The Enchantment of Sanctification
The defining doctrine of the Church of the Nazarene is generally understood to be Entire Sanctification. Although the Church of the Nazarene shares this doctrine with the wider Wesleyan and Holiness movements, it believes its doctrinal explanation is distinctive. I would still argue that our understanding of prevenient grace is more distinctive, but this essay focuses on observations of entire sanctification. Here is the entire text of the current Article of Faith on Entire Sanctification.
X. Christian Holiness and Entire Sanctification
We believe that sanctification is the work of God which transforms believers into the likeness of Christ. It is wrought by God’s grace through the Holy Spirit in initial sanctification, or regeneration (simultaneous with justification), entire sanctification, and the continued perfecting work of the Holy Spirit culminating in glorification. In glorification we are fully conformed to the image of the Son.
We believe that entire sanctification is that act of God, subsequent to regeneration, by which believers are made free from original sin, or depravity, and brought into a state of entire devotement to God, and the holy obedience of love made perfect.
It is wrought by the baptism with or infilling of the Holy Spirit, and comprehends in one experience the cleansing of the heart from sin and the abiding, indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, empowering the believer for life and service. Entire sanctification is provided by the blood of Jesus, is wrought instantaneously by grace through faith, preceded by entire consecration; and to this work and state of grace the Holy Spirit bears witness.
This experience is also known by various terms representing its different phases, such as “Christian perfection,” “perfect love,” “heart purity,” “the baptism with or infilling of the Holy Spirit,” “the fullness of the blessing,” and “Christian holiness.”
We believe that there is a marked distinction between a pure heart and a mature character. The former is obtained in an instant, the result of entire sanctification; the latter is the result of growth in grace. We believe that the grace of entire sanctification includes the divine impulse to grow in grace as a Christlike disciple. However, this impulse must be consciously nurtured, and careful attention given to the requisites and processes of spiritual development and improvement in Christlikeness of character and personality. Without such purposeful endeavor, one’s witness may be impaired and the grace itself frustrated and ultimately lost.
Participating in the means of grace, especially the fellowship, disciplines, and sacraments of the Church, believers grow in grace and in wholehearted love to God and neighbor.
(Jeremiah 31:31–34; Ezekiel 36:25–27; Malachi 3:2–3; Matthew 3:11–12; Luke 3:16–17; John 7:37–39; 14:15–23; 17:6–20; Acts 1:5; 2:1–4; 15:8–9; Romans 6:11–13, 19; 8:1–4, 8–14; 12:1–2; 2 Corinthians 6:14–7:1; Galatians 2:20; 5:1625; Ephesians 3:14–21; 5:17–18, 25–27; Philippians 3:10–15; Colossians 3:1–17; 1 Thessalonians 5:23–24; Hebrews 4:9–11; 10:10–17; 12:1–2; 13:12; 1 John 1:7, 9) (Manual)
If you can follow that, it essentially says that entire sanctification is a work of God, which is part of a continual process of becoming like Jesus in discipleship, beginning in justification (salvation) and culminating in glorification (resurrection). That sounds simple, but keep going. The next-to-last paragraph shows the internal struggle the Church of the Nazarene shares with John Wesley on entire sanctification. You see, if asked by most Boards of Ministry whether entire sanctification is an instantaneous work of God centered in a crisis moment or a gradual growth in grace, the answer is “yes.” It can be as clear as mud, but the essence of entire sanctification is in seeing the word entire as a temporal modifier. I got this idea from a wise church historian in a late afternoon session as a District Assembly*. Ultimately, the Church of the Nazarene’s view of entire sanctification is one of being entirely sanctified in the moment. First, at a moment of crisis or looking back for many of us to a moment we did not recognize (this is often a reflection for those of us who found our way to Wesleyan-Holiness from outside the tradition). Then, in an ongoing life, of becoming more like Jesus.
But that moment of being entirely sanctified is an ongoing moment that requires nurturing and commitment to follow and become more like Jesus. In this understanding, we are not too very far from the Eastern Church’s idea of theosis. But to say this more succinctly in the first person: “I am entirely sanctified, I am being entirely sanctified, I will be entirely sanctified.” Each moment of entire sanctification differs from the moment preceding and following. That is possible because the idea here is one of continual growth and wonder. Even if we use the term Christian Perfection, as Wesley did, we understand that perfection is in purpose rather than makeup.
A minority view within the Church of the Nazarene holds that Entire Sanctification is solely defined by a crisis moment that finishes the work of complete sanctification. This is where we can take a brief journey through some weeds. But this is important to understanding the struggle for this defining doctrine.
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There is a stream of the holiness movement popularized by Phoebe Palmer, in which entire sanctification is something we can pray for and receive in an instant. This is a moment in which the work is accomplished and BAM, we are done. We can no longer sin and will only live as Jesus would from that moment on. That sounds wonderful, but experience has shown us it is more nuanced than that. Our history is littered with entirely sanctified human beings who sinned after their moment of crisis. Theologians attempted to deal with this reality by claiming a difference between sins that are cultural and those that are rooted in the idea of original sin. This is a logical move, as the sin that entire sanctification “deals with” is original sin. For example, one theologian made the claim that racism is a culturally derived sin not rooted in original sin and, therefore, entirely sanctified believers could sin through racism. But that seems like such a convoluted maze of reasoning that it makes more sense to understand entire sanctification as a crisis that continues to be brought by discipleship. This stream is alive and well within the Church of the Nazarene and it shows up anytime edits are proposed to Article X.
