I ilfill ililiiilliiliii 
 
LIBEAEY 
 
 BT 765 .S63l 1841 
 Snodgrass, William Davis, 
 
 1796-1885. 
 The scripture doctrine of 
 
 sanctification stated and 
 
^v 
 
THE SCRIPTURE DOCTRINE 
 
 AIOflFieiflOI 
 
 STATED, AND DEFENDED 
 
 THE ERROR OF PERFECTIONISM. 
 
 BY REV. W. D. SNODGRASS, D. D., 
 
 PASTOR OF THE SECOND-STREET PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, 
 TROY, N. Y. 
 
 Published at the request of the Synod of Albany. 
 " I have seen an end of all perfection.'-— Psalm cxix. ! 
 
 NE W-YORK : 
 
 ROBERT CARTER, 58 CANAL-STREET. 
 1841. 
 
Entered according to the Act of Congress, in the year 1841, by 
 Robert Carter, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court for 
 the Southern District of New- York. 
 
 N. tuttle, printer, troy. 
 
The substance of the following pages was prepared in obe- 
 dience to an appointment by the Synod of Albany, and deliv- 
 ered before that body on the evening of the 13th ult. The 
 theme, as prescribed by the Synod, was — The Doctrine of 
 Sancteficatton, as connected with prevailing errors. 
 And the author supposed he would best meet the general ex- 
 pectation by confining himself to the single error which is 
 here examined and exposed. On the day succeeding the de- 
 livery of the discourse, a resolution was passed, requesting 
 him to furnish a copy for publication. And not willing, under 
 the circumstances, to deny the request, he promised, after re- 
 modeling some parts and enlarging others a little, to have the 
 whole printed in something like the form in which it is now 
 presented. 
 
 Trov, N. Y., November, 1S41. 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 
 in 2010 with funding from 
 
 Princeton Theological Seminary Library 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/scripturedoctrOOsnod 
 
PART I. 
 
 THE DOCTRINE OF SANCTIFICATION. 
 
 1 Thess. iv. 3. This is the will of God even your sanctifi- 
 cation. 
 
 Although it is well to be familiar with 
 the most comprehensive views which we 
 can take of the nature and designs of the 
 christian system, there is also an advantage 
 in setting ourselves at times to the examina- 
 tion of its particular parts. Considered as 
 a whole, there is perfect unity, not only in 
 the system itself, but in all its operations 
 and fruits ; but it is the unity of a body 
 consisting of many members, or of a build- 
 ing composed of different stones. The 
 parts are related ; and each one occupies a 
 place in the formation of the same great 
 1* 
 
6 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 and consistent whole. But still, as com- 
 pared among themselves, there is a differ- 
 ence between them. And the more accu- 
 rately we view them in detail, the more we 
 shall appreciate them in their combined ex- 
 istence and in their several bearings upon 
 the great end which they are intended to 
 secure. 
 
 No attentive reader of the Bible can fail 
 to notice, that among the parts which go to 
 make up the system of faith and duty there 
 revealed, a prominent place is assigned to 
 what is called Saxctificatiox. " This is the 
 will of God," says the Apostle, " even your 
 sanctification" "Sanctify them through 
 thy truth," says the Saviour, " thy word is 
 truth." Heaven is represented as " an in- 
 heritance among them that are sanctified" 
 and all true christians are described as 
 " them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus." 
 Our first inquiry then shall be, What is 
 Saxctificatiox, as to its general nature, 
 and in the relation which it sustains to the 
 other parts of the christian system ? 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 
 
 In regard to the meaning of the word, 
 we may say, that, while it has various signifi- 
 cations in Scripture, there is no dispute as 
 to its import in the passages which are quo- 
 ted above. — Sometimes, and especially in 
 the phraseology of the Old Testament, to 
 sanctify is nothing more than to set apart a 
 person or thing from a common to a sacred 
 use by an external and visible dedication — 
 in which sense, the Jewish Temple and 
 Priesthood, with all the furniture of the form- 
 er and all the garments of the latter, were 
 said to be holy. They had no more real 
 sanctity than other persons and things ; but 
 they were relatively holy, inasmuch as they 
 were formally consecrated to the worship 
 and service of God. In the New Testament, 
 however, the word is generally used with 
 an exclusive reference to persons ; and, in 
 its phraseology, to sanctify them is to make 
 them really holy. This is the true and pro- 
 per sense of the word ; and we are thus to 
 understand it in all those connexions in 
 which it is used to describe the great change 
 
8 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 which must pass upon the moral character 
 of man before he can become a finished 
 subject of the scheme of redemption by the 
 Gospel of Christ. 
 
 The necessity of such a change as this 
 word imports, arises from the fact that the 
 state in which the Gospel finds us is an un- 
 holy state ; we are defiled, and need to be 
 cleansed; we are polluted, and need to be 
 purified. And this fact will come before 
 us in its true relations, if we advert for a 
 moment to the two principal ways in which 
 sin has affected us. In the first place, it 
 has exposed us to punishment; and has 
 thereby affected us relatively — that is, in 
 the relations in which we stand to the law 
 and government of God. Instead of re- 
 garding us as innocent, he views us as 
 guilty ; and, instead of having a title to his 
 favor, we are liable to his wrath both here 
 and hereafter. And, in the second place, 
 it has brought our nature into a state of de- 
 pravity or moral disorder, and has thereby 
 affected us inherently. It has corrupted our 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 9 
 
 moral character and constitution — it has 
 alienated our affections from God — and 
 brought us under the dominion of influences 
 which are impure in their nature and ten- 
 dency. — Now, it is with reference to the ef- 
 fects of sin in these two important respects, 
 that the scheme of human redemption is 
 constructed. It provides, through the sa- 
 crifice and intercession of the great Media- 
 tor, for so altering our relation to God and 
 his law that instead of being exposed to his 
 wrath we have an interest in his favor. 
 And to this department belongs all that the 
 Scriptures teach in relation to forgiveness, 
 justification, adoption, and a full and public 
 acquittal on the day of judgment. But, in 
 addition to this, it provides, through the of- 
 fice and mission of the Holy Spirit, for the 
 rectification of our moral nature — for re- 
 tracing upon us the image of God which 
 has been defaced by sin — for restoring our 
 moral powers to their right use and exer- 
 cise — or for bringing us back, as an Apos- 
 tle describes it, to a state of " righteousness 
 
10 SAXCTIFICATION 
 
 and true holiness." And this department 
 of the work is comprehended in what the 
 Scriptures teach under the name of " Sanc- 
 tification." While the other is a work 
 without us, this is a work within us. And 
 the latter is quite as necessary as the former 
 in securing the great end which the media- 
 tion of Christ has in view. For, of what 
 advantage would it be to us to be pardoned 
 and justified, unless we were also sanctified 
 or made holy ? An un\io\y being could not 
 be admitted to heaven; and, if it could, it 
 would not be happy. Places and things 
 are means and sources of happiness only to 
 those in whom there exists a corresponding 
 taste. That which is relished by one may 
 be distasteful to another, because their lik- 
 ings may run in different directions ; their 
 appetites may be different, and, for this rea- 
 son, if they are to be gratified, they must be 
 fed upon food of different kinds. — Nor is 
 there any case in which the operation of 
 this principle is more striking than in the one 
 which we are now considering. Holy and 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 11 
 
 unholy beings are at the widest possible ex- 
 tremes as to their moral tastes ; and, on this 
 account, different and widely distant places 
 are assigned to them as their future and 
 permanent abode. Heaven is the appoint- 
 ed habitation of the former — Hell will be 
 the common receptacle of the latter. In 
 Heaven all will be holiness, without any ad- 
 mixture or proportion of sin. The place 
 itself will be holy ; all the inhabitants will 
 be holy ; and the same attribute will attach 
 to its employments and pleasures. There 
 is nothing to enter there "that defileth, nei- 
 ther whatsoever worketh abomination." So 
 that, unless we are sanctified, there is a 
 double reason why we cannot enter into the 
 kingdom of God — we are not only exclud- 
 ed by a positive law of the kingdom itself; 
 but we are excluded by a radical defect in 
 our own nature. We must be assimilated 
 in character and taste to the circumstances 
 of the place,, or heaven itself would be a 
 hell to us. In short, there is no place of 
 happiness for an wjsanctified being in the 
 universe of God. 
 
12 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 As to the commencement of this necessa- 
 ry change, in the case of those who are 
 finally fitted for heaven, it is referred to in 
 the use of other words and phrases than 
 those which mark its progress and comple- 
 tion. It is described, sometimes, as a se- 
 cond birth, sometimes as a passage from 
 death unto life, sometimes as a new crea- 
 tion, and in one place it is called " regene- 
 ration." This differs from sanctification as 
 the beginning of a thing differs from its 
 continuance. And the relation of one to 
 the other is clearly set forth by an Apostle, 
 when he says, " He which hath begun a 
 good work in yon will perform it until the 
 day of Jesus Christ." The author of the 
 work is the same in all its parts. He who 
 begins it is the same agent who carries it on ; 
 and we have no reason to suppose that the 
 influence which is exerted in its progress is 
 different from that which operates at the 
 commencement. It is one work, and the 
 efficient power which is concerned in 
 producing it is one, but it consists of dif- 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 13 
 
 ferent stages or degrees. It is not perfect 
 at once, but passes from an imperfect state 
 to one which is more perfect. It is not in- 
 stantaneous, but progressive. The " going 
 forth" of God in its execution "is prepared 
 as the morning," and he comes " as the 
 rain, as the latter and former rain unto the 
 earth." In regeneration, the day dawns 
 and the day-star arises — the drops begin to 
 fall which are an earnest of the approaching 
 shower— and, as the light increases to the 
 perfect day, and the drops multiply until 
 the surface of the ground is saturated with 
 water, so is the sanctification of the people 
 of God. He acts towards them as he did 
 in ancient time towards the people of Is- 
 rael. He does not drive out their enemies 
 before them "in one day," but " by little 
 and little"— " Beholding as in a glass the 
 glory of the Lord," they are "changed 
 into the same image from glory to glory." 
 
 In presenting it thus, it will be seen, that 
 we regard sanctification as the work of 
 God. And this view of its nature is de- 
 
14 SAXCTIFICATION 
 
 Branded, as well by the obvious meaning of 
 the word as by the uniform teachings of 
 Scripture in the use of other modes of ex- 
 pression. Sanctifieation is not synonimous 
 with holiness — it is not the state of one who 
 is made holy — but it is the act by which 
 such a state is produced. It is the work of 
 an efficient agent ; and this agent is neither 
 " blood," nor "the will of the flesh," nor 
 " the will of man," but " God"— « He that 
 hath wrought us for the self same thing is 
 God." And, while it is brought into view 
 as the work of God in general, it is also re- 
 presented as the work of each Person in the 
 Godhead in particular. To the Father, we 
 are directed to offer our supplications, that 
 he would give us a new heart and a right 
 spirit, that he would circumcise our hearts 
 to love and fear him, that he would sanctify 
 us and make us perfect in every good 
 work : — Of the Son, it is written, that 
 "He gave himself for us, that he might re- 
 deem us from all iniquity and purify unto 
 himself a peculiar people zealous of good 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 15 
 
 works," that he " suffered without the gate 
 that he might sanctify the people with his 
 own blood," that he "loved the Church 
 and gave himself for it that he might sanc- 
 tify and cleanse it :" — And, as revealing the 
 Spirit's agency in the work, it is called the 
 " sanctification of the Spirit," is attributed 
 to the pouring out of the Spirit, and is re- 
 presented as a fruit of the Spirit. 
 
 But, while we regard it as the work of 
 God, it is important in another view that we 
 should regard it as the work and the duty of 
 max. The subject of it is a rational and re- 
 sponsible agent. He is bound to be holy; 
 and nothing short of perfect holiness can an- 
 swer to the measure of his obligations. The 
 law of God, which is the rule of life to him, 
 is the standard of holiness ; and, until this 
 standard is reached, he is properly dealt 
 with in the use of arguments, exhortations, 
 and motives. He has a duty to perform 
 and a work to do ; and that is to follow ho- 
 liness, to purify himself, to cleanse himself 
 from all nlthiness both of the flesh and of 
 
16 SAXCTIFICATIOX 
 
 the spirit. In prosecuting this work, his re- 
 liance for success must be, on the Spirit of 
 God working by appointed means. He 
 must be active, yet he must not depend up- 
 on himself. He must have recourse to me- 
 ditation and prayer, to watchfulness and 
 self-examination, to christian intercourse 
 and counsel, and to all positive institutions 
 especially the reading and hearing of the 
 Word ; but, in all this, he must remember 
 that the means are nothing without an in- 
 fluence from God to render them effectual. 
 Their whole efficiency lies in the fact, that 
 they are of God's appointment and that he 
 has promised to bless them. And hence, 
 our only encouragement to be active in the 
 use of means, is made to rest upon our 
 knowledge of the interposition and the 
 agency of God. " Work out your own sal- 
 vation with fear and trembling; for it is 
 God which worketh in you both to will and 
 to do of his good pleasure." 
 
