Subject: Is Entire Sanctification Scriptural? |
Bible Note: Dear Tim, I appreciate your openness and honesty in explaining your circumstance and subsequent desire for undestanding this issue. To be perfectly frank (on my side :-), I have no formal training which would (might?) give me an 'authoritative' answer. I am just a student of the Bible, and always prefer a simpler answer over a complicated one, if one is available in the Bible. After studying a bit about Entire Sanctification and it's various manifestations, I can only conclude that it is too complicated. It makes too many human assumptions about the individual's outward righteousness. For instance, if a person accepts Christ (whatever term you prefer) and is walking in the Lord just fine, has he *achieved* this status? Then, after years of faithful service to God, he stumbles. Did he lose the 'entire' status and return to justification? Or maybe, as some good Calvinists would demand, was he never saved to begin with? Could he be reinstated, as many good Charismatics would insist? As you stated about your belief (I think), it is much simpler to believe that 1) a person is justified by faith, 2) pursues sanctification through the working of the Holy Spirit, and 3) is made complete in resurrection. The details of this process are vague, regardless of some notions of *enlightenment.* Especially, the exact timing of resurrection. I leave these things to Christians that have already perfected all the other aspects of life in Christ :-) Out of curiosity, which denomination believes which? (I was under the impression that many Brethren churches leaned toward Wesleyan thinking) The only support I can think of for Entire Sanctification is that the ones that insist on it are convinced that they have *achieved* it! I know that they may string lots of Bible passages together to 'prove' it, but common sense and two honest eyeballs would show that man cannot *achieve* complete earthly sanctification. I was once a Buddhist, and the concept is familiar, and clearly mystical in nature. Only Jesus was perfect on earth, and He did not *achieve* it, He WAS perfect! One man's humble opinion. Blessings to you, and prayers for your path. In Jesus' name, charis |