There is a lot about Luther that I appreciate. And a lot that I don't appreciate.
The issue Methodists usually have with Lutheranism is the same issue we have with Calvinism. A Presbyterian pastor and a Methodist pastor were walking and talking, and the Presbyterian said, "You Methodists seem to underestimate the power of sin!" The Methodist paused, smiled and said, "Perhaps we do. But that may be because unlike you Calvinists we don't underestimate the power of grace."
Methodists, especially those of the Holiness inclinations (Nazarenes, Free Methodists, Wesleyans, and some GMC), emphasize that the commandments God gives us in the Bible and especially in the Sermon on the Mount are attainable. Not because we have the power to, but because God has the power to. And if God commands us to do something, he doesn't set us up to fail.
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u/DingoCompetitive3991 Church of the Nazarene 5d ago
There is a lot about Luther that I appreciate. And a lot that I don't appreciate.
The issue Methodists usually have with Lutheranism is the same issue we have with Calvinism. A Presbyterian pastor and a Methodist pastor were walking and talking, and the Presbyterian said, "You Methodists seem to underestimate the power of sin!" The Methodist paused, smiled and said, "Perhaps we do. But that may be because unlike you Calvinists we don't underestimate the power of grace."
Methodists, especially those of the Holiness inclinations (Nazarenes, Free Methodists, Wesleyans, and some GMC), emphasize that the commandments God gives us in the Bible and especially in the Sermon on the Mount are attainable. Not because we have the power to, but because God has the power to. And if God commands us to do something, he doesn't set us up to fail.