01 · The Porch of the House
Prevenient Grace
Divine love goes before us. Before we ever seek God, the Holy Spirit gently awakens our conscience, restores our freedom to respond, and draws every human soul toward the light of Christ.
Rooted in Scripture. Alive with grace.
Old words.
Living wisdom.
Draw near to Jesus through Scripture and the wisdom of the Wesleyan tradition. Read slowly. Grow in grace. Carry God’s love into the world.
TrygraceJohn 3:16“strangely warmed”
66 Bible books · 7 commentators · 141 sermons · Journals & works
An evening at Aldersgate · 24 May 1738
“I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation; and an assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine.”
John Wesley · Journal · 24 May 1738
Read Wesley’s journal →
A little room for the soul
Come as you are.
Begin with a page.
There is no need to know where everything is. Start with what speaks to your heart.
Start reading
Find your place in the library.
Browse a collection or choose a starting point with the Reader’s Compass.
Scripture & commentary
Bible
Read the King James Bible alongside seven historic commentaries and Strong’s numbers.
↗141 sermons · 13 in Modern English
Sermons
Explore John Wesley’s preaching on faith, grace, and holy living, with Side-by-Side Modern English editions for core sermons.
↗Lives in their own words
Journals
Journey with John Wesley and Francis Asbury, one entry and letter at a time.
↗Words & understanding
Dictionary
Discover the people, places, and theology of the Bible in Watson’s Dictionary.
↗13 work collections · 8 modern sections
Works
Explore theology, prayers, hymns, and treatises from Arminius, Wesley, and Fletcher.
↗Meet the voices
Authors
Explore eleven profiles of writers and scholars in the Wesleyan tradition.
↗Reader’s Compass
A reading for your journey.
Choose a subject for a suggested reading.
Recommended Starting Point · ~20 Min Read · Original & Modern English
Sermon 43: The Scripture Way of Salvation
Explore Wesley’s account of grace, faith, and holiness in his 1765 sermon on Ephesians 2:8.
Many voices. One remarkable heritage.
Linked scripture · Searchable texts · Room to reflectThe Wesleyan understanding of grace
Grace for the whole journey.
Love that makes us new.
At the heart of Wesleyan theology is the conviction that God’s grace is free for all, active from our very first breath, and able not only to forgive our sins but to renew our hearts in love.
02 · The Door of the House
Justifying Grace
Through faith in Christ alone, our sins are pardoned and we are reconciled to God. The Spirit bears inward witness with our spirit that we are adopted as beloved children of God.
Sermon 5 Modern EnglishRead Sermon →
03 · The Habitation Within
Sanctifying Grace
Salvation is more than pardon—it is healing. God’s sanctifying grace transforms our inward affections so that wholehearted love for God and neighbour becomes the natural temper of our life.
Sermon 43 Modern EnglishRead Sermon →
I · The Supreme Rule
Holy Scripture
John Wesley called himself “a man of one book.” In this library, you can read every chapter of the King James Bible with Hebrew/Greek Strong’s numbers and compare available notes from seven historic Wesleyan commentary collections. Commentary coverage varies by book and chapter.
KJV Bible & 7 CommentatorsOpen the Bible →
II & III · Historic Witness & Inquiry
Tradition & Reason
Wesleyans read Scripture in harmony with the early Church Fathers and the Reformation, while welcoming rigorous scholarship, philology, and clear reasoning as gifts from God.
Watson’s Dictionary & Collected WorksExplore Works →
IV · Lived Faith
Christian Experience
True theology is never merely abstract—it is experienced in the heart and tested in daily life, combining inward devotion (works of piety) with practical compassion (works of mercy).
Wesley & Asbury JournalsRead Journals →
Cross-Linked Scripture
Linked Scripture References
Thousands of scripture citations across sermons, journals, and treatises link directly to the verse in the King James Bible, with available Wesleyan commentaries.
31,102 Bible VersesSee Romans 8 →
Original Languages
Strong’s Greek & Hebrew
Toggle Strong’s numbers on any Bible chapter to inspect the underlying Hebrew or Greek lemma, transliteration, and lexicon definition without leaving the page.
Lexicon PopoversTry on John 1 →
Modern & Parallel Editions
Make Yourself at Home
Read foundational sermons and treatises in historical text, a Modern English Reader’s Edition, or Side-by-Side parallel view—plus adjust text size and save your place locally with no accounts or tracking.
Editorial StandardsRead Policy →
Today in the Journals · On This Day
Walk Day-by-Day with Wesley & Asbury
Every day of the year, John Wesley and Francis Asbury recorded their prayers, field preaching, trials, and encounters with grace across Britain and early America.
John Wesley · 24 May 1738
“In the evening I went very unwillingly to a society in Aldersgate Street, where one was reading Luther’s preface to the Epistle to the Romans. About a quarter before nine, while he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed.”
Charles Wesley · Hymns & Sacred Poems (1740)
Let your reading become a prayer.
Alongside John Wesley’s sermons, his brother Charles poured Wesleyan theology into thousands of hymns proclaiming God’s sanctifying love. Select a classic hymn below or explore our newly modernized devotional classics.
Devotional Classics (Modern English):
Character of a Methodist
General Rules
Sunday Morning Prayers
Self-Examination
“Lord, I believe a rest remains,
To all thy people known;
A rest where pure enjoyment reigns,
And thou art loved alone;
A rest where all our soul’s desire
Is fix’d on things above;
Where doubt and pain and fear expire,
Cast out by perfect love.”
“Lord, I believe a rest remains,
To all thy people known;
A rest where pure enjoyment reigns,
And thou art loved alone;
A rest where all our soul’s desire
Is fix’d on things above;
Where doubt and pain and fear expire,
Cast out by perfect love.”
