W. T. Purkiser (1910-92) was a prolific writer, respected scholar, and well-loved preacher within the Church of the Nazarene who also had a significant voice in the larger evangelical Christian community. He authored and contributed to some of the most widely disseminated and enduring works in the Wesleyan-Holiness tradition.
PREFACE
Christian holiness has three aspects. There is a grace to receive, a style of life to be lived and a truth to be understood. It is with the truth or doctrine of holiness that we are here concerned, together with some of its implications for life.
The doctrine of Christian holiness is the conviction that, within the limitations of our humanity, the sanctifying grace of God is sufficient to free the Christian heart from the power and presence of inner sin, to fill it with pure love for God and man, and to impart power for Christian life and service in this present world. The provision for this gift of grace is found in the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross and its dynamic is the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
The purpose of this little volume is to interpret the theory and practice of holiness in some of its biblical, historical, theological, psychological, and sociological facets. It is an attempt to do what we are charged to do in I Pet. 3:15-16, "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ."
Christians have a twofold task in relation to their faith. The task is, first, proclamation. It is, second, interpretation. We must proclaim the truth to those who have never heard. But we must also explain the truth to those who have heard but need to understand it more adequately.
Candor compels us to confess that we have generally been stronger on proclamation than we have on explanation. We have insisted to all who would hear that the will of God is their sanctification. We have not always been as clear as we might in telling them what it means to be sanctified.
There is a vast difference between explaining a truth and explaining it away. Some calls for "reinterpretation" seem not so much the desire for better understanding as the wish to get rid of the truth entirely. But we must be interpreters, not corrupters. We are to be translators, not transformers, of the truth. We are to explain and apply the doctrine, not change its content.
Like a city set on a hill that may be approached from different directions and by different paths, the full truth of Christian holiness must be sought in a variety of contexts.
The approaches considered here are not the only interpretations that might be given. But they represent areas in which most of the major questions arise for which we are commanded to give an answer to those who ask.
W. T. Purkiser
CONTENTS
01 -- The Biblical Interpretation of Holiness
02 -- The Historical Interpretation of Holiness
03 -- The Theological Interpretation of Holiness
04 -- The Psychological Interpretation of Holiness
05 -- The Sociological Interpretation of Holiness
Reference Notes
01 -- THE BIBLICAL INTERPRETATION OF HOLINESS
All Christian truth must be based on the teaching of the Bible. God has spoken in the Scriptures and has made known to us both His will for our lives and His provision for our needs.
No important Bible truth depends on scattered and isolated proof texts. One man is said to have claimed that he could prove atheism from the Bible. He offered the text, "There is no God."
What he did not say was that the context read, "The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God" (Ps. 14:1).
The doctrine of Christian holiness is based upon the total thrust of the Scriptures. It is not merely a thread or line of truth running through the Word of God. It is rather a network of teaching which is an essential part of the fabric of the whole.
Holiness has its roof texts -- although it would be more correct to call them data --
evidences which support the conviction that sanctifying grace is real in human life. They should not be ignored. But even more important, is the message of the whole. Behind clichés and stereotypes based on a few isolated passages is the rich and varied teaching of the Bible itself.
Before turning to the biblical presentation of holiness, it should be noted that there are two sets of English terms in the King James Version used to translate a single Hebrew word in the Old Testament and a single Greek word in the New Testament.
One of these sets of English terms comes from the Germanic roots of our language. It includes the verb "to hallow, make holy," the noun "holiness," and the adjective 'holy."
The other set of English terms is derived from the Latin roots of English. It includes the verb "to sanctify," the noun "sanctification," and the adjective "sanctified."
Theologians sometimes make distinctions between these two sets of English words. For example, sanctification is sometimes defined as the act or process whereby a person or thing is made holy; and holiness is defined as the state or condition resulting from the act or process of sanctification. But since the two sets of words from which sanctification and holiness come are alternative translations of single terms in the original biblical languages, it is better to regard as equivalent expressions the verbs "to sanctify" and "to make holy," the nouns sanctification" and "holiness," and the adjectives "sanctified" and "holy."
