THE THEOLOGY OF ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION
Entire sanctification is a term well understood within the circles of Wesleyan-Holiness thinking but the term has virtually no meaning to people that have not been exposed to the teaching and the experience of sanctification. Most of the theologies of American churches are founded to some degree in the tenets of Calvinism but Wesleyan theologies are rooted in Arminianism. The two systems use the same terminologies so that on the surface they seem to be identical. It is only as one digs deeper into the terminologies that the differences are noticed and those differences found to be significant.
To fully understand the teaching of sanctification, and particularly what here is termed entire sanctification, it is necessary to understand the Arminian approach to anthropology as well as its approach to soteriology. The human condition is a sinful condition from conception, but how one understands that sinfulness informs his belief on what salvation actually does for a person. The Arminian position is that native depravity (without demerit) is a condition introduced to the human condition through the fall of Adam and it is this condition that predisposes every human to sin. We believe that salvation on the ground of the atonement is God's means by which He is able to minister forgiveness of sins and restoration to personal holiness to the redeemed.
There are not many systematic theologies written from the Wesleyan-Arminian viewpoint. There are many books, papers, tracts and sermons on the topic of entire sanctification and, while there is a general commonality among them, there is a lack of consistency. One of the best Wesleyan-Arminian theologies from the Nineteenth Century, in my opinion, is that of John Miley, D.D., LL.D. Dr. Miley lived from 1813 to 1895 and was a Methodist theologian and professor of systematic theology at Drew Theological Seminary in Madison, New Jersey. He is also the author of The Atonement in Christ, originally published in 1881.
In reading Miley's Theology it will be noted that he argues against several opposing positions, including several differing Calvinistic views, to the various topics with which he deals. Many of these positions are obscure or unknown by present day standards. Miley wrote in Nineteenth Century academic style (published in 1893), which presents a small challenge to modern American readers, but it is worth the time and effort to read through his presentation. The reader can download Microsoft Word files of each chapter for printing and perusal.
Below are several chapters from Miley's Systematic Theology concerning the topics of anthropology and soteriology. The first six relate to native depravity (inbred or original sin), which is essential for understanding the meaning and process of sanctification. The next two articles deal with justification and regeneration and explain what happens to a person when he is saved. The final article is on the doctrine of sanctification and explains why we believe in entire sanctification in addition to the sanctification that takes place at conversion.
REPRESENTATIVE MODE OF ADAMIC GUILT
GENETIC LAW OF NATIVE DEPRAVITY
THE DOCTRINE OF NATIVE DEMERIT
