Five views on sanctification is an interesting book. Before the further reading this book, there are things that readers must know. First, “all agree that the Bible teaches a sanctification that is past, present, and future” (p. 7). Second, “all agree that the process of sanctification requires believers to strive to express God’s love in their experience” (p. 7). Finally, “all agree that the Bible promises success in this process of struggling against personal sin, through the power of the Holy Spirit” (pp.7-8).
The Wesleyan Way
John Wesley, who is the father of the Christian Methodist churches, and his followers are well known for their concern for an ethical faith. His understanding of the sanctification was based on the Reformation and
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Furthermore, when John talks about the Adam and Eve’s fall, he argues that people lost three aspects of God: the natural image, the political image, and the moral image. However, when he talks about the Fall, he only talks about the moral image of God. Throughout John’s arguments of original sin, the way to be saved is only from the grace of God, never by the work of people or natural …show more content…
Furthermore, they have found that sanctification, which is ascribed to all three persons of the Trinity, is both the work of God and the responsibility of His people. What is important is that sanctification is not something that people can get by human efforts, but it is God’s divine gift. Moreover, based on Philippians 2:12-13, reformed theologians believed that sanctification is continual progress.
Reformed theologians argue that the scripture has two different ways of sanctification: an ongoing process and an accomplished event. In other words, it is ongoing process to reach to become God-likeness people, and it is also important to believe that God has already accomplished it for us.
Then what is the reformed theologians’ goal of sanctification? It is to glorify God (Ephesians 1:4-6), and the perfection of God’s people (Romans: 8:29). The future perfection of God’s people will help then to reach the final glorification of