From Faith to Faith

"Rodes provides an enlightening account of John Wesley's understanding of salvation by highlighting Wesley's appropriation and adaptation of the covenant (federal) theology of the English Reformed tradition. He critiques from this vantage point the spectrum of views about Wesley's understanding of 'the faith of a servant' in recent scholarship. This is an important study for future consideration of this debated topic."

--Randy L. Maddox, Duke Divinity School



"Filling out the covenantal context of Wesley's practical theology (especially in terms of the important distinction of 'the faith of a servant, the faith of a child of God') Rodes is in the proper position to consider, in a way that others have not, Wesley's seasoned reflections on the outworking of the gospel both within the church and well beyond its walls."

--Kenneth J. Collins, Asbury Theological Seminary



"For too long historians have assumed the Arminian and Calvinistic expressions of Methodism developed along entirely separate trajectories, especially after the controversies of the early 1740s. Rodes' important new study of John Wesley's appropriation of that Calvinist preoccupation--covenant theology--shows that at times Wesley certainly came close to the very edge of Calvinism. This is an important study in theological adaptation; it deserves a wide readership."

--David Ceri Jones, Aberystwyth University, Wales



"Rodes has provided an excellent review of who influenced Wesley, how Wesley--with his usual eclectic gleaning--transformed the covenant theology of the Reformed tradition, and why the 'faith of a servant and faith of a child' metaphor is key to understanding Wesley's concept of the way of salvation. Thoroughly researched and intelligently argued, From Faith to Faith is a new and unique contribution to the field of Wesley studies. A definitely needed addition to the academic's and the pastor's library."

--Diane Leclerc, Northwest Nazarene University