ABSTRACT
From their beginnings in the eighteenth century, evangelicals have stressed the importance of personal conversion. The introduction explores how early evangelicals looked to the New Testament, the Protestant Reformation, English Puritanism, and Continental Pietism to develop a morphology of conversion that emphasized a crisis experience when one received assurance of salvation through faith in Christ. Conversion therefore signified a transition of spiritual states, from law to gospel, and the moment of regeneration and justification.
This book represents a microcosmic study of evangelical conversion by analysing the experience of John Wesley at Aldersgate on 24 May 1738. Wesley is a good case study of early evangelical conversion since he left behind many sources, his experience was quite typical for the era, and he spent many years reflecting on his conversion from an Arminian perspective. This study represents the first book-length analysis of Wesley’s conversion in over eight decades. The central aim is to ascertain Wesley’s interpretation of his conversion over the course of his life, from his initial impressions to his most mature perspective in the 1780s.