Key Voices in the Collection
Teachers of Grace:
In their own words.
Meet three theologians through their writings on grace.
Sermons · Journals · Bible Notes
John Wesley
1703 – 1791A Farther Appeal, Part I (§I.3)
“By salvation I mean, not barely, according to the vulgar notion, deliverance from hell, or going to heaven; but a present deliverance from sin, a restoration of the soul to its primitive health, its original purity; a recovery of the divine nature; the renewal of our souls after the image of God, in righteousness and true holiness, in justice, mercy, and truth.”
“By salvation I mean, not barely, according to the vulgar notion, deliverance from hell, or going to heaven; but a present deliverance from sin, a restoration of the soul to its primitive health, its original purity; a recovery of the divine nature; the renewal of our souls after the image of God, in righteousness and true holiness, in justice, mercy, and truth.”
Whole-Bible Commentary · 66 Books
Adam Clarke
c.1760–1832Commentary on 1 John 4:8
“God is love.] An infinite fountain of benevolence and beneficence to every human being. He hates no thing that he has made. He cannot hate, because he is love. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends his rain on the just and the unjust.”
“God is love.] An infinite fountain of benevolence and beneficence to every human being. He hates no thing that he has made. He cannot hate, because he is love. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends his rain on the just and the unjust.”
Checks to Antinomianism · Works
John Fletcher
1729 – 1785Last Check to Antinomianism (§I)
“We frequently use, as St. John, the phrase ‘perfect love,’ instead of the word perfection; understanding by it the pure love of God shed abroad in the hearts of established believers by the Holy Ghost, which is abundantly given them under the fulness of the Christian dispensation.”
“We frequently use, as St. John, the phrase ‘perfect love,’ instead of the word perfection; understanding by it the pure love of God shed abroad in the hearts of established believers by the Holy Ghost, which is abundantly given them under the fulness of the Christian dispensation.”
Read, pray, and reflect
A path to walk.
A little deeper in faith.
Follow a theme through Scripture, sermons, and journals, at your own pace. Open a reading path to find a starting text and a few companions for the journey.
Open a path to explore the readings
Library Collection
John Wesley’s Sermons
Sermon 43 (1765) — includes historical text, Modern English Reader’s Edition, Side-by-Side view, and Small Group Study Guide.
Primary Study Text
Ephesians 2:8 — “By grace are ye saved through faith…” alongside Sermon 43 & Sermon 1 (Salvation by Faith).
Companion Readings
Open Sermon 43 →
Compare Ephesians 2 in the Bible view with Wesley’s Explanatory Notes, Adam Clarke’s commentary, and reverse library citations.
Library Collection
Wesley’s Journals (1738) & Sermons
London, 24 May 1738 entry paired with Sermon 10 (with Modern English & Study Guide).
Primary Study Text
John Wesley’s Journal (May 1738) & Sermon 10: The Witness of the Spirit, Discourse I (on Romans 8:16).
Companion Readings
Read 1738 Journal →
Read Romans 8:14–17 and toggle on Strong’s Greek numbers to study symmartyreo (“beareth witness with”).
Library Collection
Holy Bible & Commentary Suite
Paul’s Epistle to the Romans, Chapter 8, with expandable verse-by-verse notes and “Cited across the library” links.
Primary Study Text
Romans 8:1–39 (KJV) with commentary by John Wesley, Adam Clarke, Joseph Benson, Joseph Beet, and Daniel Whedon.
Companion Readings
Study Romans 8 →
Look up “Grace” and “Redemption” in Richard Watson’s Dictionary (Letter G and Letter R).
Library Collection
Standard Sermons & Devotional Classics
Sermon 40 (Christian Perfection) & The Character of a Methodist — both in Modern English.
Primary Study Text
Philippians 3:12–15 & 1 John 4:16–19 — examining what Christian Perfection is (and what it is not).
Companion Readings
Open Sermon 40 →
Library Collection
Journals, Letters & On This Day
Decades of daily diaries across Britain and early America, plus 352 Asbury letters.
Primary Study Text
On This Day — surfaces journal entries written on today’s calendar date across the 1700s and 1800s.
Companion Readings
Open On This Day →
Browse Francis Asbury’s pastoral letters to see how early Methodists encouraged one another.
Library Collection
Pastoral Sermons & Family Prayers
Sermon 16 (The Means of Grace), Sermon 50 (The Use of Money), and Wesley’s Sunday Morning Prayers.
Primary Study Text
Malachi 3:7 & Luke 16:9 — How to wait upon God when your heart feels dry, and how to steward work and resources faithfully.
Companion Readings
Open Sermon 16 →
Walk through Wesley’s Scheme of Self-Examination and Sermon 47.
About This Project
A Personal Note:
Why I built this library.
A personal project to help readers explore Wesleyan theology at its source.
Welcome to the Wesleyan Heritage Library
Hi, I’m David. I’m one person creating this website with a simple hope: to help other people discover and learn about Wesleyan theology directly from its foundational texts.
Many of these 18th- and 19th-century writings—sermons, verse-by-verse Bible commentaries, journals, and theological dictionaries—were long locked inside an old 2002 CD-ROM collection of PDFs. Over time, I extracted, cleaned, cross-linked, and audited thousands of pages to make these texts easier to read and study. The editorial policy explains the checks and their limits.
Whether you are brand new to John Wesley’s understanding of grace, preparing a Bible study, or researching historical Arminian theology, my hope is that these pages bless your study and draw your heart closer to Christ.
— DavidCreator & Steward · Wesleyan Heritage Library
Private & Unhurried Reading: Adjust the text size and save your place on this device. Selected readings also include AI-assisted modern companions; read about their preparation and review.