Synopsis
Excerpt from Perfect Sanctification: An Article From the Princeton Review for July, 1842
Opinion of his associates at Oberlin, that sinless perfection for the time being, is implied in the lowest degree of true piety. It seems to be a very general opinion, says he, that there is such a thing as imperfect obedience to God (i. E.) as it respects one and the same act, but I cannot see how an imperfect obedience, relating to one and the same act can be possible. Imperfect Obedience What can be meant by this, but disobedient obedience! A sinful holiness N ow, to decide the character of any act, we are to bring it into the light of the law of God; if agreeable to this law, it is obedience - it is right - wholly right. If it is in any re spect different from what the law of God requires, it is wrong - wholly wrong. Here we have the doctrine that all Christians are sometimes perfect, or are perfect so far as they have any true holiness and it is a very natural infer ence from such premises, that believers may attain to a con firmed state of perfection in the present life. This conclu sion is adopted by Mr. Finney, as well as by Mr. Mahan.
To disprove the perfectionism taught in the above ex~ tracts, or to show that none of the saints are entirely free from sin in the present life, will be our Object in this essay.
We shall begin with noticing the principal arguments, which are commonly adduced by perfectionists of different descriptions, in support of their views of this subject. We shall next exhibit direct evidence of the sinful imperfection of the heart of the saints in this life and lastly, we shall show the great practical importance of the doctrine for which we contend, in Opposition to the error which it controverts.
About the Publisher
Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
