No spiritual senses
And it is most certain that one dead in sin does not have senses exercised to discern spiritual good and evil. Having eyes, he does not see. He has ears, and does not hear. He does not taste and see that the Lord is gracious. He has not seen God at any time, nor heard his voice, nor handled the word of life.
In vain is the name of Jesus like ointment poured out, and all his garments smell of myrrh, aloes, and cassia. The soul that sleeps in death has no perception of any objects of this kind. His heart is past feeling, and understands none of these things.
And so, having no spiritual senses, no inlets of spiritual knowledge, the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God. No, he is so far from receiving them that whatever is spiritually discerned is mere foolishness to him. He is not content to be utterly ignorant of spiritual things. He denies the very existence of them. And spiritual sensation itself is, to him, the foolishness of folly.
How, he says, can these things be? How can any man know that he is alive to God? Even as you know that your body is now alive. Faith is the life of the soul. And if you have this life abiding in you, you need no marks to prove it to yourself, except that divine conviction of the Spirit, that divine consciousness, that witness of God, which is more and greater than 10,000 human witnesses.
1771 text
10. And most certain it is, that one dead in sin, has not senses exercised to discern |spiritual| good and evil. Having eyes, he sees not, he hath ears and hears not. He doth not taste and see that the Lord is gracious. He hath not seen God at any time, nor heard his voice, nor handled the word of life. In vain is the name of Jesus like ointment poured forth, and all his garments smell of myrrh, aloes and cassia. The soul that sleepeth in death hath no perception of any objects of this kind. His heart is past feeling, and understandeth none of these things.
11. And hence having no spiritual senses, no inlets of spiritual knowledge, the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God; nay, he is so far from receiving them, that whatsoever is spiritually discerned is mere foolishness unto him. He is not content with being utterly ignorant of spiritual things, but he denies the very existence of them. And spiritual sensation itself is to him, the foolishness of folly. How, saith he, can these things be? How can any man know, that he is alive to God? Even as you know, that your body is now alive. Faith is the life of the soul: and if ye have this life abiding in you, ye want no marks to evidence it to yourself, but that ἔλεγχος Πνεύματος, that divine consciousness, that witness of God, which is more and greater than ten thousand human witnesses.
About this text
Rendered in modern English, to be read and heard. Open the 1771 text under each part to check the claims and the scripture.
Rendered in modern English. The 1771 panel is his own Pine printing of the Works. It is public domain.
Catalogue & scope
Sermon 3 in the 1771 Works. Charles Wesley preached it at Oxford, 4 April 1742. Ephesians 5:14.
This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. It is not a complete critical edition.