The Methodist reformers of the Five Points Mission had inherited from John Wesley the theological legacy of a belief that God's grace was available to all who chose to accept it. In a society where divisions between rich and poor were becoming increasingly evident, the Methodist missionaries in the city emphasized that both the prosperous and the impoverished stood in equal need of salvation and sanctification. Thus, the reformers at the Mission thought that the world could be transformed through God's transformation of saved and sanctified individuals.
Every human being seeks happiness.
It is not a matter of calculation or choice, but an instinct of his nature. Many err as to the means, but all have the end in view. Now all human experience, as well as sound reasoning, testifies that no earthly possession or enjoyment confers abiding happiness, that riches, honors, power, and sensual gratifications are unsatisfying even in the possession, and are moreover uncertain in their continuence. And then the fear of death is so terrible that men are compelled to drive it from their minds by immersing themselves in worldy business, pursuits, and pleasures. It is not right to say that they find no real enjoyment in these things.