 Nor is there any inconsistency or confu- 
 sion in the idea of these two agencies as 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 17 
 
 working together in the production of the 
 same result. They are not of the same 
 kind ; the sphere of their operation is not 
 the same ; one is efficient, the other instru- 
 mental. And, so accustomed are we to 
 assign to each the place and position of a 
 real agency, that we often ascribe the same 
 event, sometimes to God, and sometimes to 
 man. We say of an individual that he has 
 risen from indigence to affluence or from 
 obscurity to distinction by the Providence 
 of God ; but we are not supposed to con- 
 tradict ourselves, if we afterwards say, that 
 he has succeeded by his own prudence, 
 wisdom, and skill. Both statements are 
 true, though in different senses. And ac- 
 cordingly they are both adopted by the sa- 
 cred writers in reference to the work of 
 sanctification. In one place, we are taught 
 to call upon God to sanctify us ; in another, 
 we are commanded to sanctify ourselves. 
 One introduces God as promising us a new 
 heart and a right spirit, and another com- 
 mands us to make to ourselves a new heart 
 2* 
 
18 
 
 SAXCTIFICATIOX 
 
 and a right spirit. And both these views 
 are important in practice, as well as true 
 and consistent in theory. We need the 
 idea of human agency to incite ns to acti- 
 vity ; and we need the doctrine of Divine 
 influence and efficiency to remind ns of our 
 dependence, to make us pray "without 
 ceasing," and to secure the conviction that 
 our salvation is "not of works" but of 
 " grace." " Not by works of righteousness 
 which Ave have done, but according to his 
 mercy he saved us, by the washing of re- 
 generation and renewing of the Holy 
 Ghost." 
 
 This, then, as to its general nature, is 
 sanctification ; and these are the circum- 
 stances under which it may be expected to 
 advance, considered both as the work of 
 God and the duty of man. 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 19 
 
 PART II. 
 
 ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 
 
 1 Tliess. v. 23. And the very God of peace sanctify you 
 wholly. 
 
 That full provision is made for consum- 
 mating the work of sanctification, as well as 
 for its commencement, and progress, is not 
 doubted by any. All evangelical christians 
 agree that when the Apostle says, " This is 
 the will of God even your sanctification," 
 he has in view the entire deliverance of 
 those who embrace the Gospel from the 
 power and pollution of sin. Christ "gave 
 himself for the Church, "that he might 
 sanctify and cleanse it" — "that he might 
 present it to himself a glorious Church, not 
 having spot, or wrinkle, or any such 
 
20 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 thing" — " that it should be holy and with- 
 out blemish." This is the grand result 
 which all the institutions and influences of 
 the Gospel have in view; and, to entertain 
 the apprehension of a failure here, would be 
 to call in question the wisdom, the foresight, 
 the veracity, and the faithfulness of God. 
 
 But the certainty of an event and the 
 time at which we are authorized to expect 
 it, are two different things. And the ques- 
 tion now arises, Are we authorized to be- 
 lieve that God ivill ever consummate the 
 sanctification of his people within the limits 
 of the present life? Or, as the advocates 
 of the doctrine of Perfection would prefer 
 to have it stated, 
 
 Is ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION IN THIS LIFE TO 
 BE REGARDED AS AN ATTAINABLE STATE ? 
 
 In entering upon the discussion of this 
 question, it is all-important that the terms 
 employed should be so denned that no con- 
 fusion of ideas may exist as to their mean- 
 ing. This is especially the case in refer- 
 ence to the word entire : — For, while the 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 21 
 
 phrase ' entire sanctification' is one of fre- 
 quent occurrence in the writings of those 
 who defend the doctrine which is now cur- 
 rent under this name, it is not so clear that 
 they themselves have a definite notion of 
 what they intend to express, or adhere as 
 closely as they should to what the words 
 legitimately imply. "We see the evidence 
 of this in the fact, that the phrase in ques- 
 tion is used as convertible with others which 
 are plainly not identical in their meaning, 
 either as compared with it or with one an- 
 other. One of these phrases is, l the con- 
 secration of our iv hole being to Christ.'' 
 And what does this imply, according to the 
 true meaning and force of the words? 
 May we not be consecrated to Christ and 
 yet be sanctified only in part ? Is not every 
 Christian consecrated to him ? And (if his 
 being is capable of being divided into 
 parts) does not the consecration extend to 
 one part as well as to another ? — Another 
 phrase is, « the subjection of all our powers 
 and susceptibilities to the control of faith 
 
22 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 on the Son of GocV But may not faith on 
 the Son of God control those who are still 
 in a measure under the influence of sin ? 
 Do not all who are recovered to "newness 
 of life," live by faith on the Son of God? 
 And are there any particular powers and 
 susceptibilities of our nature to which the 
 influence of this faith extends more than to 
 others ? 
 
 But, not to dwell upon the vagueness of 
 conception and expression which is betray- 
 ed in these and other instances of the same 
 kind which might be quoted, let us inquire 
 what a state of l entire sanctification' ought 
 fairly to be considered as implying. — It is 
 defined by a recent writer on Christian Per- 
 fection, as involving "perfect obedience to 
 the moral law." It implies, he says, "a 
 full and perfect discharge of our entire duty 
 in respect to God and to all other beings." 
 And, if this definition were allowed to stand 
 unqualified and unimpaired, we should de- 
 sire no other. But it falls out, in immediate 
 connexion with this language, that the de- 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 23 
 
 mands of the law of God upon us depend 
 upon our "circumstances" — that "our 
 powers are comparatively weak" — and that 
 what is required of us is holiness "corres- 
 ponding with the reach of our powers." 
 We are thus driven at once from what 
 seemed to be safe and tenable ground, and 
 thrown upon the radical error, that the ex- 
 tent of our powers, fallen as we are, is the 
 ground and measure of our obligation. 
 Of course the powers referred to are the 
 moral powers of our nature — those powers 
 which have been affected by sin — and 
 which are "weak" in us, as compared with 
 the higher and more perfect condition in 
 which they existed in the primitive state 
 and constitution of man. And the neces- 
 sary consequence of this position is, that, 
 the more we sin and thereby debilitate our 
 powers, the more circumscribed does the 
 sphere of our duty become — or, in other 
 words, that we are excusable for not meet- 
 ing the requisitions of the laAv of God just 
 in proportion as we advance in the career 
 
-4 SANCTIFICATIOaS 
 
 of rebellion against him. And, if there is 
 either truth or safety in this position, then 
 the shortest road to entire sanctification is 
 the highway of sin. We have only to per- 
 severe in sin until our powers become so 
 "weak" that we have no farther capability 
 of obeying any part of the Divine law, and 
 then we are sanctified to the full extent of 
 our obligations; because our "circum- 
 stances" are such that Ave are under no ob- 
 ligation whatever. 
 
 But the law of God is not the sport of 
 circumstances, as this absurd and dangerous 
 position would imply. Other things may 
 be susceptible of modification or change ; 
 but this rule of conduct, like its glorious au- 
 thor, is "the same yesterday, to-day and 
 forever." It makes the same demands up- 
 on devils that it does upon holy angels, and 
 the same demands upon fallen man that it 
 did upon man in his primitive state. It is 
 nothing else than a declaration of injunc- 
 tions which are in accordance with the per- 
 fections of God ; and, while these perfec- 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 
 
 25 
 
 tions continue to be what they are, he can 
 accept of nothing as his law which is mea- 
 sured by a different standard or graduated 
 by a different rule. — And hence the care of 
 the Great Teacher to produce the impres- 
 sion upon the human mind that he had " not 
 come to destroy the law." It was the 
 same when he came into the world that it 
 always had been; and, instead of lowering 
 the standard of obedience which it had 
 erected, he made it his business to renew 
 and ratify it by the disclosure of still more 
 affecting and solemn sanctions. As left by 
 him, it required men, in vieAV of a clearer 
 revelation of ' eternal judgment' than had 
 ever been made before, to love the Lord 
 their God with all their heart, with all their 
 soul, with all their mind, and with all their 
 strength. To this law, then, we are ame- 
 nable now. And, if there is any one among 
 all our thoughts, words, or actions, which 
 is not up to the standard of its requisitions — 
 if we vary from them, in any one affection 
 or emotion of soul — if we depart, for an in- 
 3 
 
26 SAXCTIFICATIOX 
 
 stant, from the exercise of supreme affection 
 for God, or unadulterated charity towards 
 our fellow men — if there is about us the 
 least taint of any thing like pride, unbelief, 
 ingratitude, hardness of heart, impatience, 
 discontent, impurity, earthly-mindedness, 
 or covetousness — then we are not entirely 
 sanctified. There is still a distance between 
 us and the point at which we should aim : — 
 Instead of congratulating ourselves that we 
 have ''already attained," we have reason 
 to forget "those things which are behind" 
 and to reach forth "unto those things which 
 are before." 
 
 By entire sanctification, then, in the only 
 fair and consistent sense of the expression, 
 we must understand perfect conformity both 
 in letter and spirit to every part of that law 
 which was originally written upon the heart 
 of man — which was afterwards revealed to 
 Israel on Mount Sinai — which is renewed 
 and ratified in the teachings of the New 
 
 o 
 
 Testament — and not only established and 
 fulfilled, but magnified and made honorable, 
 in the mediation of Christ. 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 27 
 
 And here I take occasion to say, that 
 sanctification to the full extent of what this 
 law requires, would be a state of holiness 
 admitting of no progression or higher de- 
 grees. — Some, perhaps, may regard this as 
 self-evident, and therefore as unworthy of 
 being repeated ; but there is a phase of the 
 error we are about to consider which ren- 
 ders the remark important. Its friends in- 
 sist that holiness may be perfect "in kind" 
 or "in its nature," but be "finite in de- 
 gree." And, as illustrating this distinction, 
 we are referred to the difference between 
 the holiness of a child and the holiness of a 
 man — between the holiness of a saint on 
 earth and the holiness of a seraph in hea- 
 ven. The child and the man, the saint and 
 the seraph, are all supposed to be free from 
 sin — they are entirely holy — but the degrees 
 of holiness appertaining to the man and the 
 seraph are supposed to be greater than those 
 appertaining to the child and the saint ; be^ 
 cause the powers of the former exceed those 
 of the latter ! But let us not be deceived 
 
28 SAXCTIFICATION 
 
 by the sound and confusion of words with- 
 out knowledge. What has the strength or 
 maturity of a creature's powers to do with 
 a mere question of fact as to the degree of 
 his sinfulness or sanctification ? What are 
 degrees of sin and holiness but degrees of 
 conformity or disconformity to the law of 
 God ? And, when this conformity is com- 
 plete, what is there beyond it in which holi- 
 ness can be supposed to consist? Is a 
 child who is perfectly sanctified less holy 
 in degree than a man in the same state, 
 merely because the latter has more bodily 
 stature, greater intellectual strength, or 
 more extensive knowledge ? What, in 
 short, is holiness but freedom from sin ? — 
 and how can a creature who is entirely free 
 from sin be delivered from it in a still high- 
 er degree ? The Scriptures call upon us to 
 be holy as God is holy, and perfect as our 
 Father in heaven is perfect; but where 
 would be the possibility of such conformity 
 if it were of the nature of holiness to rise 
 and fall according to the powers of the be- 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 29 
 
 ing in whom it resides ? In respect to the 
 reach of our powers, we shall never attain 
 to an equality with God ; but in respect to 
 holiness, if we are his, we shall be "like 
 him" — as free from the indwelling and de- 
 filement of sin — and as entirely conformed 
 to his image, in this respect, as was the first 
 man when he " became a living soul," or 
 as the angels now are who kept their first 
 estate. 
 
 As to the meaning of the word attain- 
 able, when applied to the state described 
 in the preceding remarks, we have no other 
 purpose than to use it in its most obvious 
 and popular sense — as importing the prac- 
 ticability of the thing to which it refers. 
 An attainable thing, is something the at- 
 tainment of which is practicable ; an unat- 
 tainable thing, is something the attainment 
 of which is not practicable. — And, on the 
 question which relates to the practicability 
 of attaining to a state of entire sanctifica- 
 tion in this life, I feel compelled to join 
 issue, not merely with the professed advo- 
 3* 
 
30 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 cates of the doctrine, but also with some of 
 those who have undertaken to shield the 
 truth from the weapons which in this quar- 
 ter have been directed against it. 
 
