This final post taking a close look at John Wesley’s sermon “The Scripture Way of Salvation” will have more of Wesley’s words and fewer or mine. This is because a large portion of what Wesley has to say in the section is repeating arguments made previously. In his sections on justification by faith, Wesley made essentially the same arguments he makes here when writing about sanctification by faith. You can see my discussions of those parts of the sermon here and here. Those earlier sections were preparing the way for this final portion of the sermon. He builds to a powerful closing that is very much worth sticking around for.
As Methodists, the doctrine of entire sanctification has long fallen out of favor, and yet it is the logical conclusion of Wesley’s theology. If we retain his optimism about the persistence and power of God’s grace, then we should remain willing to walk with Wesley to the places that optimism leads us. Our hesitations are not shameful. Even John’s brother Charles had his reservations about it, but this doctrine of entire sanctification should remain a living conversation and a live option for the people called Methodist. When we say “salvation,” what do mean?
Wesley has his answer. Let us walk with him through the finals moves of this sermon, which remains for United Methodists a standard the shapes our theology.
13. But to return. though it be allowed, that both this repentance and its fruits are necessary to full salvation; yet they are not necessary either in the same sense with faith, or in the same degree: –Not in the same degree; for these fruits are only necessary conditionally, if there be time and opportunity for them; otherwise a man may be sanctified without them. But he cannot be sanctified without faith. likewise, let a man have ever so much of this repentance, or ever so many good works, yet all this does not at all avail: he is not sanctified till he believes. But the moment he believes, with or without those fruits, yea, with more or less of this repentance, he is sanctified. –Not in the same sense; for this repentance and these fruits are only remotely necessary, –necessary in order to the continuance of his faith, as well as the increase of it; whereas faith is immediately and directly necessary to sanctification. It remains, that faith is the only condition which is immediately and proximately necessary to sanctification. This is essentially exactly Wesley’s argument about how justification by faith and the necessity of works can coexist.
14. “But what is that faith whereby we are sanctified, –saved from sin, and perfected in love?” This definition of “sanctification” is of immense importance in understanding Wesley. Full sanctification is to love perfectly. It is to have love so fill the heart — love of God and neighbor — that there is no room for sin. This is what he means and we mean when we speak of going on to perfection.
It is a divine evidence and conviction, first, that God hath promised it in the holy Scripture. Till we are thoroughly satisfied of this, there is no moving one step further. And one would imagine there needed not one word more to satisfy a reasonable man of this, than the ancient promise, “Then will I circumcise thy heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the Lord they God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” The quotation is Deuteronomy 30:6. As he does elsewhere, Wesley insists that what God promises to do in Scripture, he will do in our lives. The faith that sanctifies us fully begins with the conviction that God has promised to make us holy.
How clearly does this express the being perfected in love! –how strongly imply the being saved from all sin! For as long as love takes up the whole heart, what room is there for sin therein? As in so many places, sin and love are contradictory principles. Wesley admits that most believers experience the presence of sin even after salvation, but that sin has lost its power over us. Full sanctification is the state in which that sin ceases to exist altogether in the soul of a believer.
15. It is a divine evidence and conviction, secondly, that what God hath promised He is able to perform. Admitting, therefore, that “with men it is impossible” to “bring a clean thing out of an unclean,” to purify the heart from all sin, and to till it with all holiness; yet this creates no difficulty in the case, seeing “with God all things are possible.” And surely no one ever imagined it was possible to any power less than that of the Almighty! But if God speaks, it shall be done. God saith, “Let there be light; and there” is “light”! The faith that sanctifies is next faith that believes God can do what he has promised to do.
16. It is, thirdly, a divine evidence and conviction that He is able and willing to do it now. And why not? Is not a moment to Him the same as a thousand years? He cannot want more time to accomplish whatever is His will. And He cannot want or stay for any more worthiness or fitness in the persons He is pleased to honour. We may therefore boldly say, at any point of time, “Now is the day of salvation!” “To-day, if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts!” “Behold, all things are now ready; come unto the marriage!” The faith that sanctifies us fully is the faith convinced that he can do it now. It does not have to be a thing that is only possible post-mortem. As we are seeing, sanctifying faith is a very optimistic thing indeed. It believes a great deal about the ability of God to do what we cannot.
17. To this confidence, that God is both able and willing to sanctify us now, there needs to be added one thing more, –a divine evidence and conviction that He doeth it. In that hour it is done: God says to the inmost soul, “According to thy faith be it unto thee!” Then the soul is pure from every spot of sin; it is clean “from all unrighteousness.” The believer then experiences the deep meaning of those solemn words, “If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.” The first three parts of this faith, if I follow Wesley, are preliminaries to this final part. You can, I suspect, live quite a long time convinced that God has promised to sanctify us, that he is able to do so, and that he can do so right now without actually receiving this gift. Indeed, what made Wesley’s teaching in this area so controversial — even among Methodists, even with his brother, Charles — is that so few Christians appear to receive the fourth and crucial part of this faith, the faith that is convinced that it has been done in us. I am not aware of Wesley ever claiming for himself that he had attained such total sanctification, and yet he never abandoned what he believed to be plainly laid out in the Bible.
18. “But does God work this great work in the soul gradually or instantaneously?” Perhaps it may be gradually wrought in some; I mean in this sense, –they do not advert to the particular moment wherein sin ceases to be. Don’t confuse this with our more common way of speaking of gradual sanctification. We often speak of sanctification as a process that extends over a lifetime, but frequently what we leave unspoken is that the process never reaches its end. We do not go where Wesley was trying to take us in the last few paragraphs. We use the word “gradual” but we really mean “partial” or “open-ended.” Wesley accepts the idea of a gradual sanctification, but not a partial one.
But it is infinitely desirable, were it the will of God, that it should be done instantaneously; that the Lord should destroy sin “by the breath of His mouth,” in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye. And so He generally does; a plain fact, of which there is evidence enough to satisfy any unprejudiced person. I have never made this particular study, but I know others have. Wesley clearly believed he had come into contact with those who had been given the gift of entire sanctification. In these cases, the general rule was a sudden rather than a gradual change. I cannot readily quote other writings of his where he discusses this in more depth, but I recall having encountered them before.
I wonder if we would encounter more cases of such a work of God if we were not so reluctant to seek the faith that expects and believes such a thing is possible.
Thou therefore look for it every moment! Look for it in the way above described; in all those good works whereunto thou art “created anew in Christ Jesus.” