"The Light Side is a Path to Behaviors Some Consider to be... Unnatural" Wait, what? /// (Bonus Blog: Natural Condition of the Natural Man) Elijah Mahn

     John Wesley states that the natural condition of man is evil, rather than good. Therefore, all good attributes of man are unnatural, and due to God's intervention and example. He also claims that mankind's nature would be similar to that of beasts of the field, where it not for God. For this, He sites an experiment where two children grew up isolated from all people, and they spoke no language, only making sounds like animals. Essentially, his conclusion is that mankind's natural state after the fall is one of atheism and debauchery. He also holds that man is no longer in the image of God, but instead the image of himself.

    I find this last claim to be interesting, as God states that humanity is made in his image. However, it is possible that John Wesley is not referring to the physical form, but instead to the "image" of our nature, which no longer directly reflects God, due to being fallen. This can be backed by the Bible's statement about man in the last days: "This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. "For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away." (2nd Timothy 3) This verse demonstrates that man will naturally try to abandon God's image to remake himself in his own image. This is most likely what John Wesley is referring to., however, the way he phrases it is bizarre, and could also be interpreted to say that man has basically become an animal, and the only thing that prevents this is God's grace through Christ.


P.S: I commented on the posts of two of the Emmas. (Landry and Patterson)

Comments

  1. Bug OlsenOctober 4, 2021 at 10:14 PM

    I thought this was a very interesting point that I hadn't given much thought to until you pointed it out. This certainly is very confusing, and I feel like he was trying to get across the point of original sin more than anything else. I agree that his wording was strange, and I also agree that it was most likely not exactly what he was trying to say.

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  2. Emma DOctober 4, 2021 at 11:59 PM

    I found this a rather confusing point, as Wesley believes that it is impossible for Light to co-exist with Darkness (all figuratively). However, does that mean that man ceased being spiritual images of God whenever the Fall occurred? It presents a rather strange picture; if this is indeed what Wesley is saying, does that mean that only saved Christians are made in the image of God? (it doesn't seem very consistent...). While Wesley made a good deal of sense, it was as if the logical progressions were not taken to their full (and accurate) conclusions, leaving a number of contradictions and confusions waiting to happen.
    - Emma Dalgety

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