 In a recent* publication — the venerable 
 author of which argues in some respects 
 with zeal and ability, as well as with the 
 best spirit, against the doctrine of Perfec- 
 tion — I find it admitted, " that we may ren- 
 der to God the perfect obedience which he 
 requires;" that "we may render perfect 
 obedience, if we apply ourselves to the 
 work as we ought, and fully avail ourselves 
 of the gracious provisions of the Gospel;" 
 " that a proper use of means will secure it ;" 
 "that we shall obtain it, if we do what Ave 
 ought;" "arid that, if we fail of obtaining 
 it, truth will require us to say that we might 
 have obtained it." The author, therefore, 
 admits that Perfection in this life is attain- 
 able — claims for this admission the common 
 consent of evangelical christians — and re- 
 serves, as the only ground on which to 
 
 # Woods' reply to Mahan. 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 31 
 
 make his defence, that perfect holiness nev- 
 er is attained in this world as a matter of 
 fact. — Now this, I cannot but regard, as 
 virtually giving up the matter in dispute — 
 as yielding in one form what is denied and 
 opposed in another. For if men may ren- 
 der perfect obedience, by a proper use of 
 means, where is the authority for saying 
 they will never do it ? Who is authorized 
 to affirm that what they can do they never 
 will accomplish ? If it should be said that 
 the difficulty lies in the want of will — that 
 they might do it if they would — but that it 
 never will be done because no one will ever 
 be willing to do it — I reply that this is 
 claiming a knowledge of the future to which 
 no one has any right to pretend. The 
 want of will which is supposed to have ex- 
 isted hitherto in the ease of all, may here- 
 after be removed in the case of some ; — 
 Nay, it is removed in the case of every in- 
 dividual now living who has a place in the 
 family of God. "Thy people," says the 
 Psalmist, "shall be willing' in the day of 
 
32 SAXCTIFICATION 
 
 thy power." By the grace of God, this 
 important faculty of their mental and moral 
 constitution is so renewed, that "to will is 
 present" with them — they "would do 
 good" — but " how to perform that which is 
 good" is the difficulty which they find. 
 There is something more in the way, there- 
 fore, than a mere want of will. But still, 
 it matters not what it is, if it be something 
 which may be surmounted. If it is, who 
 shall say that no man is ever to arise who 
 will surmount it, and go on to perfection ? 
 Nay, where is the man now living, who 
 may not expect, in the use of proper means, 
 to do so himself? In short, is it not almost 
 a contradiction in terms, to say, that a thing 
 may be attained, and yet that no one need 
 expect to attain it — that it lies within the 
 reach of all, and yet that in attempting to 
 reach it there is infallible certainty that all 
 will fail ? 
 
 I regard it, then, as proper to say that 
 entire sanctification in this life is not an at- 
 tainable state. And my reasons for believ- 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 33 
 
 ing so may be arranged under the three 
 following heads, 
 
 I. It never has been attained. 
 
 II. It is no ivhere intimated in the word 
 of God that it either may or will be. 
 
 III. To suppose it, is to suppose that which 
 woidd disagree with a variety of known 
 and acknowledged facts. 
 
 I. If a state of entire sanctification ever 
 has been attained, it certainly falls to the lot 
 of those who assert the fact, to prove it by 
 the production of an instance. And where 
 shall such an instance be found ? If found 
 at all, it will doubtless be among those dis- 
 tinguished men, "of whom the world was 
 not worthy," who, though dead, continue 
 to speak in the biography and history of 
 the sacred-volume. But to which of their 
 number shall we refer, as presenting the 
 desired specimen ? — It is not denied, that 
 there are words and phrases employed in 
 Scripture, which, if understood in the great- 
 est latitude of meaning of which they are 
 susceptible, would imply that not a few 
 
34 SANCTIFICATIGN 
 
 both of the Old and New Testament saints 
 were without sin. These are such as the 
 words "perfect," "entire," "complete," 
 "blameless." It is said of Noah, Job, and 
 others, that they were perfect — of all chris- 
 tians, that they are complete — -of Zachariah 
 and Elizabeth, that they walked in all the 
 commandments and ordinances of the Lord 
 blameless. But, it is granted on all hands, 
 that these and other terms of similar import 
 are often used in a qualified and restricted 
 sense ; and therefore no decisive proof can 
 be drawn from their appearance in this 
 connection. They occur in the sacred writ- 
 ings, as they do in the language of ordinary 
 conversation, as signifying high degrees of 
 excellency, but not absolute perfection. 
 When we say of an individual, ' He is a 
 perfect character,' we are never suspected 
 of intending to convey the idea that he is 
 without a fault — that he is an angel as to 
 his moral purity — that he is free from all 
 error in opinion, and all imperfection in the 
 discharge of duty. Instead of this, what 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 35 
 
 we mean to express is, that he is a person 
 of uniformly correct unci praiseworthy de- 
 portment. His character is well balanced, 
 and, in this sense, complete — his life is a 
 well regulated life — there is no one respect 
 in which he especially fails — and we there- 
 fore apply to him the idea of perfection, 
 and point to him as an example to be imi- 
 tated by others. 
 
 Bearing this in mind, then, Ave pursue the 
 inquiry — Where shall we find a specimen 
 of entire sanetification among the eminent 
 saints, who still live and speak in the bio- 
 graphies of the sacred volume, whose me- 
 morial has not perished, and who "shall 
 be in everlasting remembrance?" Shall 
 we find it in the max of the New Testa- 
 mext. who was "not a whit behind the very 
 chiefest Apostles," who "labored more 
 abundantly than they all," and who "re- 
 sisted unto blood striving against sin?" — I 
 commence with the examination of his 
 case; because it seems impossible to doubt, 
 in view of what is said of his life and cha- 
 
36 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 racter, that he was intended expressly to be 
 an example to the rest of mankind. The 
 manner of his conversion — the rank which 
 he took as an Apostle— his ardent zeal in 
 the cause of his master — the great success 
 which attended his labors — his wonderful 
 seasons of communion with God and eter- 
 nal things — his rapture to the third hea- 
 ven — and his fervent longings to depart and 
 be with Christ — all testify that he was an 
 extraordinary man. He was raised, by the 
 grace of God, to a level above that which 
 was occupied by others, that he might be 
 justified in saying to them, "Be ye follow- 
 ers of me." Indeed he is the only being 
 in human form — with the single exception 
 of him "who was holy, harmless, undefil- 
 ed, and separate from sinners" — who, in 
 any part of the Bible, assumes the responsi- 
 bility of recommending himself as an ex- 
 ample to be imitated by others. And, un- 
 der these circumstances, we may well re- 
 gard his attainments in the christian life as 
 attainments that never have been, and pro- 
 
STATED AND DEPENDED. 37 
 
 bably never will be, surpassed. This, I 
 believe, is neither denied nor doubted by 
 those who plead for perfection in this life; 
 and accordingly to prove that Paul ivas 
 entirely sanctified, is one of the points to 
 which their efforts are directed. — Let us 
 examine this point, with some attention, 
 and see what the result will be. 
 
 In the third chapter of his Epistle to the 
 Phillippians, the Apostle gives the most ex- 
 tended and minute account of himself, 
 which his writings contain, as to the pro- 
 cess which he had made in his christian 
 course. He introduces himself to the no- 
 tice of his readers, as having started in a 
 "race" and as pressing on towards the 
 goal, with a view of securing the prize. 
 He supposes the same circumstances to be 
 present, which distinguished the natural 
 race, as run at the celebration of the an- 
 cient games. He supposes his course to be 
 marked out and prescribed in the Gospel : — 
 He regards Jesus Christ as having "appre- 
 hended," or laid hold on him, to draw him 
 4 
 
38 SANCTIPICATION 
 
 into this course, and to support and urge 
 him forward in the contest : — He has his 
 eye fixed on a mark, which he calls "the 
 mark for the prize" — a goal which he must 
 reach before the prize could be awarded : — 
 And, in connexion with the mark, is the 
 prize itself — the crown of life — the incor- 
 ruptible crown, which every winner in this 
 race will receive, as the reward of his vic- 
 tory. — I need not occupy the time of the 
 reader, in showing that "the mark" for this 
 prize is perfection in holiness ; because this 
 is the only mark, or termination of his 
 course, to which the christian is allowed to 
 have respect. This is the only goal, to 
 which he is commanded to run — the only 
 point, at which he is permitted to stop — the 
 only line, beyond which there is nothing 
 more to be acquired or done. As a chris- 
 tian, there is nothing else Which he is bound 
 to do, than to seek and obtain a state of en- 
 tire conformity to the image and will of 
 God, both in heart and in life. Having ar- 
 rived at this state, his work is finished — he 
 
ITATED AND DEFENDED. 
 
 39 
 
 can run no farther — his obligations are all 
 discharged — he has come up to the mark, 
 and is ready for the prize. 
 
 Let it now be considered, that, when this 
 memorable passage was written, the Apos- 
 tle had been running the race, which he 
 describes, for a period of something like 
 thirty years. He was not far from the 
 point, at which he afterwards said, "I 
 have finished my course :" — In about three 
 years more, he was to reach the goal, and 
 obtain the crown of righteousness, which 
 the Lord the righteous Judge had promised 
 to give him. And, under these circum- 
 stances, what does he say concerning his 
 progress ? " Not as though I had already 
 attained, either were already perfect ; but I 
 follow after" — " Brethren, I count not my- 
 self to have apprehended ; but this one thing 
 I do, forgetting those things which are be- 
 hind and reaching forth unto those things 
 which are before, I press toward the mark." 
 As if he had said — ' After all the progress I 
 have made in the divine life, there are other 
 
40 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 and still higher attainments before me — I 
 pretend not to have reached the point, at 
 which I am aiming, but only to be ap- 
 proaching it — all that I can claim is, that, 
 instead of being satisfied with past efforts, 
 I am intent upon still higher degrees of pro- 
 ficiency and success.' 
 
 Nor is this different from the evidence 
 arising from all the other parts of his life and 
 teaching. He never speaks of himself, in 
 language which implies, that he was with- 
 out sin, or had obtained a complete victory 
 over it ; but, very often, in such terms as 
 show, that he was put to the necessity of a 
 constant struggle against its temptations and 
 defilements. He unites with the Hebrews 
 in saying, " Let us lay aside every weight, 
 and the sin which doth so easily beset us" — 
 regarding himself, in common with them, as 
 exposed to the influence of besetting sins. 
 He records, in his Second Letter to the 
 Corinthians, that his tendency to spiritual 
 pride was such, that there was given to him 
 " a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Sa- 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 41 
 
 tan to buffet him." And who can believe, 
 that the sharp contention between him and 
 Barnabas would ever have occurred, if his 
 mind and affections had been in a state of 
 entire sanctification ? 
 
 But the fullest evidence, on this subject, 
 is to be found in the seventh chapter of his 
 Epistle to the Romans, where his struggles 
 with remaining sin are described at length. 
 He there speaks expressly, of sin, as dwell- 
 ing in him — of evil, as being present with 
 him — of a law in his members, warring 
 against the law of his mind, and bringing 
 him into captivity to the law of sin, which 
 was in his members. This testimony, in 
 its terms, is so direct and conclusive, that 
 the only way of evading its force, is to de- 
 ny that the Apostle is here referring to him- 
 self as a christian at all ; and to take the 
 ground, that, although he speaks in the 
 present tense, he means to describe exer- 
 cises of mind through which he had passed 
 in former times — conflicts with himself, un- 
 der convictions of sin, which occurred be- 
 4* 
 
42 SANCTIFICATIOX 
 
 fore his conversion. This, accordingly, is 
 the position, so far as I know, of all who 
 contend for sinless perfection in this life. 
 They insist upon the advantage to be de- 
 rived from the example of Paul, and there- 
 fore argue, that, in this account of his spi- 
 ritual conflicts, he speaks of himself as a 
 sinner " under the law," and not as a be- 
 liever " under grace." But, to say nothing 
 of the violence which is done to the under- 
 standing of the common reader, in suppos- 
 ing the Apostle to describe past events in 
 the use of the present tense — to say nothing 
 of the absurdity of an unconverted sinner 
 exclaiming, as he does in this passage, " I 
 delight in the law of God after the inward 
 man" — to say nothing of the striking simi- 
 larity between his language here and in 
 other places in which he speaks, confessed- 
 ly as a christian, of the flesh lusting against 
 the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh — 
 and to say nothing of the fitness of such ex- 
 pressions, to describe the actual exercises of 
 the best and holiest men who have lived in 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 43 
 
 succeeding ages — all these considerations 
 apart, it is enough to decide the question, to 
 bring it into the light of historical facts, con- 
 cerning which there can be no dispute. Let 
 any candid inquirer look back upon the char- 
 acter and life of this distinguished individual, 
 before his conversion ; and see whether, in 
 the progress of his history, there is any 
 place for such a scene as that which is here 
 described — any interval of time, either long 
 or short, during which he was the subject 
 of these distressing contentions with the 
 power of sin. In reference to the whole 
 period of his former life, his testimony con- 
 cerning himself is, that, " as touching the 
 righteousness which is in the law," he was 
 "blameless:" — He was not only " an He- 
 brew of the Hebrews," but a Pharisee of the 
 Pharisees — an eminent individual among 
 that class of persons, who supposed them- 
 selves to be doing their whole duty, and 
 who felt entitled to say, at the very altar 
 of God: 'We thank thee, that we are 
 not as other men are !' In his defence be- 
 
44 SAXCTIFICATION 
 
 fore Agrippa, he says : " My manner of 
 life from my youth, which was at the first 
 among mine own nation at Jerusalem, 
 know all the Jews ; which knew me from 
 the beginning, if they would testify, that, 
 after the most straitest sect of our religion, 
 I lived a Pharisee." Nor were his self- 
 righteous feelings disturbed, even for a mo- 
 ment, by what he did immediately before 
 his conversion, in persecuting the Church 
 of God. In all that fell out in the progress 
 of that bloody scene, he was guided by 
 what he verily thought within himself he 
 ought to do. In short, it is as clear as any 
 historical fact can possibly be, that up to 
 the very moment at which the light from 
 heaven flashed upon him, on his way from 
 Jerusalem to Damascus, he supposed him- 
 self to be an entirely sanctified person. He 
 was then a Perfectionist truly: — He not 
 only advocated the doctrine, but regarded 
 himself as its brightest exemplification : — 
 He stood as the leader of the only sect of 
 this description which distinguished and 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 45 
 
 disturbed the age in which he lived. How 
 significantly does he allude to the self-com- 
 placency of that period, when he says, in 
 the commencement of the passage of which 
 we are now speaking, "I was alive with- 
 out the law, once!" The "once," of 
 which he speaks is, beyond a doubt, the 
 time which preceded his conversion. Dur- 
 ing any part of that time, he saw no reason 
 to find fault with his religious character and 
 condition. He was all that he wished to 
 be, and his hopes of heaven were firm and 
 bright. "But, when the commandment 
 came" as it did at the time of his conver- 
 sion, and brought to his mind a true know- 
 ledge of sin, and crucified his hopes of sal- 
 vation by the deeds of the law, then he 
 abandoned his favorite notion of perfection, 
 as applied either to himself or others, and 
 became a mourner, for the rest of his days, 
 under the consciousness and burden of in- 
 dwelling sin. He now saw the spirituality 
 of the law, as contrasted with the carnality 
 of his affections : — He saw the field of hu- 
 
46 SAXCTIFICAT10N 
 
 man obligation and duty to be " exceeding 
 broad :" — and he had a disposition to oc- 
 cupy and improve it. But, while engaged 
 in his best and most successful efforts, he 
 found, in many instances and respects, that 
 when he would do good evil was present 
 with him — that the good which he would, 
 that he did not; and that the evil which he 
 would not, that he did — and that all this 
 was to be referred to the remaining corrup- 
 tion of a nature sanctified only in part — 
 " now, it is no more I that do it, but sin that 
 dwelleth in me." So that, instead of re- 
 garding himself as having nothing more to 
 do in the warfare against sin, he could ex- 
 claim from the depths of his bitter expe- 
 rience, " O wretched man that lam! who 
 shall deliver me from the body of this 
 death?" 
 
