Pastor Nelson Bonilla: 10-26-25 “Chosen to Make a Difference”  

1 Peter 2:9-10

In the history of early Methodism, we discover a powerful pattern: ordinary people — not ordained clergy — often carried the message of Christ into new places long before pastors arrived. This is a heritage worth reclaiming and celebrating on Laity Sunday.

When the Methodist movement, begun in England, it was grounded in small groups, called societies and class meetings, where believers encouraged one another toward a disciplined Christian life. As the movement spread rapidly, the Wesley brothers realized that ordained clergy alone could not reach all the places where people longed to hear the gospel.

The solution John Wesley found was to appoint lay preachers — people who were not ordained, but who clearly possessed the gifts and calling to preach and to serve. Wesley became convinced that laity could be instruments of God’s redeeming grace. As the movement expanded — especially into rural England and later across United States frontier — it was the laity who often took the initiative to carry the message forward.

One well-known example is Thomas Maxfield, a member of an early Methodist society in London. While John Wesley was away on missionary work, Maxfield began preaching to the group — even though he was not an ordained minister. When Wesley returned and heard what was happening, he was troubled that a lay person was preaching.
He mentioned this to his mother, Susanna Wesley, who wisely replied:
“John, take care what you do with respect to that young man, for he is as surely called of God to preach as you are.”

Wesley listened to his mother’s counsel. After hearing Maxfield preach, he agreed with his mother and formally recognized Maxfield as the first lay preacher in Methodism. That decision opened the door for countless lay men and women to become vital messengers of the gospel. That tradition still remains central to Methodism today. Many of you are proof of that.

Another inspiring story is that of Philip Embury, an Irish Methodist layman who immigrated to New York. When Methodists began gathering there, no ordained Methodist ministers had yet arrived in.

It was Barbara Heck, another lay Irish immigrant, who urged Embury to start preaching again when she saw the spiritual decline among the settlers. She famously said to him:

“Philip, you must preach to us, or we shall all go to hell together!”
Moved by her urgency, Embury obeyed and began preaching in his home. That humble gathering became the site of the first Methodist sermon in the United States. The small group grew quickly and soon built John Street Chapel in New York City in 1768 — the first Methodist preaching house in the New World.

If you ever visit New York City, just less than two blocks away from the World Trade Center memorial, you can still find John Street Church, a living reminder of what lay ministry can do. Only later did ordained clergy, like Francis Asbury, arrive to organize and strengthen the movement. 

From the beginning, Methodism grew — not because clergy went everywhere first — but because ordinary people, laity with extraordinary faith like you carried the message of Christ. They preached in homes, barns, fields, and even taverns. They organized societies, led prayer groups, and prepared hearts for the pastors who would come later.

In the history of our church, the laity were the pioneers — and the clergy were the settlers.

The gospel advanced because both laity and clergy responded to God’s call. From the very beginning, Methodists understood that the Church is not built on clergy alone, but on the priestly call of all God’s people — chosen not because of their social or religious ranks, but purely by grace.

So, my brothers and sisters in Christ, your calling does not begin with a church office or a committee participation. It begins with your baptism. You are chosen — not only to believe in Christ, but to belong to Christ’s mission. You don’t need a position on the council, or a robe or a stole to share the gospel, pray for someone, serve or visit your neighbor, or to speak a kind word.

We all are ministers of the Lord — a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people — that you may declare the wonderful deeds of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light by grace. Go and live out your priestly calling. Let us keep reclaiming and practicing our call and heritage. Amen.