Holiness: A Biblical, Historical, and Systematic Theology

by Matt Ayars, Christopher T. Bounds, Caleb T. Friedeman

Be holy because I am holy. Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect. The Christian life includes many demands, but perhaps none are as challenging or as misunderstood as the biblical command to "be holy" (Leviticus 11:44 and 1 Peter 1:16) or to "be perfect" (Matthew 5:48). How should we understand these charges? In this volume, three scholars from the Wesleyan tradition offer a collective treatment of the theme of holiness that In addition, the coauthors constructively argue for a "neo-holiness" model that encourages the pursuit of Christian perfection but avoids the pitfalls of Pelagianism by incorporating historic understandings of grace and the work of the Holy Spirit with the best of the Wesleyan tradition. Here, the commands to "be holy" and to "be perfect" take on new meaning. What may have been a burden becomes a blessing.

Genres: Theology

400 pages, Paperback

Published October 17, 2023

Reviews

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary: A biblical, historical, and theological argument within the Wesleyan tradition for holiness understood as “entire sanctification” or Christian perfection, able not to sin and to wholeheartedly love God and neighbor.

This book caught my attention for the simple reason that it seems to have fallen out of fashion to speak of Christian holiness, often equated with a “holier than thou” attitude and a kind of Pharisaism of outer holiness and inner corruption. It is far more “authentic” to be honest about our sins than to discuss our longing to grow in Christlike holiness.

This is a book by a group of Wesleyan scholars who take seriously statements like “be holy as I am holy,” “be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect,” and “may the God of peace sanctify you entirely.” They refuse to believe that these only refer to some post-mortem state but are possible to fulfill within this lifetime. They argue that this is not an idea only first propounded by John Wesley but is grounded in scripture and present throughout the history of the church. They also examine versions of holiness theology and argue for a “semi-Augustinian” theology and a “middle way” of seeking until one receives, recognizing the priority of divine grace.

The book is organized into four parts;

Holiness In the Old Testament. in successive chapters they examine the teaching on holiness in the Pentateuch, the Historical books and the Prophets, and the Wisdom Literature. The emphasis is on holiness as otherness and Israel’s inability to fulfill the law and the prophecy of a new covenant writing this law on the hear, empowering what is commanded.

Holiness in the New Testament. Chapters are devoted to holiness in the Gospels and Acts, the Letters of Paul, and the General Epistles and Revelation. The holiness of Jesus and his command to be perfect are discussed, the latter best understood as being fully developed in a moral sense through the work of Jesus and the power of the Spirit. Likewise, while Paul recognizes that people do sin, holiness is the norm, meant to be worked out in every aspect of life (entire sanctification) as the Spirit works within us and bears his fruit in our lives. The authors point to similar calls to holiness in the General Epistles and Revelation.

Holiness in Christian History. Three chapters discuss in succession early Christian history, the Middle Ages, and the Pre-modern and Modern Eras. They examine the differing ideas of the patristic writers and the shared sense that the love of God leads to freedom from sin, obedience to Christ and love of neighbor. They note the confining of perfection to the monastics in the Middle Ages and a renewed focus in the Reformation, culminating in Wesleyan and Anabaptist/Pietist Circles.

A Theology of Holiness. Three chapters discuss holiness and human sin, holiness and redemption, and the when and how of holiness. They begin with God’s intention for us, and the guilt power and being of sin. They discuss justification, sanctification, and glorification, and the possibility of entire sanctification, being perfect in love for God and neighbor, and allow that within such sanctification, there may be continuing progress toward maturity, as well as falling back. Finally they discuss the three ways–shorter, middle, and longer, rejecting the former as too dependent on human initiative, and the latter reflecting insufficient faith in the grace of God to transform.

I think this book makes an important contribution to highlighting the call of God for his people to be holy and for God’s empowering of the life to which we are called in Christ. It offers an attractive vision of unreservedly loving God and neighbor as within reach of the ordinary believer. They rightly observe that we can be far too accepting of sin that God would have us put to death.

I still find myself with questions that I would love to discuss with Wesleyan believers. Where is discussion of the idea of total depravity in the doctrine of sin (it is only mentioned in the final chapter in the context of discussing “semi-Augustinianism”), terminology that is avoided in the authors discussion? The pervasive presence of sin in every aspect of human existence raises question for me about the “perfection” of love. I recognize the ways I’m blind to sin apart from God revealing that sin, and the ways I self-deceive. How are such aspects of sin reckoned with in a doctrine of entire sanctification?

Likewise, I’m puzzled by “semi-Augustinianism.” Can something be semi-Augustinian without also being semi-Pelagian? It seems that the distinction is the role of prevenient grace in empowering human will. It points up to me a question that still would seem to distinguish Wesleyan from Reformed doctrines of sanctification, namely between those that prioritize grace, as do these authors and those that would contend that our sanctification, as is our justification, is all of grace.

At the same time, none of this should prevent the believer in the pursuit of a holy life and to experience liberty from not only sin’s guilt but its power in one’s life. Likewise, the authors emphasize not only what we are freed from but what we are freed and empowered to–namely the unrestrained love of God and neighbor–and that this is God’s intention for us in Christ. This is part of our rich inheritance in Christ that seems neglected or even denigrated in some quarters. I’m grateful for these Wesleyan voices bringing these matters for wider consideration.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for review.

[Joe Cox · Rating 4 out of 5]

I decided to read this book because one of my teammates had to read it for a seminary class. As a Wesleyan Arminian college and seminary graduate, I should have possessed a robust knowledge, if not experience, of entire sanctification. It wasn’t until years later that I began to understand more about God’s sanctifying power. Today, I can say that while I am experiencing that perfecting grace, the past road was rocky, and a book like this would have made that journey much smoother. I commend this book to anyone who wants an educated survey of Wesley’s doctrine of entire sanctification but would prefer it in one book. While I found the section on the patriotic fathers to be a little less engaging, I enjoyed the historical timeline of the book and would highly recommend it to anyone. My one caution would be to read it thoughtfully and reflectively (unless it's one of your textbooks). -Joe Cox, Asbury College ‘93, Asbury Theological Seminary ‘98.

[Kelly Laudenslager · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book for my seminary class on the theology of John Wesley. Although this book addresses far more than just Wesley's personal theology, it is definitely coming at the subject from a Wesleyan bent. I appreciated the broad scope, covering both Scripture and historical theology. It was great to (finally!!) read an attempt to actually derive the doctrine of entire sanctification from Scripture, as opposed to the philosophical/theological presentation that I've mainly seen before. I wish there had been more of an attempt to get into the original sources rather than just summarizing the author's views of what previous thinkers believed about holiness, but that might have made the book too long. Overall, a great introduction to Wesleyan theology about holiness that sets it in the course of historical thinking on the subject.

[Callie Perry · Rating 4 out of 5]

TH 601 - I appreciate how this book is packed full of biblical evidence for Christian perfection. It has cultivated my understanding of Wesleyan soteriology and, therefore, has changed me as a person and will impact my future vocation.