 We pass, now, from the case of Paul, 
 and extend our search after the specimen 
 of entire sanctification, to some of the other 
 eminent saints, who are referred to as ex- 
 amples in the sacred volume. And if, after 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 47 
 
 him, there are any among whom the object 
 of this search is likely to be found, they must 
 surely be such persons, — as Noah, concern- 
 ing whom it is said, that he was "a just 
 man and perfect in his generations," — or 
 Job, of whom the spirit testifies, that there 
 was "none like him in all the earth," — or 
 Abraham, who sustained the relation of fa- 
 ther to all the faithful, — or Moses, whom 
 the Lord knew face to face, — or David, 
 who was the man after God's own heart, — 
 or Zacharias and Elizabeth, who " were 
 both righteous," and of whom we have al- 
 ready spoken, as " walking in all the com- 
 mandments and ordinances of the Lord 
 blameless." These are the persons, con- 
 cerning whom it is said, "Be ye followers 
 of them, who through faith and patience in- 
 herit the promises." And yet, there is not 
 one of their number, in regard to whom it 
 is not expressly recorded, that their perfec- 
 tion was a limited or qualified perfection. 
 The perfection of Noah was stained, by the 
 sin of intoxication ; and that of Job, by an 
 
48 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 imprecation upon the day of his birth; — 
 Abraham was guilty of prevarication ; — 
 Moses spake unadvisedly with his lips; — 
 David fell into the crimes of adultery and 
 murder; — and Zacharias was struck dumb, 
 because he believed not the words of the 
 Lord. It is indeed an instructive and strik- 
 ing fact, that, when we find the record of 
 eminent holiness in the Bible, we generally 
 find over-against it the record of some in- 
 stance of transgression — as if to remind us, 
 .that, "there is not a just man upon earth 
 that doeth good and sinneth not," — that this 
 world is not the place for unalloyed and un- 
 corrupted piety, — and that those who pre- 
 tend to it, arrogate to themselves, what the 
 best days and the brightest ornaments of 
 the Church of God have never produced. 
 
 So far, then, as the scriptural models of 
 faith and holy living are concerned, we 
 think it beyond a doubt, that they present 
 no example of entire sanctification. And, 
 having failed to find such an example 
 among these models, it is scarcely worth 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 49 
 
 while to pursue the inquiry farther. It may 
 not be unimportant, however, to remark in 
 general terms, that, in relation to entire 
 sanctification, considered as ^practical mat- 
 ter, there is a striking coincidence in the 
 experience and views of the most eminent 
 saints in every age. Take up the diary of 
 any one, whom we all acknowledge to have 
 been pre-eminent in holiness ; and, in turn- 
 ing over its pages, you will find, that, as the 
 piety of the individual rises, his sense of re- 
 maining sin becomes deeper and more af- 
 flicting. The seasons of his closet commun- 
 ion with God, are the seasons in which he 
 sees most in himself to be repented of and 
 subdued. The nearer he comes to the 
 throne, the lower he lies in confession and 
 self-abasement. It is not when he hears of 
 God by the hearing of the ear, but when his 
 eye seeth Him, that he abhors himself and 
 repents in dust and in ashes. In short, it is 
 when his devotion burns with the brightest 
 and purest flame, that he has the clearest 
 insight into the depravity of his own nature : 
 5 
 
50 SAXCTIFICATION 
 
 So that, while he is sensible of an increase 
 of grace, he is equally sensible that more 
 grace is still needed to carry on and com- 
 plete his deliverance from sin. 
 
 As the result, then, of this inquiry into 
 the facts of the case, it is fair to infer, that 
 a state of entire sanctification in this life has 
 never been attained. This I acknowledge, 
 however, does not of itself settle the ques- 
 tion as to whether it may be attained. The 
 proof, thus far, is merely presumptive. We 
 infer that it may not, from the fact, that, thus 
 far, it has not been — without touching the 
 question of probability, as to the future. 
 But we proceed, now, to remark 
 
 II. That, while a state of entire sanctifi- 
 cation in this life never has been attained, 
 it is no ivhere declared or intimated in the 
 word of God, in any umy 3 that it either may 
 or will be. 
 
 And here, I take occasion to say, as un- 
 der the former particular: If there is an in- 
 timation to this effect in the Bible, either 
 direct or implied, it behooves those who 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 51 
 
 make the assertion to prove it by the pro- 
 duction of an instance. No doubt they do 
 produce, what they themselves regard as 
 satisfactory ; but let us examine the ground 
 of their claim to success, in this department, 
 with some degree of particularity and care. 
 I have already said, that no stress is to be 
 laid, in this discussion, on the mere use of 
 the words " perfect," " complete," and oth- 
 ers of similar character ; because the lati- 
 tude of meaning to be assigned to such 
 terms, is confessedly various, according to 
 the connexion in which they are found. If 
 words and phrases, out of their connexion, 
 were admitted as proof, it would be easy, 
 not only to establish the doctrine of sinless 
 perfection, considered as an attainable state, 
 but also to show that all christians are per- 
 fect, and must be so from the necessity of 
 the case. For what can be plainer than 
 the language of the Apostle John, when he 
 says, " whosoever is born of God doth not 
 commit sin" — nay more, " his seed remain - 
 eth in him and he cannot sin, because he is 
 
52 
 
 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 born of God"? If this passage, taken by 
 itself, were susceptible of any meaning, it 
 would be, that regeneration draws after it, 
 not merely the probability, but the necessity 
 of entire freedom from sin. And, as none 
 would be willing to receive this interpreta- 
 tion, we must all appreciate the importance 
 of understanding words and phrases in their 
 connexion, and of ascertaining the mean- 
 ing of passages, by comparing scripture 
 with scripture, before we are hasty in de- 
 ciding upon the instruction which they are 
 intended to convey. 
 
 It must be conceded, however, that the 
 advocates of the error we are now oppos- 
 ing, do not depend much upon proof deriv- 
 ed from express declarations of scripture. 
 Their mode of reaching what the scriptures 
 are supposed to teach, is rather by infer- 
 ence. And the main facts and circumstan- 
 ces, from which the inference is drawn, Ave 
 proceed to notice. 
 
 It is said that God commands us to be per- 
 fect; and that this he would not do, unless 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 53 
 
 perfection in this life were attainable, — and 
 attainable, at any time, at which the com- 
 mand exists. But, admitting the premise, 
 in this argument, does the conclusion fol- 
 low? God, as Ave have seen, can require 
 nothing less than perfection; because no- 
 thing else would answer to the demands of 
 his immutable law. He can make no 
 abatement here, on account of any changes 
 which occur in our condition ; for this would 
 be to relinquish his rights as moral Gover- 
 nor, and make sin and holiness matters of 
 mere accident and circumstance. We, in 
 common with all rational and moral crea- 
 tures, are therefore required to yield the 
 perfect obedience which his law demands. 
 But to say, that, by us in our fallen state, 
 such perfection may at any moment be at- 
 tained — to say that a creature, who is radi- 
 cally imperfect, whose moral constitution is 
 diseased, defiled, and debilitated by sin, 
 who is " without strength" and " compass- 
 ed with infirmity," whose " whole head is 
 sick and whose whole heart is faint," and 
 
 5 
 
-54 SAXCTIFICATIOX 
 
 in whom " there is no soundness from the 
 sole of the foot even unto the head, but 
 wounds and bruises and putrifying sores" — 
 to say that such a creature may start, at 
 will, from his death in trespasses and sins, 
 into a state of immaculate purity, is to utter 
 what a reflecting person can hardly be sup- 
 posed to believe. And yet, this is the ab- 
 surdity to which the argument in question 
 would conduct us. It may be briefly stat- 
 ed, in the following manner: God com- 
 mands us, now, and at all times, to be per- 
 fect — but he would not command that, 
 which may not be done — therefore perfec- 
 tion is, to us, at this moment, an attainable 
 state. To substitute some future day, for 
 the present moment, might seem to abate 
 the absurdity a little ; but it would not es- 
 sentially alter its nature. The reasoning is, 
 that the existence of a command implies the 
 practibility of the thing commanded; and, 
 as there is no time at which the command 
 to be berfect does not exist, so there is no 
 time at which an individual may not yield 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 55 
 
 obedience to the last tittle of what it re- 
 quires. 
 
 If it should be said, that, although we 
 cannot rise to a state of perfect obedience 
 of ourselves, yet, if Ave ask it aright, God 
 will bestow the blessing upon us ; I answer, 
 that this must depend altogether upon what, 
 in relation to this point, he has promised to 
 do. All that he has promised, he will un- 
 doubtedly perform; and, if there is a pas- 
 sage in the Bible which contains the prom- 
 ise of entire sanctification in this life, I ac- 
 knowledge that the whole controversy is 
 thereby decided. But where is such a pas- 
 sage to be found? As an example of the 
 class of passages on which the main reliance 
 is placed, we are referred to the language of 
 God by the prophet Ezekiel, when he says : 
 "Then will I sprinkle clean water upon 
 you, and ye shall be clean ; from all your 
 filthiness, and from all your idols will I 
 cleanse you." Ezek. xxxvi. 25. We are 
 also referred to Deut. xxx. 6: "And the 
 Lord thy God will circumcise thy heart, 
 
56 sanxtification 
 
 and the heart of thy seed, to love the Lord 
 thy God, with all thy heart, and with all 
 thy soul," — and to Jer. 1. 20: "In those 
 days, and at that time, saith the Lord, the 
 iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and 
 there shall be none, and the sins of Judah, 
 and they shall not be found" 
 
 On these passages, I remark, in the first 
 place, that the bare circumstance of going so 
 far back for the main proof, on such a point 
 as this, is of itself suspicious. I have often 
 observed, that new forms of error are apt to 
 shun the light of the New Testament, and es- 
 tablish themselves behind words and phra- 
 ses, which occur in the more enigmatical. 
 and therefore doubtful language of the Old. 
 If there are promises of entire sanctification 
 in this life, in any part of the Bible, where 
 may we expect to find them, in the greatest 
 number and variety ? Is it in the prophetic 
 and figurative language of the Prophets ? 
 Or is it in the plainer statements of our Sav- 
 iour and his Apostles ? Is not the doctrine, 
 in the view of its friends, an especial devel- 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 61 
 
 opement and blessing of the New Cove- 
 nant ? And is it not, under the effusion of 
 the Spirit "in the latter days," that they ex- 
 pect it to be most extensively realized ? In 
 short, if it filled the eyes of those who lived 
 under a darker dispensation, may we not 
 expect to hear of it, very often, and without 
 a figure, from those who could say, "the 
 darkness is past and the true light now shin- 
 eth ? " Yet, in referring to a list of promises, 
 drawn by the hand of a professed advocate 
 of the doctrine, I find, out of five passages 
 produced, four from the prophetic parts of 
 the Old Testament and only one from the 
 New, while the one from the New does not 
 contain a promise, but only a prayer, which 
 is supposed to involve a promise. I submit 
 to the candid reader, whether this is not a 
 virtual acknowledgement, that promises of 
 the kind referred to are few in number and 
 difficult to be found. 
 
