The Journal Entry (January 30, 1788)

On January 30, 1788, frontier bishop Francis Asbury penned a plain, grieving line in his journal: “Alas for the rich! They are so soon offended.” It was not a complaint from a weary traveler, nor envy toward those with more. It was a pastor’s warning, learned in homes and meetinghouses where polite religion often resisted the sharp mercy of repentance.

Asbury had seen how quickly comfort can turn correction into insult. When sin is named, when restitution is urged, when pride is confronted, the heart trained by status may recoil. Yet the offense he lamented was ultimately against God’s kindness, which calls every person—poor and wealthy alike—to bow low and be made new.

A Frontier Shepherd

Asbury’s ministry unfolded across a young nation still marked by war’s aftermath and the challenges of frontier life. He rode long miles through winter cold, muddy roads, and dangerous crossings, preaching wherever people would gather. His heroism was steady rather than dramatic: constant travel, tireless prayer, and a refusal to trim the gospel to fit respectable tastes.

He helped shape the Methodist work in America through close oversight and the raising up of circuit riders—men who carried Scripture and hymnbook into scattered settlements. The message was consistent: Christ is worthy of the whole life, and no social rank can purchase peace with God.

Eternal Treasure

Asbury’s concern matches the warning of Jesus: “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!” (Mark 10:23). Wealth can promise control, reputation, and safety—yet these are fragile shelters when God summons the soul to surrender.

Scripture does not condemn possessions as such, but it exposes the heart’s loyalties: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth… But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven… For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19–21). The remedy Asbury urged was humble faith that opens the hand: “Command those who are rich in the present age not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth… but to be generous and willing to share.” (1 Timothy 6:17–18).

His journal line still calls readers to receive correction without resentment, to practice generosity without show, and to pursue holiness with joy—trusting God to awaken even the easily offended.