotten is Charles Wesley’s impact as a travelling preacher and co-founder of the Methodist movement with his brother, John. It is necessary to understand Charles as a preacher to know the real Charles Wesley. He was much more than a hymnist.
How many hymns did Charles Wesley write? Charles Wesley wrote approximately 8,900 hymns and poems. Smaller figures confuse wrote with published. Charles published approximately 4,600 works while living. Another 3,000 were published after his death. Nearly 1,300 previously unpublished manuscripts from Charles Wesley were published by Kimbrough and Beckerlegge in The Unpublished Poetry of Charles Wesley (three volumes), 1988-92.
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