 But, in the second place, if we grant, that 
 the passages quoted above do relate to all 
 believers, and are to be understood in the 
 
58 SANCT1FICATION 
 
 most unrestricted sense, as applicable to 
 their condition in the present life, then they 
 will prove nothing, by proving too much. 
 The promises which they contain, it will 
 be seen, are absolute in their terms, and 
 general as to the persons to whom they 
 are addressed. The veracity of the Prom- 
 iser is pledged for their fulfillment ; and 
 what they contemplate in relation to one, 
 they contemplate in relation to all. But 
 that all Israel, in the spiritual sense, are 
 cleansed from all their filthiness and from 
 all their idols in the present life, is no more 
 admitted by the friends of the error, on 
 which we are now remarking, than by those 
 who oppose it. We must either acknow- 
 ledge, therefore, that the promises have 
 failed, and that God is unfaithful, or con- 
 cede that sinless perfection in this world is 
 not the precise thing to which these prom- 
 ises refer. 
 
 In the third place, as to the true sense of 
 the passages in question, it is clearly to this 
 amount, — that sanctification is one of the 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 59 
 
 great blessings of the " new covenant," in- 
 to which God was to enter with the seed of 
 Israel and Judah, and which is none other 
 than the covenant of grace — that he has en- 
 gaged to confer this blessing upon all with 
 whom this covenant is established— and 
 that he will bestow it, in no imperfect or 
 partial measure, but fully and perfectly,— 
 to such a degree, that, when their sins are 
 sought for, they shall not be found. In this 
 view, the promises which they contain, are 
 " exceeding great and precious"; they se- 
 cure to every believer, beyond all peradven- 
 ture or possibility of failure, a perfect deliv- 
 erance from the existence and pollution of 
 sin. But, as to the time, at which this deliv- 
 erance is to be consummated, they contain 
 no specification, and express no opinion. 
 They are just as consistent with the views of 
 those, who suppose that sanctification is nev- 
 er entire in the present life, as with the views 
 of those who believe that it is. Nor are there 
 any promises in the Bible, relating to this 
 subject, to which the same remark will not 
 
60 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 apply. There are many, indeed, which 
 contemplate the perfect holiness of believ- 
 ers, but it is of believers in common, and 
 without any limitation to this world as the 
 time and place. The work is begun here, 
 and carried on, under different circumstan- 
 ces, as well as with various degrees of ra- 
 pidity. Ere long it will be completed; but, 
 that any are to realize this completion, dur- 
 ing the present life, is more than any prom- 
 ise of God has authorized us to expect. 
 
 But, again; it is said, that the attainable- 
 ness of the state in question may be infer- 
 red, from the abundant provision, which is 
 made in the Gospel, for the sanctification 
 of those who embrace it. The provision, 
 it is argued, is " perfect and entire, wanting 
 nothing" ; and, this being the case, it is sup- 
 posed, that a proper iise of such provision 
 will infallibly lead to the desired result. — 
 But what are we to understand here by the 
 word provision ? There are only two things, 
 in relation to sanctification, to which it can 
 be supposed to refer ; and these are, the 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 61 
 
 agent who does the work, and the means 
 which are employed in carrying it on. Both 
 these are necessary, but in different senses. 
 The agent by whose efficiency the work is 
 commenced, carried on, and completed, is 
 necessary in the absolute sense; because, 
 without such an agent, it could not be done. 
 But means are necessary, only as a part of 
 the prescribed and appointed plan. We 
 could conceive of the work, as done with- 
 out them; but they are instituted, as the 
 way in which we are to expect it, under 
 ordinary circumstances, to be performed. 
 Now, so far as the provision in question is 
 a mere provision of means, it will not be 
 contended, that any thing certain can be in- 
 ferred, as to the progress of the work, and 
 the time of its completion. The means 
 may exist, and be known, without being ap- 
 plied in such a way as to secure the end; 
 they are nothing in themselves, and become 
 effectual, only as they are overruled and 
 blessed. — And again, if the provision be 
 supposed to refer to the efficient Agent in 
 6 
 
62 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 sanctification, then Ave say, that, while the 
 provision of the Gospel is abundant — while 
 the Holy Spirit, who is sent into the world 
 for this purpose, is fully able to accomplish 
 the work — it is no legitimate inference from 
 this to affirm, that he will bring it to perfec- 
 tion during the present life. Whether he 
 will or not, must depend altogether upon 
 himself. And therefore the question re- 
 turns : Has he promised in any part of his 
 word, that he will bring it to maturity in the 
 present state ? That no such promise can 
 be found, we have already shewn. And, 
 until something to this effect is produced, 
 no argument, founded on the provisions of 
 the Gospel, can be regarded as worthy of 
 farther notice. 
 
 Another argument for entire sanctifica- 
 tion in this life, is attempted to be derived 
 from the prayers, which are recorded in 
 Scripture, — prayers in which, such a state 
 is evidently the matter of petition — and 
 which are supposed to be proper for all 
 Christians, when praying either for them- 
 
STATED AIMD DEFENDED. 63 
 
 selves or others. It is said, for instance, 
 
 that Epaphras prayed, on behalf of the Co- 
 lossians, that they might " stand perfect and 
 complete in all the will of God" — that Paul 
 prayed for the Hebrews, that the great 
 Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of 
 the everlasting covenant, would make them 
 "perfect in every good work to do his will" — 
 that the same Apostle said, in his supplica- 
 tions for the Thessalonians, "the very God 
 of peace sanctify you loholly : and I pray 
 God your whole spirit and soul and body be 
 preserved blameless unto the coming of our 
 Lord Jesus Christ," — and that such prayers 
 would not have been offered by such men, 
 unless the thing which they asked had been 
 something which they expected to receive. 
 But, in this statement of the case, while 
 there is much that is true, as well as plausi- 
 ble, there is something also which is radi- 
 cally fallacious. In reference to the words 
 " perfect" and "complete," as occurring in 
 these prayers, I might repeat the remark al- 
 ready made, that no decisive proof can be 
 
64 SAXCTIFICATION 
 
 derived from them. But, let it now be 
 granted, that prayers for perfection in holi- 
 ness are scriptural and proper. That they 
 are so, all Evangelical Christians admit. It 
 is admitted, too, that all such prayers, if of- 
 fered in sincerity, will be answered. But 
 the question to be determined is, when will 
 they be answered ? Will the answer come 
 at the very moment, at which the prayer is 
 offered ? will it come, in the course of a 
 day ? or in the progress of a year ? will it 
 come, in all its fullness, at any other speci- 
 fied or particular time ? or will it come, 
 partly at one time and partly at another — 
 by little and little — like the advance of veg- 
 etation — like the going forth of the morn- 
 ing — like the coming of the rain ? The 
 truth is, that nothing is more common, than 
 for God to allow long spaces to intervene, 
 between the offering of acceptable prayers 
 and the bestowment of the answer. How 
 long did the Patriarchs and Prophets pray 
 for the coming of the Messiah, before the an- 
 swer was received ? And, since the opening 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 65 
 
 of the Christian dispensation, as well as be- 
 fore, how many true and fervent prayers 
 have been offered for the coming of the Mil- 
 lenium, which is still in prospect ? These 
 prayers are heard, and will be answered. 
 But the plans of God are not like the plans 
 of men. His views are more comprehen- 
 sive ; He moves in a wider sphere ; and 
 long periods of time are occupied in bring- 
 ing his works to maturity. But what ap- 
 pears to us to be of moment, here, is noth- 
 ing to him. " One day is with the Lord as 
 a thousand years, and a thousand years as 
 one day." He will answer the prayers of 
 his people, in his own time ; but he will 
 answer them in such a way, as to make 
 them know, that he is a sovereign in the se- 
 lection of the time, as well as in the bestow- 
 ment of the gift. In their present experience, 
 in relation to this point, there is great varie- 
 ty. There are some cases, in which he con- 
 fers blessings upon them before they pray, — 
 there are others, in which he answers them, 
 at the very time, at which they are speak* 
 6* 
 
66 SAXCTIFICATIOX 
 
 ing, — there are others, again, in which he 
 declines giving them what they ask, and be- 
 stows upon them something else, which is 
 far better, — and there are still others, in 
 which he begins to answer them at once, but 
 occupies a considerable portion of time in 
 doing all that he intends. The last of these, 
 is the course which he is now pursuing, in 
 respect to the prayers of true Christians for 
 the universal diffusion of the Gospel. He 
 has begun to answer them ; but "the set 
 time" for answering them fully, has not yet 
 arrived. And thus it is, in respect to their 
 prayers for entire holiness, as offered either 
 for themselves or others. They are not on- 
 ly heard, but their desires are fulfilled in 
 part. The work has been commenced and 
 is going forward. The period of the ful- 
 fillment is in progress; but "the time of 
 the end" is yet to come. They are enabled, 
 by the grace of God, more and more to die 
 unto sin and live unto righteousness. And, 
 ere long, their triumph over sin and its in- 
 fluences will be complete. But, that this 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 67 
 
 will occur, the next moment, during the 
 next day, in the course of a year, or at any 
 point short of the termination of the present 
 life, we are no where authorized to affirm. 
 If the minds of any should still labour, in 
 vieAV of the very strong language, which is 
 used by Paul in his prayer for the Thessa- 
 lonians, let them attend for a moment to a 
 critical examination of its meaning. It re- 
 presents him, as asking, not only that God 
 would sanctify them wholly, but that their 
 whole soul, body, and spirit might be pre- 
 served blameless unto the coming of our 
 Lord Jesus Christ. It is not to be boubt- 
 ed, that this language is capable of being so 
 interpreted as to make it express his desire, 
 that they might, in the first place, be brought 
 into a state of perfect sanctification, and 
 then be kept in that state until the coming of 
 the Saviour to remove them at death. But 
 the difficulty attending this interpretation, 
 to the advocate of Perfection, is, that, if ad- 
 mitted to be true, it proves too much. In 
 words immediately following the prayer. 
 
68 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 the Apostle adds, " Faithful is he that call- 
 eth you. who also mill do it." This was 
 an absolute and unconditional promise, in 
 which the faithfullness of God was pledged, 
 in the most formal and solemn manner, for 
 the bestowment of what the prayer contem- 
 plated upon all those on whose behalf it 
 was offered. " Faithful is he that calleth 
 you, who also will do it." There could 
 be no failure, in the case of any one of 
 their number whom God had effectually 
 called ; so that, if sinless perfection in this 
 world was the thing which the prayer con- 
 templated, it follows that this perfection was 
 attained by all the true followers of Christ in 
 Thessalonica, — which is more than the ad- 
 vocates of the doctrine themselves would be 
 willing to admit. 
 
 The truth undoubtedly is, that, while the 
 Apostle prays, in the first clause of this pas- 
 sage, for the entire sanctification of those to 
 whom he wrote, without any limitation as 
 to time, he prays, in the second clause, for 
 their preservation in a state of justification, 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 69 
 
 np to a point of time which he specifies. 
 He uses the word " blameless," not as op- 
 posed to a state of pollution but as opposed 
 to a state of condemnation. Their whole 
 soul and body and spirit, before their con- 
 version, had been under the condemning 
 sentence of the divine law. But, having 
 embraced the Gospel, they were pardoned 
 — their liability to punishment was remov- 
 ed — they had passed, in this sense, from 
 death unto life. And now, while he prays 
 that their sanctification may be carried on 
 and completed, he also prays that they may 
 be kept in their pardoned and justified state 
 until the arrival of the great day of acquit- 
 tal — when they are to be brought into the 
 presence of the Universal Judge, to be 
 openly accepted and acknowledged as his, 
 and invited to take possession of the king- 
 dom prepared for them from the foundation 
 of the world. 
 
 We cannot accept it as true, therefore, 
 that the attainableness of entire sanctifica- 
 tion can be fairly inferred, either from the 
 
70 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 commands, the promises, the provisions of 
 the Gospel, or from any of the prayers 
 which are there recorded. And, if the Bi- 
 ble nses language, in any other relation, 
 from which it is pretended that such an in- 
 ference may be drawn, I am not aware of 
 its existence. — I pass, therefore, to shew, 
 
 III. That to suppose the state in question 
 to be attainable, would be to suppose that, 
 which would disagree with a variety of 
 known and acknowledged facts. 
 
 1. It is a fact, that the strongest represen- 
 tation of Christian experience and prac- 
 tice, which are found in the Bible, are those 
 which expressly exclude the notion of sinless 
 perfection in this life, and include the idea 
 of an onward movement to still higher de- 
 grees of proficiency and success. You may 
 look at the christian, at any point, at which 
 these representations place him, and you 
 will find, that, instead of having arrived at 
 the mark, he is only pressing towards it; — 
 he is not standing still, but advancing; — 
 his attitude and motions are those of one, 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 71 
 
 who is forgetting things which are behind 
 and reaching forth to those which are still 
 before. 
 
