The Role of Obedience in Child Faith Formation: Insights from the Teachings and Practices of John Wesley

Abstract

This article explores Wesley's directive to “break the will” of the child in order to achieve obedience, which he saw as the foundation for faith formation, and offers implications of this directive for Christian education today. Wesley saw children as capable of experiencing the full grace of God and possessing the ability to grow in grace. Wesley also realized that a child's natural tendency was to seek his or her own way and please self. Wesley urged parents and ministers to break the will of the child and move the child from seeking after selfish desires to obedience. He suggested that obedience to the parent must first be achieved before a child could learn obedience to God and called for Christian education that resulted in obedience to be consistent, personal, mild, loving, and Spirit-led.