I
The Bible is an amazingly realistic Book. It describes with great faithfulness the sorrows and sins, the struggles and hopes, the weakness and pain of the men and women who walk its pages. Yet through it all there shines a light of redemption and victory, the light of that "holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord" (Heb. 12:14).
In swift strokes, the early chapters of Genesis paint the picture of creation and catastrophe, holiness given and holiness lost.
Genesis 3 tells us of the source of that corruption of our moral natures for which
sanctification is the divine cure. Created in the image of God, but using the freedom which was part of that image to seek to "be as gods" (Gen. 3:5) themselves, Adam and Eve brought upon their descendants the corruption that comes to a branch cut off from the source of spiritual life in the Vine (cf. John 15:1-6).
The man created in the image of God "begat a son in his own likeness, after his image" (Gen. 5:3) whose "every imagination [yetzer, tendency, propensity, direction] of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually" (Gen. 6:5; 8:21). The sinful condition of the race is due to the depravity that comes from "depravity," that is, human nature apart from the life of the Spirit.
Yet such is the marvel of God's love and patience that the very scene of human rebellion was the occasion for the first promise of divine redemption, of One who at the cost of His own suffering would crush the serpent's head (Gen. 3:15; Rom. 16:20).
Through long centuries of preparation, the fact God's holiness was revealed in a dozen different ways -- by His wonderful works, by the awe men felt in is presence, by the ritual and sacrifices of Tabernacle and Temple, as well as by the prayers, aspirations, and proclamations of those men to whom God made himself known. God was seen to be, in Isaiah', favorite phrase, "the Holy One of Israel" (1:4; 5:19; 10:20; etc.). Holiness was seen to be the very inwardness of God's being. It is His nature, His "Godness."
Equally strong was the call for men who walked with God to be like Him in moral
character. In the Old Testament, the familiar biblical term "sanctify" (102 Times in various forms) often has the meaning we have come to attach to "consecrate." This is clearly true when men are told, as they frequently are, to sanctify themselves; to sanctify places, garments, altars, vessels, days, priests, and people to the Lord. The meaning is to separate or set apart as dedicated to God.
This is not the whole story, however. Present from the beginning, and growing stronger through the centuries, was the recognition that people who belong to God are not only consecrated but are to be different in a real and personal way. Ritual purity is symbolic of moral purity. The repeated command, "Ye shall be holy; for I the Lord your God am holy" (Lev. 11:44-45; 19:2; 20:26), makes no distinction between the holiness of God and the holiness of His people, and is set in the context of moral conduct in I Pet. 1:15-16.
It is clear, certainly, that the holiness possible to man is not a property of his own nature. It is God's gift. But even before the finished work of Christ on the cross it was possible for inspired writers to describe Noah as one who "found grace in the eyes of the Lord . . . a just man and perfect in his generations" (Gen. 6:8-9); to record God's command to Abraham, "Walk before me, and be thou perfect" (Gen. 17:1); and to speak of Job as "perfect and upright" (Job 1:1, 8; 2:3).
II
The sacrifices and ceremonies that make up so much of Exodus, Leviticus, and
Deuteronomy had a dual purpose. They were object lessons in the need for a blood-sprinkled way into the "holiest of all," the redemptive presence of the Lord God. And they pointed ahead to the Cross -- the coming of the Lamb of God, who was to bear away the sin of the world (John 1:29).
The Psalms give us one of the best measures of the piety of the Old Testament, the type of character possible to men who walk with God. There are many insights into the nature of God's holiness and its demands upon those who worship Him (15:1-2; 24:3-4). The Psalmist distinguishes between his sins and transgressions -- the iniquities he has done (51:1, 3-4, 9) – and the disposition behind the deeds, the inward "sin" for which the only remedy is the purging blood and the washing that brings a clean heart (51:2, 5-6, 10).
Old Testament teaching about the godly life came to full flower in the prophets. There was Isaiah, already a prophet (1:1 in comparison with 6:1), who experienced the taking away and purging of his iniquity or "sin" (note the singular), and who pointed the way to the age of the Spirit which was to come (6:1-8; 32:15, 17; 35:8-10; 44:3; 59:19, 21; 62:12 -- with the solemn warning of 63:7-10).