 Take, in illustration of this thought, the 
 similitudes employed by our Saviour, to 
 shadow forth the advancement of the king- 
 dom of God, both in the world in general, 
 and in the hearts of believers in particular. 
 It is like " a grain of mustard-seed" which, 
 when planted, is the smallest of all seeds ; 
 but Avhich increases, by an onward growth, 
 until it becomes so large as to accommo- 
 date the birds of the air with nests. — Again, 
 " it is like leaven, which a woman took and 
 hid in three measures of meal," and which 
 diffused its influence, by a gradual progress, 
 from one part of the general mass to anoth- 
 er, until the whole was leavened. — And, 
 once more, it is like any of the ordinary 
 seeds, which are cast into the ground, with 
 a view to the raising of a crop. They bring 
 forth, not by an instantaneous, or very 
 speedy production, but " first the blade, 
 then the ear, and, after that, the full corn in 
 
72 SANCTIFICATIOK 
 
 in the ear." And, in regard to this latter 
 similitude, it is especially in point to remark, 
 that the Author of the parable interposes the 
 declaration, that, " when fruit is brought 
 forth, immediately the husbandman putteth 
 in the sickle, because the harvest is come." 
 There is no time permitted to elapse, be- 
 tween the ripening and the in-gathering of 
 the fruit. The one event follows the other, 
 not only in the order of nature, but without 
 an interval. And thus, the Great Teacher 
 would have us to understand, it will ever be 
 in the kingdom of grace. When the plants 
 of righteousness have grown to maturity, 
 they will no longer be permitted to stand in 
 the open field of the present world. The 
 purpose of their growth, here, will then be 
 answered; and, without any farther delay, 
 they will be gathered into the garner of 
 God. 
 
 But, there are other figurative represen- 
 tations of the christian life, than those which 
 were employed by our Saviour. " The 
 path of the just," says Solomon, " is as the 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 73 
 
 shining lights which shineth more and more 
 unto the perfect day." And what does this 
 imply, but a continued progression, up to 
 the very time at which the perfect day is 
 ushered in ? But, surely, " the perfect day" 
 is not realized in this world of comparative 
 darkness and misery ! It is certainly, not 
 here, that the shades are all dispersed, and 
 the full tide of Divine light and glory is 
 poured upon the soul! For the consum- 
 mation, intended by this image, Ave must 
 wait, until we reach the threshold of eterni- 
 ty — until we have passed the Jordan of 
 death — until we have fallen asleep, as to 
 this world, and opened our eyes upon the 
 brighter visions of another. And, if this is 
 so, it follows, that, up to the moment of this 
 important change, the light of our christian 
 course is expected to shine with mcreasina- 
 brightness : — There is no point at which we 
 are permitted to stop — no measure of at- 
 tainment beyond which we are not expected 
 to go. 
 
74 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 The same idea attaches to the figures of 
 christian experience, which are drawn from 
 the ideas of a warfare^ a race, a pilgrimage. 
 These are all constructed upon the supposi- 
 tion of an onward movement. And, where 
 the line of this movement terminates, there 
 the christian life ends and the results are 
 exhibited. As soon as the warfare termi- 
 nates in victory over the last enemy, the 
 victor's crown is awarded and placed upon 
 his head ; as soon as the racer reaches the 
 goal, or comes up to the mark, he receives 
 the prize; and, as soon as the pilgrim has 
 passed over the last stage of his journey, his 
 fatigues are all over, and he enters upon his 
 rest. The very nature of the similitudes is 
 such, as to forbid the supposition, that, 
 when the christian has arrived at perfection, 
 he will be kept any longer from the posses- 
 sion and enjoyment of his reward. 
 
 And if, from the figurative language of 
 the Bible, we go to its plainer and more 
 simple statements, what do we hear ? Do 
 we hear the note of congratulation at hav- 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 75 
 
 ing "already attained," or at being "al- 
 ready perfect"? Are christians ever ad- 
 dressed, as those who may be supposed to 
 have received the blessing of entire sancti- 
 fication ? Are they invited, to turn around 
 and rejoice over the dying struggles of their 
 last enemy, and to lay aside their armor, 
 because the war is ended? Or are their 
 ears saluted, by the never-ceasing return 
 of exhortations and commands, to be up 
 and doing, to walk circumspectly, to re- 
 deem the time, to work out their salvation 
 with fear and trembling, to grow in grace, 
 to follow holiness, and to abound more and 
 more in love and good works. There is no 
 degree of proficiency, in the divine life, be- 
 yond which these injunctions are not reiter- 
 ated and pressed. They are addressed, in 
 common, to the whole christian family. 
 And, if there be a class of persons, to whom 
 they do not apply, they are a class, to whom 
 no place is assigned in the sacred writ- 
 ings — with whom inspired men had formed 
 no acquaintance — and to whom none of 
 
76 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 their counsels and exhortations were di- 
 rected. 
 
 2. It is a fact, that there is no degree of 
 piety or holy living, in this world, beyond 
 which, Christians are exempted from afflic- 
 tions or trials; such exemption, is neither 
 contemplated in the word of God, nor re- 
 alized in actual experience ; and yet, no- 
 thing short of this, would be suitable to a 
 state of entire sanctification. 
 
 The only revealed purpose of affliction, 
 in the case of believers, is to promote their 
 sanctification. The Lord '-'doth not afflict 
 willingly, or grieve the children of men," 
 but "for our profit, that we might be^ par- 
 takers of his holiness." And, as to the uni- 
 versal and unceasing application of this 
 means of discipline, an Apostle remarks — 
 "Whoin the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and 
 scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If 
 ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you 
 as with sons; for what son is he, whom the 
 father chasteneth not ? But if ye be without 
 chastisement, whereof all are partakers, 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 77 
 
 then are ye bastards and not sons." " As 
 many as I love," says the exalted Saviour, 
 " I rebuke and chasten." 
 
 And who doubts, that the fact, as thus 
 stated, is a fair representation of what oc- 
 curs in the life of every christian, up to the 
 moment of his release from the body ? For 
 where is the "son" to be found, whom the 
 father "ehasteneth not," and whom he 
 does not continue to chasten as long as he 
 lives? We have never seen him, in our 
 day ; nor is there any allusion to him, in 
 the records of the past. "We, that are in 
 this tabernacle, do groan, being burden- 
 ed" — " We, who have the first fruits of the 
 Spirit, even Ave ourselves, groan within our- 
 selves." All believers, without regard to 
 the degrees of their sanctification, are thus 
 affected. They groan under the pressure, 
 which is still upon them, in the trial of their 
 faith. "Our light affliction," is a phrase, 
 which they have frequent occasion to pro- 
 nounce; "the sufferings of this present 
 
78 BANCTIFICATION 
 
 time," are things with which they have a 
 daily and an intimate acquaintance. 
 
 Here, then, is a chain of truths, insepara- 
 bly connected; and, by necessity, leading 
 to the conclusion, that there is no sinless 
 perfection in the present world. All chris- 
 tians are subjected, while here, to chastise- 
 ments ; — All chastisements, are from the 
 hand of God ; — The only present object 
 which God has in view, in chastising his 
 people, is to make them more holy ; — He 
 cannot be supposed to chastise them " will- 
 ingly," or without a reason ; — And hence it 
 follows, that none of their number are so 
 holy, as to be beyond the necessity of a still 
 higher degree of sanctification. The argu- 
 ment is perfect, and the conclusion so legit- 
 imate, that it would seem impossible for a 
 candid mind to evade it, or be insensible to 
 its force. We must admit, that afflictions 
 are not from God ; or that he has some 
 other object in view, in afflicting his people, 
 than to increase their holiness ; or else ac- 
 knowledge, that they are never perfectly 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 79 
 
 sanctified during " the time of their sojourn- 
 ing here." 
 
 Besides : there is an incongruity, in the 
 very thought, of a perfectly sinless being re- 
 maining in a state of suffering. All suffer- 
 ing, of every kind, is the associate of sin. 
 If sin had not. entered the world, there 
 would have been no affliction. In heaven , 
 there will be no suffering, because there will 
 be no sin — In hell, all will be misery, be- 
 cause sin will reign, without interruption or 
 restraint. And why should this connexion 
 between sin and suffering on the one hand 
 and holiness and happiness on the other, 
 which is so conspicuous every where else, 
 be dispensed with, in the present experience 
 of the people of God ? If they are without 
 sin, does not consistency seem to require, 
 that they should be exempted from the evils, 
 which sin produces ? If the heavenly state 
 is begun in them, as to its holiness, why not, 
 also, as to its happiness ? If all the stains, 
 which sin had attached to their nature, have 
 been washed away, is it not a wrong repre- 
 
80 SANCTIFIOATION 
 
 sentation of their character, to present them, 
 as living still, upon " the bread of adversity 
 and the water of affliction"? 
 
 3. It is a fact, that all Christians are di- 
 rected to use the means of sanctification, as 
 long as they live ; there is no degree of ho- 
 liness, in this life, supposed, in the word of 
 God, to be attainable, beyond which, they 
 are represented as needless. 
 
 This will appear, if we consider, what 
 the means of sanctification are, and attend 
 to the style and obvious import of those 
 parts of Scripture, in which their use is en- 
 joined. They are such as private and so- 
 cial prayer — the reading of the word of 
 God, and of the writings of good and gifted 
 men, which have a tendency to illustrate 
 and apply its truths — attendance upon the 
 preaching of the Gospel, and the other 
 public ordinances of religion - christian fel- 
 lowship and counsel, together with mu- 
 tual watchfulness, admonition, and reproof. 
 There are others, indeed, which might be 
 mentioned ; for there is nothing, to which 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 81 
 
 the christian stands related, which is not 
 overruled as the means of his advancement 
 in holiness. But I specify these, because 
 they are means in the direct and exclusive 
 sense ; to promote our sanctification, is the 
 great and main object which they have in 
 view. 
 
 Now what is the language, in which the 
 Scriptures prescribe and enjoin the use of 
 these means, considered as to the extent of 
 its application ? Is it guarded by any re- 
 strictions or limitations, as if there might be 
 some to whom it could not apply ? In di- 
 recting christians, to meditate and pray, to 
 search the scriptures, and attend upon the 
 ministry of the word and ordinances, does 
 it contemplate a point of time, or a degree 
 of piety, at which these things will cease to 
 be necessary or beneficial? Does it ever 
 allude to a highly favored number, either 
 great or small, who may stand erect, and 
 thank God that they are not as others, while 
 the imperfect around them are bowing the 
 knee, in penitence, confession, and suppli- 
 
82 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 cation ? Does it give permission to some, 
 to stay away from the house of God, while 
 others frequent it, or to turn their backs 
 upon the table of the Lord, while others 
 are gathering around it, to obtain refresh- 
 ment and strength ? That any such distinc- 
 tion is recognised in Scripture, I am well 
 aware, is neither pretended nor supposed. 
 It is granted, on all hands, that what is said 
 in reference to the means of growth in grace, 
 is said to all believers, without distinction. 
 And, from this admitted fact, we infer, that 
 the sanctification of every one is less than 
 perfect. For why use the means, if the end 
 is already obtained ? Why wait upon God, 
 and ask him to renew our strength, if we 
 have already arrived at the measure of the 
 stature of perfect men ? Why pray for the 
 Holy Spirit, if the work of the Spirit, in us, 
 is already completed ? And why look into 
 the glass of the written, or preached word, 
 if we are already changed into the image, 
 which it reflects, and have put on the high- 
 est degree of the glory, which that image 
 exhibits ? 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. S3 
 
 In view of the christian life, considered as 
 a warfare, believers are exhorted, in com- 
 mon, to "fight the good fight of faith" — to 
 " put on the whole armor of God" — to 
 " be sober — "to " stand fast" and quit 
 themselves like men— having their "loins 
 girt about with truth" — their " feet shod 
 with the preparation of the Gospel of 
 peace" — and their whole persons guarded, 
 by " the helmet of salvation, and the sword 
 of the Spirit, which is the Word of God." 
 And do these sound like addresses to an 
 army, some of whom have fought all their 
 battles, have conquered all their enemies, 
 have placed their feet upon the neck of their 
 last foe, and are ready to begin the celebra- 
 tion of the victory ? Or, do they proceed 
 upon the supposition, that the war is still in 
 progress — that the armour is still needed — 
 and, that other triumphs over the foe, are 
 still to be sought ? 
 
 4. It is a fact, that, in the present world, 
 there are none who, either do, or can arrive, 
 
 at a PERFECT KNOWLEDGE OF THE TRUTH ', 
 
84 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 and as sanctification is through the truth, 
 it is not easy to see, under these circum- 
 stances, how any can be perfectly holy. 
 