To further muddy the waters, the crisis contingent has even begun using old terms and phrases from a bygone era to describe entire sanctification. The worst phrase is “full salvation.” This term can mean so many things, but besides the current day Pentecostal understanding of this phrase, to imply that those not entirely sanctified are not fully saved. Salvation is not an ish, it is a reality of the work of Christ. But there are reasons that older terms are being used and I have some observations on why.
First, this is a way to appeal to older generations who may have heard preaching on full salvation, but is nostalgia really the best way to ensure that we are communicating the preaching of sanctification? I understand that many accuse us of not preaching entire sanctification, even though our teaching is saturated with the truth of sanctification. Second, this contingent is not happy with the current statements on human sexuality in the Church of the Nazarene. The denomination makes a clear delineation between the idea of same sex attraction and sexual activity. This is codified within an extra-Manual ruling by our Board of General Superintendents in which it is made clear that same-sex attracted individuals may be ordained. Logically, this means that one can experience same-sex attraction while being entirely sanctified; our licensed and ordained clergy are required to testify to being entirely sanctified. If the appeal can be made to an instantaneous moment of perfection, this “loophole” as they call it, may be closed. Third, I believe that most of the concern about a progression of entire sanctification is rooted in modernist assumptions about reality.
This third reason is what I would like to focus on. One of the saddest things to me is the refusal of Wesleyan-Holiness folk to see our “religious advantage” within post and meta modern minds. The constant fight against the reality of postmodern and meta-modern thought is unhelpful and counter to the wonderment of Wesleyan-Holiness hope. Maybe it is my recent contemplation of Charles Taylor’s secularity as expressed by Andrew Root, but I cannot help but see the insistence upon a crisis moment of entire sanctification as a finished moment in the disenchantment of modernism. The Wesleyan-Holiness approach to scripture, humanity, and salvation is infused with the wonder accessible in post and meta modern minds that have jettisoned the disenchantment of modernism. We really need more enchantment in our present age.
This is a good place to mention the latest attempt to clarify the doctrine of Entire Sanctification, which failed in the 2023 General Assembly of the Church of the Nazarene. These proposed edits would have returned the wonderment and power to the doctrine that is fairly well strangled by the convoluted current reading. As you read, know that some critics claimed this did not mention sin. It does, but we also have an article of faith on sin and the articles all build upon one another.
We believe that the sanctification of the believer is that transformation into the likeness of Christ which begins with regeneration. Trusting in His Atonement, new believers are incorporated into His body, the Church, and become children of God the Father in the fellowship of the Spirit. They take up the cross and learn to die daily with Christ, living in faithful obedience to the great commandments in the power of the Spirit.
Participating in the means of grace, especially the fellowship, disciplines and sacraments of the Church, believers grow in grace and in the love of God and neighbor. Yet through this, they become increasingly conscious of a deep need for inward purifying from the persistent and multi-faceted sinfulness of pride, self-centeredness, and idolatry.
We believe that by such growth in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit brings the believer to the point of entire sanctification. Through faith in the risen Christ who died for our full salvation and baptized His apostolic Church with the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, they are now filled with the same Holy Spirit. In fulfillment of the promises of the new covenant, their hearts are purified and filled with wholehearted love to God and neighbor. Even in their weakness they are made strong and empowered to witness to Him in a life of victory. While awaiting the redemption of the body, believers still confess shortcomings, trespasses and faults, but press on to ever more mature and holy character in the image of God.
(Jeremiah 31:31–34; Ezekiel 36:25–27; Malachi 3:2–3; Matthew 3:11–12; Luke 3:16–17; John 7:37–39; 14:15–23; 17:6–20; Acts 1:5; 2:1–4; 15:8–9; Romans 6:11–13, 19; 8:1–4, 8–14; 12:1–2; 2 Corinthians 6:14–7:1; Galatians 2:20; 5:16–25; Ephesians 3:14–21; 5:17–18, 25–27; Philippians 3:10–15; Colossians 3:1–17; 1 Thessalonians 5:23–24; Hebrews 4:9–11; 10:10–17; 12:1–2; 13:12; 1 John 1:7, 9) (JUD-801 Proposed Article of Faith X)
This revision would have made this doctrine so much easier to understand. It also restores enchantment in leaning upon the work of God in the lives of believers. The resolution received a majority of votes, but just failed in receiving the required two-thirds majority. This is where we find ourselves. Wesleyan-Holiness folk can bring back enchantment, but we need to be wiling to leave modernism in the dirt of a bygone era. If we can lean into that, maybe we can also express a more beautiful faith in entire sanctification as ongoing discipleship and with “hearts … purified and filled with wholehearted love to God and neighbor.”
Manual, 2023. “Copyright 2023 by Nazarene Publishing House,”
*Rev. Dr. Steve Hoskins in a panel on Preaching Holiness