Entire Sanctification Essay, Research Paper

Entire Sanctification

In order to fully understand the content of this paper, one has to understand the following statements. There is a God and He is not me. He is a Holy God, and desires you to have the same properties as an individual, as Him.

The following is a partial account of a study given by Reverend H. C. Van Wormer, B. A., at a Stoneboro, Kentucky, Camp Meeting in 1975. The members of the meeting were so inspired by the Lord through his teachings that they asked for the contents to be copied into paper form. Reverend Van Wormer was a pastor and President of the Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection for 37 years. He was a great leader in the Holiness movement and took a huge amount of criticism, misunderstanding, and even insults, but stood firm in his beliefs. His study of spiritual holiness could possibly be one of the best ever stated on paper. Please allow me to emphasize this point: a person would have to be a spiritual person to understand his ideas of heart holiness. Then, we may not fully grasp every detail. I chose this subject because of the vast confusion that the people of faith have on the subject matter. There are many definitions and ideas, and I truly believe each and every one has somewhat of a truth to them. But we cannot be confused on this matter, for God has called us unto holiness, and no one will see God without holiness. Let us go forward into the heart of his research.

First and foremost, we need to understand the meaning of sanctification. Sanctification is the process in which we reach Heart Holiness. The apostle Paul referred to this as throwing off the Ole Man. Everyone is born with it, something referred to as the Carnal Nature. This is the uncontrollable fleshly nature that is within us. Many scholars tend to refer to this as evil thoughts. In my opinion, we cannot stop evil thoughts from coming, but we can stop them from becoming evil thinking. These evil thoughts drag a person down and he is enticed. After the evil desires have conceived, they give birth to sin. Of course, sin leads to death.

Some believe there is a sanctification that is conceived when a person asks for forgiveness. Others believe it is a gradual process. This could be proven in Hebrews 6:1, (KJV) which states, Let us go unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works. It is my belief, that the foundation must be well laid at first, and then built upon. Sanctification begins in the new birth, which is initial sanctification. A principle of righteousness is put within the soul of a saved individual. He has the power, through his Savior, to love righteousness and to live according to God s standard. This process is sanctification, and then later in the process is referred to as Sanctified Holy. The idea of heart holiness is reached by entire sanctification. This is the great change, which God works in the soul when He brings it unto life.

Reverend Van Wormer brings the Scripture readings in Hebrews 5:11-6:1-3; 3:16-4:1-2 (KJV) to our attention. We have a warning here against falling away. The failure to go on unto holiness results in apostasy if one is not careful. This is not a game. It is very real. Many points have been made in the past, and will surely be made in the future, that a person may be saved and live in any manner in which he or she may choose. This way of teaching has brought grave harm to many an individual.

Throughout his teachings, Scripture is continually called upon to base his decisions. He continually referred to I Thessalonians 5:22-23, which states, Abstain from all appearance of evil. And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly. Therefore, we cannot attain sanctification alone. A new convert will reach a point where he or she is made aware of this carnal nature by the power of the Holy Spirit. This convert will then have to make the decision of seeking Heart Holiness. The Word states that God will sanctify you and we have to seek Him to cleanse us. Regardless of what we may learn from others, we can always rely on the Word of God.

There is then, Entire Sanctification, a true and divine love. How then shall we keep it? Please allow me to put this into simple language. God is Light, and light means purity. God has perfect cleansing for us. We must walk in this light, and remain pure through His Word, through prayer, and through fasting. A man (or woman) must know and feel the gift of God s pardon of sin, and remember this daily, in order to retain heart holiness.

This gift is from God, and we cannot take it lightly. As we move toward our goal, let us remember one another in prayer and keep up the good faith. Although this is just a short part of the concept of Holiness, I pray that this paper has been of some help to you, the reader, as it has been for me. This book by Reverend Van Wormer has caused me to search my own heart for impurities. Our God has called us unto Holiness. Let us make every effort to do so. This could very well be the avenue through the straight and narrow path. May God Bless You, and may all the glory be given to Him.