 I know, indeed, that the Spirit of God is 
 promised, as a guide into all truth ; and, so 
 far as all revealed truth is concerned, this 
 promise is sure, and all christians have rea- 
 son to pray for its fulfillment, in faith and 
 hope. But, there are other views of truth, 
 than those which are yet revealed, which 
 are to have an effect upon our spiritual con- 
 dition. We know as much now, as is ne- 
 cessary to answer the purposes of God, in 
 reference to our existence here ; and, doubt- 
 less, if he had contemplated our perfect 
 conformity to his image in this world, he 
 would have revealed to us still more. But 
 the present is, to us, in all respects, an im- 
 perfect state ; — He has not designed it to 
 be otherwise ; — His gracious method of res- 
 toring us to himself, takes effect here, but is 
 not consummated ; — what we enjoy now, 
 is " the first fruits" — " the harvest" is still 
 in prospect. In short, his plan requires, 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 85 
 
 that earth and heaven, instead of meeting 
 and blending, should be kept far distant 
 from each other, in our conceptions. And 
 this is not more true, in any respect, than in 
 reference to the extent of our knowledge. 
 In the comparisons of earth with heaven, 
 which are drawn in scripture, there is great 
 prominence given to this consideration ; — 
 here, "we know in part" — "we prophecy 
 in part" — " we see, through a glass, dark- 
 ly" — "What I do," said the Saviour, "thou 
 knowest not now." But, in heaven, "that, 
 which is perfect," will have come — " that, 
 which is in part, shall be done away" — we 
 shall see, "face to face," and know, even 
 as, also, we are known. Earth is a place 
 of comparative obscurity ; but, of heaven, 
 it is said — "there shall be no night there" 
 And, that the perfection of our know- 
 ledge, in heaven, will have some connexion 
 with our perfect conformity to the image of 
 God, is, not obscurely, intimated, by an 
 Apostle, when he says — " we shall be like 
 him, for we shall see him as he is." The 
 8 
 
86 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 whole force of this passage depends upon 
 the supposition, that our likeness to him, 
 in this world, is not complete. It is a pas- 
 sage, too, which is applicable to all believ- 
 ers, without distinction. It states a general 
 fact, which is to be realized in the experi- 
 ence of every christian, when he ceases to 
 walk by faith, and enters the region of 
 sight. He will, then, have a knowledge of 
 God and eternal things, which will be the 
 knowledge of an eye-witness, and which 
 will altogether surpass the measure and ac- 
 curacy of his information here. And this 
 knowledge will have an assimilating effect — 
 it will produce a likeness, between him and 
 the Divine nature. And what is this, but 
 to say, in other language, that it will have 
 the effect of completing his sanctification ? 
 For what is likeness to God, but perfection 
 in holiness ? 
 
 It may be difficult, indeed, for us, to 
 foresee and explain the manner , in which, 
 the knowledge of heaven will produce the 
 effect, which is thus ascribed to it ; but, to 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 
 
 87 
 
 do this, is not necessary to our present pur- 
 pose. It were easy to indulge in imagina- 
 tion and conjecture ; but, where revelation 
 does not speak, it becomes us to be silent. 
 All that concerns us, now, is a simple mat- 
 ter of fact ; and, in this view, the passage 
 referred to is conclusive. It makes our 
 perfect likeness to God, in the person of 
 his Son, depend upon a measure of know- 
 ledge, which we cannot have, until we "see 
 him as he is." 
 
 5. It is a fact, that, while Christians re- 
 main in the present world, they will have 
 corruptible bodies; this part of their na- 
 ture will remain, substantially, as it was, at 
 the commencement of their christian course ; 
 and, in such a connexion, it is not to be ex- 
 pected, that they will arrive at a state of 
 entire sanctification. 
 
 The union between the body and the 
 soul, and the nature and extent of their in- 
 fluence, the one upon the other, I am well 
 aware, are intricate, and, in many respects, 
 inexplicable subjects. The fact itself, how- 
 
88 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 ever, that their reciprocal influence is not 
 only real and great, but constant and neces- 
 sary, all will admit. And, in view of this 
 influence, as recognized in scripture and 
 felt in the experience of all, I cannot doubt, 
 that the dissolution of the body, as followed 
 by its resurrection, is one of the appointed 
 means of sanctification. As polluted by 
 sin, it is like the leprous house, under the 
 law of Moses, — the infection has extended, 
 to every part, — the " stones," the "tim- 
 ber," and the " mortar," are all defiled, — 
 and there is no way of removing the evil, 
 but by demolishing the entire structure ; it 
 must be taken down, and carried forth " out 
 of the city, into an unclean place," before 
 the work of purification will be complete. 
 If a corruptible body were consistent 
 with a perfectly sanctified state of the soul, 
 in this world, why might it not be consist- 
 ent with the same state, in the world to 
 come ? And why, on this supposition, is it 
 necessary that believers should die ? Why 
 are they not removed to heaven, as they 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 89 
 
 are ? All that they need, to render them 
 perfectly happy, is entire deliverance from 
 the infection and pollution of sin. And, if 
 this can be effected, without a change in the 
 body, why not allow it to remain as it is ? — 
 If it should be said, in reply to this, that 
 " flesh and blood cannot inherit the king- 
 dom of God," I inquire: Why? Surely, 
 not on account of any natural impossibility, 
 which exists in the case. It will hardly be 
 contended, that such a material structure 
 as the human body, could not be taken to 
 heaven, and dwell there, if there were no- 
 thins about it inconsistent with a state of 
 perfect holiness. It might be immortal, ac- 
 cording to its present structure, as well as 
 any other, if such were the will of God con- 
 cerning it. It might be exempted, too, 
 from all infirmity and suffering, without any 
 radical alteration, in its form, or qualities. 
 But, the truth is, that it cannot go to heaven 
 because it is defiled — it is a " body of sin" 
 . — and must, therefore, be " sown in corrup- 
 tion," that it may be " raised in incorrnp- 
 
90 SAXCTIFICATIOX 
 
 tion." As thus renewed and purified, by 
 death, it will be a fit companion for the 
 sanctified spirit ; the whole nature will, then, 
 be entirely cleansed ; and nothing will re- 
 main, to overcloud the prospect of pure, 
 perfect, and everlasting enjoyment. 
 
 The idea of a perfectly holy spirit, re- 
 maining in connexion with a corruptible 
 body, would present an incongruity, to 
 which no parallel could be found in any of 
 the other arrangements, or works of God. 
 It is not only true, that his plans are wise, 
 but also, that their wisdom can be generally 
 seen, and appreciated, by the candid and 
 careful observer. But, who could regard it 
 as fit or reasonable, that, after the souls of 
 believers are delivered from the last taint of 
 corruption, they should still be confined to 
 such a body as this ? As an Apostle de- 
 scribes it, it is a "vile" body — a body, pos- 
 sessing many properties, in view of which, 
 we have reason to be humbled — a body, 
 distinguished by great infirmity, and weak- 
 ness — easily brought into a state of languor 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 91 
 
 and fatigue — subject to innumerable ills and 
 distresses — furnishing many occasions of 
 temptation to sin — and acting as a constant 
 weight, upon the upward tendencies, and 
 movements of the soul. Surely, when the 
 work of sanctification upon the soul is done, 
 God will provide it with a better place of 
 residence than this. It cannot be, that he 
 will leave it, any longer, in such a situa- 
 tion — to " groan, being burdened" — to en- 
 dure the lustings of the flesh — to be annoyed 
 by the motions of sin, which proceed from 
 the members — and to pass through succes- 
 sive stages and scenes, of disease and pain. 
 Instead of this, it is far more consistent, to 
 believe, that, when perfectly delivered from 
 sin, it will be emancipated at once — will 
 put off the tabernacle^ in which it has lived, 
 while sojourning in this vale of tears — and 
 rise to the mount, in which it is to be " clo- 
 thed upon" with another and a better 
 * l house, which is from heaven." 
 
 If it should occur here, in the form of an 
 objection to the view just presented, that 
 
92 SAXCTIFICATION 
 
 Jesus Christ was perfectly holy, while he 
 tabernacled in a human body, it is only ne- 
 cessary to say, that the cases are not paral- 
 lel ; because his body was not polluted by 
 sin. It was not sinful flesh, but only " the 
 likeness of sinful flesh," in which he was 
 made. God did not suffer his "Holy One 
 to see corruption." He assumed our na- 
 ture, as far as this could be done, "without 
 sin"; and, that a difference might exist be- 
 tween his nature and ours, in respect to sin, 
 he was not the offspring of man by ordinary 
 generation. The circumstances attending 
 his introduction into the world, were pecu- 
 liar. He came on a special visitation of 
 grace and good- will to men ; and he came 
 in such a way, as to bear their griefs and 
 carry their sorrows, without participating, 
 personally, in any of their corruptions, ei- 
 ther in body or mind. 
 
 In addition to the facts, thus far enume- 
 rated, there are others which might be in- 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 93 
 
 trodnced ; but these are sufficient for our 
 present purpose. They are facts, which 
 appear to us, to be incompatible with per- 
 fect freedom from sin. And we therefore 
 conclude, that entire sanctification in this 
 life, is not contemplated, as an attainable 
 state, in the scheme of human redemption. 
 The work of renewing our fallen nature to 
 holiness, is commenced and continued here, 
 but not completed. The period through 
 which its performance extends, is from the 
 moment of regeneration, "till the day of 
 Jesus Christ." It is not the plan or pur- 
 pose of God, to bring it to maturity sooner. 
 And, accordingly, no instance of such ma- 
 turity can be produced from the records of 
 the past — there is no reason for expecting 
 it to be derived from any intimations which 
 are contained in Scripture — and the incon- 
 gruity between it and other acknowledged 
 facts, would, be such, as to invade, and, in 
 respect to this point, to destroy, the analogy 
 of faith. 
 
95 
 
 PART III. 
 
 PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS. 
 
 It is strongly objected, by the advocates 
 of Perfection, to the view presented in this 
 discussion, that its practical tendencies can- 
 not be otherwise than injurious — that it 
 must have the effect, of lowering the stand- 
 ard of piety, of cutting the nerves of exer- 
 tion, and of producing a dwarfish and doubt- 
 ful state of religion in the church, instead of 
 those high and bright illustrations of the 
 power of godliness, which all should desire 
 to see. And, if the ground, taken in this 
 objection, were tenable — if it could be 
 shewn, either from facts in the case, or by 
 other sufficient reasons, that the doctrine 
 here maintained, is less favorable to holy 
 living, than the principles of those who op- 
 
96 
 
 SAN'CTIFICATION 
 
 pose it — we should feel bound, to surrender 
 our position, and acknowledge our mistake. 
 The test, by which, we desire every article 
 of our faith to be tried, is that furnished by 
 our Saviour, when he says, " by their fruits 
 ye shall know them." This is the language 
 of reason, as well as of revelation ; and, by 
 its requirements, let every doctrine either 
 stand or fall. 
 
 What, then, are the facts, as to the prac- 
 tical effect of the doctrine, maintained in 
 the foregoing discussion ? 
 
 I reply — to go no farther back — that, be- 
 yond dispute, nearly all the active piety, 
 that has glorified God and blessed the 
 world, since the dawn of the Reformation, 
 has been the piety of those by whom this 
 doctrine has been held. It was held by 
 Luther and Melancthon — the latter of 
 whom, with the approbation of the former, 
 drew up a formal protest, against the views 
 of those, who maintain "that a sinless per- 
 fection in this life, is attainable": — It has 
 been the doctrine, too, of such men as 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 97 
 
 Owen, and Baxter, and Whitfield, and 
 Brainerd, and Edwards, and Payson, and 
 a thousand others, among the living and the 
 dead, whom the bare suggestion will recall 
 to the recollection of every reader. And 
 who were these, bnt men " of whom the 
 world was not worthy"? — men, who, by 
 their holy lives and abundant labors, have 
 left an impress upon the Church and the 
 world, which will never be effaced ? — men, 
 whose names and virtues will go down to 
 the latest posterity, as affording the bright- 
 est illustrations of the power of Divine 
 grace, w T hich have ever been furnished ? It 
 may serve a purpose, to say, of such men, 
 that they were unacquainted with the true 
 secret of attaining to eminent holiness — that 
 because they despaired of perfection in this 
 life-, they were justly chargeable with mak- 
 ing u void the law of God," by their "tra- 
 ditions" — that they were " slumbering in 
 Antinomian death, or struggling in legal 
 bondage" — but the intelligent Christian will 
 not be likely to follow this neiv light, in pre- 
 9 
 
98 SAXCTIFICATION 
 
 ferenceto the light of their illustrious ex- 
 ample. Their record is not only on high, 
 but in the affections of the pious on earth. 
 And their memory, while time shall last, 
 will be "a savour of life unto life." 
 
 But, while the holiest and most efficient 
 men, whom the world has ever seen, have 
 been unbelievers in the doctrine of perfec- 
 tion, what has been the fact, where this doc- 
 trine has prevailed ? That many eminent 
 christians have held the doctrine of a modi- 
 fied perfection is, indeed, true ; and I refer, 
 in this remark, especially, to the ' { Christian 
 Perfection" of Wesley, and others, who 
 have entertained the same views. His per- 
 fection, as he himself defines it, " is consis- 
 tent with infirmities", — with " ignorance," 
 and "mistakes", — with " thinking wrong" 
 and " doing wrong." In reality, therefore, 
 it is not perfection, in the sense of entire 
 conformity to the law of God ; but some- 
 thing else, to which the word perfection is 
 wrongly applied. Into its practical effects, 
 therefore, we stop not to inquire — although 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 99 
 
 it would be easy to shew, that, modified 
 and guarded as it is, it has not been unpro- 
 ductive of evil. But, in regard to perfec- 
 tion, or entire sanctification, as implying 
 sinless obedience to the moral law in this 
 life, we have no hesitation in affirming, that, 
 whereever it has had " free course," its 
 moral effects have been bad. It prevailed 
 extensively, in connexion with the rise and 
 early progress of Pelagianism, in the fourth 
 century : — It appeared among the first 
 forms of fanaticism, which shewed them- 
 selves after the commencement of the Refor- 
 mation : — It had no little currency in Eng- 
 land, during the seventeenth century : — 
 More recently, we have not been without 
 examples of its existence and prevalence, 
 in our own country, at different times, and 
 in different places. And, whereever it has 
 gone, it has carried with it a blighting in- 
 fluence, upon every thing which is "lovely" 
 and " of good report." It has led, as might 
 naturally be expected, to the neglect of all 
 prayer, whether private, social, or public ; 
 
100 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 for what has the individual to pray for, who 
 is already perfect ? It has led to an aban- 
 donment of the means of grace, in general — 
 to a partial or total neglect of the Sab- 
 bath — and to great indifference towards be- 
 nevolent enterprizes of every kind; — it has 
 engendered a censorious and denunciatory 
 spirit, and been accompanied by contempt 
 for the rules and discipline of the church. 
 In short, it is the language of all history and 
 the testimony of all observation, that, where 
 Perfectionism prevails, neither the sub- 
 stance nor the form of religion can long be 
 expected to dwell. 
 
