Holiness Attainable Part 7

58. If growth in grace does not cleanse the heart, what does it accomplish?

1. It secures a progressive Christian life. Growth is an essential condition of life, and all development of life is by growth. The life of righteousness, embracing all the features of Christian character, gathers strength, symmetry, and stature by development.

2. Growth in grace is so related to the soul's activities and voluntary powers and the formation of its habitudes, as to secure increasing spiritual strength and moral vigor; hence, it will secure easier and more complete victories over inbred sin. It will secure increasing light and knowledge. It strengthens the habits of virtue. It fortifies the graces of the spirit, and renders them more and more mature. All this affords increasing power to weaken, and hold in subjection, and prevent the operations of carnal nature.

3. Growth in grace is an increase in the volume and power of patience, meekness, gentleness, and love to God. An increase of patience will afford easier victory over impatience. An increase of love will secure a more easy and perfect victory over all its opposites in the heart. An increase of faith will give more perfect triumph over unbelief. While this growth and strengthening these graces may weaken and lessen the power of indwelling sin, it does not cleanse the heart or remove the cause of these inward antagonisms. Growth may abate its force, but can neither change its nature nor remove it from the soul.

4. Growth in grace is a gradual approach to the conditions of entire sanctification; and after entire sanctification, growth is inseparable from the conditions of retaining that state. This growth, however, is not gradual sanctification, but gradual preparation.

Rev. Dr. Steele says: "Growth in grace, while accompanied by increasing power to abstain from actual sin, has no power to annihilate the spirit of sin, commonly called original sin. -- Love Enthroned, p. 331.

59. Is there a distinction between purity and maturity?

There is, and a very important one. Identifying and confounding these lie at the base of nearly every objection made to an instantaneous sanctification; and has occasioned many strange notions, and much confusion upon this subject.

1. Purity has respect to moral cleanness or freedom from the defilement of sin. "Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow." Health is not manhood. Maturity as respect to moral stature and strength, to adulthood. "The fullness of the measure of the stature of Christ."

2. Purity, in the light of gospel provisions, is a present privilege and duty. "Be ye holy." Maturity a question of time, and is subject to the laws of growth and development. "Grow in grace."

3. Purity being instantaneous, may be received at once. "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." Maturity is a gradual, progressive, and indefinite development. "Take heed, and add to your faith virtue," &c.

4. No Christian is cleansed into maturity, nor do any grow into purity. The Bible nowhere promises maturity as a work of God by faith, but purity it does. Even "a babe in Christ " may be cleansed from all inbred sin and become a pure Christian; but "a babe in Christ" becomes "a young man," and "a father," by growth and development, and not by cleansing power.

5. It must be seen that there is a difference between purity or entire sanctification, in infancy -- as just received, and in maturity -- as an advanced and confirmed state of purity -- "rooted and grounded in love." There are "babes," "young men," and "men of full age," a state of entire sanctification.

6. There are two classes of commands and figures in the Scriptures in regard to Christian character and duty. One contains commands and figures enjoining and illustrating growth in grace and maturity the other class enjoins and illustrates Christian holiness or purity.

7. Maturity is nowhere made a condition of entrance to heaven while purity is. Millions of Christians die in immaturity and are saved: they have been made pure, which is th e moral qualification for heaven.

Making this plain and easily understood distinction relieves this subject of difficulties which have perplexed multitudes of good men.