There was Jeremiah, who wrote of the "new covenant" (31:31-33; cf. Heb. 10:14-22); Ezekiel's promise of the cleansing to come from the "new spirit" within (36:25-26, 29); Joel's famous prediction of Pentecost (2:28-29); Zechariah's vision of the "fountain . . . opened for sin and for uncleanness" (12:10; 13:1, 9); and Malachi's prophecy of the Messiah's refining fire to purify and purge and make possible "an offering in righteousness" (3:1-3).
While holiness in the Old Testament did not come up to the full-orbed truth of the New Testament, the ideal is clear and the promise is sure. Its fulfillment in Christ and the age of the Spirit is the apex of the new covenant.
III
The Gospels present God's purpose for His people in two ways: in their record of the Life that must forever be the ideal for Christian aspiration, and in the teachings of Jesus and the inspired men who recorded His words.
Jesus spoke of the blessedness of the pure in heart (Matt. 5:8). He called the children of God to perfection of love (Matt. 5:43-48; 22:35-40; Mark 12:29-31; Luke 6:40). He taught that the source of evil is the depravity of a carnal heart (Mark 7:21-23) in contrast with the emphasis on the outward or cultic holiness of the scribes and Pharisees.
Christ promised the Holy Spirit as rivers of living water to those who believed (John 7:38-39), the Father's Gift to those of His children who ask (Luke 11:13). He spoke of "another Comforter" to be given to those who love Him and keep His commandments, a Bestowment whom "the world cannot receive" (John 14:15-17)
Jesus prayed for His own (John 17:9) and for those who would believe on Him through their word (17:20) that God would "sanctify them" (17:17) -- so that His joy might be fulfilled in them (17:13); that they might be kept from the evil (17:15); that they might be made perfect in one (17:21, 23); that the world might believe (17:21, 23); and that they might be with Him at last and behold His glory (17:24).
Our Lord's parting command was to tarry in the city of Jerusalem (Luke 24:49) until baptized with the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5) -- a baptism which follows the water baptism that seals repentance (Matt. 3:11-12; Luke 3:16-17; John 1:33; Acts 11:15-16) and which empowers a consistent life and witness (Acts 1:8).
The Book of Acts records the fulfillment of the promise and prayer of Jesus concerning the Holy Spirit. While the Jerusalem Pentecost of Acts 2 had an unrepeatable historical side to it as the beginning of the long-awaited "age of the Spirit," its deeper personal meaning is attested by the Samaritan Pentecost of Acts 8, the Caesarean or Gentile Pentecost of Acts 10, and the Ephesian Pentecost of Acts 19.
Few are disposed to dispute the spiritual power that comes with the baptism with the Holy Spirit. Its cleansing aspect has not seemed as apparent, despite the fact that one of the meanings of the Greek term for baptism is itself "cleansing."
The matter is settled beyond reasonable doubt, however, in Acts 15:8-9. This is Peter's testimony as to what happened to Cornelius and the people of his household: "And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us; and put
no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith."
Although there had been speaking in other languages in Caesarea as in Jerusalem (10:46),
Peter did not mention this at all. When he was concerned to show the identity of the Gentile Pentecost with what happened in Jerusalem, the only "sign" he appealed to was the fact that God purified by faith the hearts of those upon whom the Holy Spirit came.
IV
The Epistles of the New Testament, Pauline and General, give full expression to the truth of Christian holiness. It must be remembered that the letters of the New Testament are all addressed to Christians. They were written from within the context of faith, and directed to those who had been converted.
For this reason, there is no effort on the part of the writers to identify sanctification as a work of grace following conversion or the new birth. The readers are assumed already to have passed from death to life Whatever is urged upon them must, therefore, be understood as part of what follows the initial experience of salvation. God's redemptive work in its totality is the theme of the New Testament letters. It is expressed in many ways:
a. Christians must experience in reality what is implied in baptism and provided by the Cross (Rom. 6:1-7:6).
b. Both the law and human willpower are futile in dealing with inner sin (Rom. 7:7-25).
c. Only the Spirit of life can make the believer free from the fleshly or carnal mind (Rom. 8:1-13).
d. The very mercies of God call for His people to make of themselves living sacrifices
(Rom. 12:1-2).