 In saying this, I am not ignorant of the 
 attempt which is made, to distinguish, be- 
 tween the Perfectionism, which has produ- 
 ced these effects, and the doctrine of entire 
 sanctification, as advocated by some, in 
 our country, who are now living. It is 
 strenuously maintained, that the two things 
 are, not only different from each other, but 
 in direct opposition — having nothing in 
 common. But this is made out, by using 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 
 
 101 
 
 the word Perfectionism in a technical sense, 
 and applying it, gratuitously, to represent 
 the abuses, to which we have just referred. 
 { These errors and disorders,' they say, ' are 
 Perfectionism: but our doctrine of entire 
 sanctification is a different thing.' But 
 wherein, is it a different thing ? In all, that 
 entitles it to be called Perfection, it is the 
 same thing. It feeds the mind with the no- 
 tion of entire freedom from sin ; and this is, 
 at once, the essence of the system, and the 
 reason of its danger. Such an appeal, to 
 the self-esteem and self-righteousness of our 
 nature, never can be entertained, without 
 leading to disastrous results. Various cir- 
 cumstances may restrain, or delay the de- 
 velopement, for a while; but, ere long, it 
 will come, with all the evils which follow 
 in its train. 
 
 But, without dwelling, longer, upon the 
 facts in the ease, as they present themselves 
 in the history of the past, I proceed to say, 
 that those who anticipate better effects from 
 the doctrine of Perfection than from the 
 
102 SANCTIFICATIOX 
 
 common doctrine of Sanctification, reason 
 falsely, as to the principles, from which 
 these effects are expected to proceed. The 
 question is asked, for instance: "Who 
 would expect an army to fight, with ener- 
 gy, under the impression of inevitable de- 
 feat" ? And this, it is taken for granted, is 
 a parallel case to that of the christian, who 
 entertains no hope of entire sanctification 
 in the present life. But, is it so? Has he 
 the impression of inevitable defeat, because 
 he expects the war to be somewhat protract- 
 ed ? Does he lay down his arms, in despair, 
 because he believes that more than one bat- 
 tle is to be fought ? Does he cease from the 
 contest, because he does not anticipate a 
 perfect triumph, until the "last enemy" 
 shall "be destroyed," which " is death" ? 
 The truth is, that, on his own principles, he 
 has an expectation of victory, which is qual- 
 ified by no peradventure ; — he anticipates 
 it, with unwavering faith, and with joyful 
 hope ; — it is as certain to him, as the love 
 and faithfulness of God can make it ; — 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 103 
 
 nay, he has the earnest of it, in his present 
 success ; — he has already come off as a 
 conqueror in many a struggle ; — he is pur- 
 suing his advantage from one battle-field to 
 another ; — and, he has no doubt, that the 
 time is near, when all the armies of the 
 aliens shall be put to flight, 
 
 i: And death, the last of all his foes, 
 Lie vanquished at his feet." 
 
 So far, therefore, as the certainty of suc- 
 cess is concerned, he has the same reason 
 to persevere and be active, with those who 
 anticipate a speedier triumph. 
 
 Again: it is wrong, in principle, to say, 
 that the hope of success, in order to be an 
 efficient motive, must terminate upon ac- 
 quisitions to be made within I he limits of the 
 present life. This is neither consistent with 
 Scripture, nor in accordance with actual ex- 
 perience. The hope of the Apostles and 
 primitive Christians, was a hope, which 
 "entereth into that within the veil" ; and, 
 this was the reason why it was an " anchor 
 to the soul." It tarried upon no amount of 
 
104 SAXCTIFICATIOX 
 
 holiness or happiness to be acquired upon 
 earth. It overlooked all the scenes of this 
 present time, and seized upon the perfection 
 of another state. It transported its subjects 
 beyond the region where sin and sorrow 
 dwell, and brought them into communion 
 with the inhabitants and felicities of heaven. 
 And this was the true secret of its animating 
 and sustaining influence. It derived its 
 energy from the importance and glory of 
 its object; and this was something entirely 
 above and beyond any degrees of sanctifi- 
 cation, to be anticipated here. " Every 
 man," says an Apostle, " that hath this 
 hope in him, purifieth himself." Such a 
 hope will undoubtedly sanctify those in 
 whom it dwells ; but a similar influence is 
 never ascribed to any hope, the object of 
 which is to be realized on this side of the 
 grave. 
 
 Moreover : it is incorrect to assume, that 
 the Christian derives his strongest impulses 
 to holy living, from direct meditations upon 
 his prospect of success. No doubt, he has 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 105 
 
 " respect unto the recompense of reward," 
 both here and hereafter ; and yet, his expe- 
 rience will bear me out in saying, that his 
 heart is never assailed by more irresistible 
 motives to active and entire consecration to 
 God, than when his mind is most fully oc- 
 cupied by other considerations than those 
 which relate immediately to himself. "What 
 was it, for instance, that produced and nur- 
 tured, that engagedness in religion, which 
 rendered the Apostle Paul " a spectacle to 
 the world"? Men, accustomed to judge on 
 common principles, could not understand 
 him. It was strange, to the popular appre- 
 hension, that a man should sacrifice his per- 
 sonal ease and worldly interests, to such a 
 degree, and be so willing to encounter per- 
 secutions and trials of every sort. And, in 
 what did the true secret of this self-denial 
 and devotedness consist ? In what direc- 
 tion did his thoughts lie, when he felt the 
 influence of the violent motive which pro- 
 duced these wonderful effects ? Was he 
 taken up with reflections on the degree of 
 
106 
 
 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 proficiency at which he expected to arrive ? 
 Was he meditating upon what was likely, in 
 any respect, to accrue to himself ? Or, was 
 he transported, for the time, beyond the cir- 
 cle of his personal interests and relations, 
 and invested, on every side, by the over- 
 whelming influence of another motive ? Let 
 him answer, in his own language, as he 
 does, in the memorable declaration — " the 
 love of Christ constraineth us !" Here 
 was the main-spring of his activity — this 
 was the secret fire, which burned within, 
 and kept his zeal in a perpetual flame. 
 Standing, with his face towards Calvary, 
 with his eye on the cross, and with his mind 
 intent upon the compassion and condescen- 
 sion of a suffering Saviour, he was carried 
 beyond himself, and was borne away, by 
 the impulse of a mightier and more gener- 
 ous motive. So it is, in all the higher achieve- 
 ments of the christian life. It is not, by sit- 
 ting down to meditate upon the prospect of 
 our perfect sanctification, that we gather 
 the strongest motives to the pursuit of hoK- 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 107 
 
 ness. Our best seasons, both of feeling and 
 action, are those, in which we think least of 
 ourselves, and most, of the love of God, of 
 the compassion of Christ, of the claims of 
 gratitude and duty, and of the beauty and 
 excellency of holiness itself. We are not 
 servants, who work merely for wages, but 
 are bound to our employment, by love and 
 gratitude to the master, as well as by the 
 happiness we find in the service itself. " We 
 love him, because he first loved us" — his 
 "thoughts" are " precious" to us, and, if 
 we " should count them, they are more in 
 number than the sand" — we delight in his 
 law — we love the habitation of his house — - 
 we take pleasure in his worship, and in the 
 fellowship of his people — his "yoke is easy" 
 to us, and his "burden light." And, in 
 these considerations, are contained our high- 
 est inducements, to persevere in his service, 
 and live to his glory. " For none of us liv- 
 eth to himself, and no man dieth to himself; 
 for whether we live, we live unto the Lord, 
 and whether we die, we die unto the Lord ; 
 
108 SA NOTIFICATION" 
 
 whether we live, therefore, or die, we are 
 the Lord's." 
 
 Great results are expected from the doc- 
 trine of Perfection, by its friends, upon the 
 ground of the high standard of piety, 
 which it is supposed to present. But, the 
 truth is, that it lowers the standard, instead 
 of raising it, — and this is its worst feature. 
 " The law," says one of its principal advo- 
 cates, " levels its claims to us as ice are." 
 He contends, that the standard of duty is 
 what the law requires of us, " in our cir- 
 cumstances, with all the ignorance, and de- 
 bility of body and mind, which have resulted 
 from the intemperance and abuse of the hu- 
 man constitution, through so many genera- 
 tions." He thinks the standard will be 
 higher, hereafter, "token the human consti- 
 tution, by the universal precedence of correct 
 and thorough temperance principles, may 
 have acquired its pristine health and pow- 
 ers" I — In this way, the rule of holy living 
 is brought down, in the case of each indi- 
 vidual, to the level of his depravity and cor- 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. 109 
 
 ruption. And, I trust, the time is yet to 
 come, when intelligent christians will ask 
 for arguments to convince them, that no 
 good effects are to be anticipated, from 
 aiming at such a standard as this. Perfect 
 holiness, according to this rule, would be 
 easily obtained, and, worth but little, when 
 acquired. — Be it our purpose, to aim at 
 a higher standard — to keep our eye fixed 
 upon a brighter, and more shining mark — 
 to be satisfied with no attainments, until we 
 are "perfect," as our "Father in heaven 
 is perfect." And, then, we shall never be 
 without a motive to continued activity, and 
 increasing faithfulness, in the discharge of 
 duty. 
 
 It should not be forgotten, in estimating 
 the practical relations of the doctrine we 
 have endeavored to establish, that the con- 
 dition of the Christian upon earth, as always 
 contending with remaining sin, is made sub- 
 servient, in a high degree, to the promotion 
 of the glory of God. He often permits 
 things to occur, with a view to this end, 
 10 
 
110 SANCTIFICATION 
 
 which, in themselves, are evil. It is, only, 
 on this principle, that we can account for 
 the introduction of sin into the world. And, 
 though it might seem desirable, in itself, 
 that the being of sin should be destroyed 
 immediately, in those who become the sub- 
 jects of the redemption by Christ, yet it is 
 easy to see, in what manner the protraction 
 of the spiritual warfare may tend to honor 
 the perfections of his nature, — especially his 
 power, his wisdom, his faithfulness and 
 truth. His power appears, in carrying on 
 the work, which he has commenced in them, 
 in opposition to so many opposing influ- 
 ences, from within and from without — it is 
 like keeping a spark alive, while surround- 
 ed with water, or preventing a bush from 
 being consumed, while it burns in the fire. 
 His wisdom appears, in circumventing the 
 designs of Satan, who still works upon the 
 remaining corruption of his people — in set- 
 ting bounds to his rage and power, — and in 
 establishing their faith and hope, in opposi- 
 tion to his devices. And his faithfulness 
 
STATED AND DEFENDED. Ill 
 
 and truth are illustrated, in not forsaking 
 his people, though they serve him so imper- 
 fectly — in fulfilling his promises to them, 
 though they are so unstable in their attach- 
 ment to him — and, in pursuing them with 
 grace and mercy, through all their times of 
 need, though they fail, in so great a meas- 
 ure, to bring forth the fruit which he re- 
 quires. 
 
 Finally : we have reason to be satisfied, 
 with the common doctrine of sanctification, 
 because it is best adapted, to reconcile us to 
 the approach of death, and to endear to us 
 the prospect of tee. heavenly rest. Death, 
 in itself, is always an unwelcome visitor to 
 the abodes of men ; and strong counterbal- 
 ancing considerations are necessary, to keep 
 down the risings of regret and fear, in the 
 prospect of its coming. If I am to antici- 
 pate no greater deliverance from sin, be- 
 yond it, than that to which I have already 
 attained, their is nothing, in this view, to 
 reconcile me to its approach. But, if the 
 struggle with this King of Terrors is to fix 
 
112 SANCTIFICATION. 
 
 the date of my last contest with sin, as well 
 as with sorrow — if my " earthly house of 
 this tabernacle" is to be " dissolved," that 
 I may awake, in the perfect likeness of God 
 — if the purity and glory of heaven, to 
 which I am hastening, is a boundless ocean, 
 in comparison with the narrow streams of 
 holiness and delight, which are circulating 
 here — and, if the only way, from the one to 
 the other, is across the waters of Jordan — 
 then, welcome death ! 
 
 " Let worms devour my wasting flesh, 
 And crumble all my bones to dust." 
 
 The thought itself is repulsive, but the asso- 
 ciation is inspiring ! The valley is dark and 
 gloomy, but the prospect, beyond, is bright 
 and clear ! The advantage to be gained, is 
 greater than the evil to be encountered. 
 And this consideration extracts the sting of 
 death, and enables us to triumph over it, 
 while we fall by its stroke. 
 
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