e. Spiritual infancy and carnal living rend the body of Christ (I Cor. 3:1-4).
f.. More excellent than spiritual gifts is the way of divine love (I Cor. 12:31-13:13).
g. The promises of God call us to cleansing from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God (II Cor. 7:1).
h. The struggle between "flesh" and "Spirit" goes on until the "flesh" is crucified with its affections and lusts (Gal. 5:17-24).
i. Those chosen to be holy and without blame before God in love must put off "the old man. . . corrupt according to the deceitful lusts," and put on" the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness" (Eph. 1:4; 4:22-24).
j. Christ loved the Church and gave himself to "sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word," that it "should be holy and without blemish" (Eph. 5:25-27).
k. There is no "perfection of glory" in this life (Phil. 3:12-14), but there is a "perfection of grace" (3:15).
l. Putting off the old man and putting on the new man must lead to life on a new and higher ethical plane (Col. 3:1-13). m. God's will and call are to holiness, entire sanctification (I Thess. 4:3, 7-8; 5:23-24).
n. Grace teaches us to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to live holy lives in this present world, looking for the coming of the God-man, who gave himself both to "redeem us from all iniquity," and to purify unto himself a people peculiarly His own, "zealous of good works' " (Titus 2:11-14).
o. The strong, practical emphasis of the letter to the Hebrews is the need for converts to "go on":
-- to a sanctifying union with the Captain of their salvation (2:10-11)
-- into the "rest of faith" (3:12-4:11)
-- to become teachers of others (5:11-14)
-- unto "perfection" (6:1-3)
-- to the reality of Christ's sprinkled blood (9:13-14)
-- into the holiest of all (10:19-22)
-- following "holiness, without, which no man shall see the Lord" (12:14-17)
-- with Christ, without, the camp where He suffered to sanctify the people of God with His own blood (13:12-14). The alternative to going on is the chilling possibility of going "back unto perdition" (10:39).
p. The double-minded man, unstable in all his ways, is directed to purify his heart (Jas. 1:8; 4:8).
q. God's obedient children are to be "holy, as he . . . is holy" in every area of their lives (I Pet. 1:14-16).
r. By the promises of God, we become partakers of His nature, and thus escape the corruption in the world through lust (II Pet. 1:4).
s. If we walk in the light of God instead of the darkness of sin, we have fellowship with Him, and the blood of Jesus Christ, cleanses from all sin. To deny the need for such cleansing is to deceive ourselves (I John 1:7-8).
t. In the perfection of love, there is boldness in the day of judgment (I John 4:17-18). Putting all this together, one can hardly escape the almost boundless optimism of the New Testament writers as they reflect the possibilities of grace. They are fully aware of the tensions involved in living godly lives in this present world in bodies that still await the full redemption of the sons of God. They know that it is tribulation we enter the kingdom. Yet they thrill to the reality of the resurrection life even in the stresses, partialities, and incompleteness of the present age.
One of the crucial issues in discussions of the "higher life" portrayed in the New Testament is always the nature and extent of deliverance from inner sin, the old nature. "Eradication" is a term sure to be questioned. We are told that it is not a biblical term -- and indeed it is not, exactly in that form -- although the idea comes through rather clearly in Heb. 12:14-15.
But is it necessary to contend for a term? If anyone objects to "eradication" -- and there are some overtones to the word that say more than we mean -- then why not just settle for biblical language and talk about crucifixion, destruction, mortification, putting to death, putting off, purging, cleansing, purifying, or making clean? Really, it all comes out at the same place.
If we interpret Christian holiness biblically, we shall not concern ourselves with a single group of words -- "holy," "holiness," "sanctify," "sanctification." We shall also stress the baptism with or fullness of the Holy Spirit; the risen or resurrected life with Christ; the righteousness of the law fulfilled in us; circumcision of the heart; salvation to the uttermost -- or in Luther's sparkling phrase, "through and through"; the fullness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ; purity of heart and power for witnessing; and so on and on.
We shall turn to other interpretations of Christian holiness. But all of them must finally rest back upon the teachings of the Holy Bible with its clarion call "not unto uncleanness, but unto holiness" (I Thess. 4:7).
[Coming next: The Historical Interpretation of Holiness]
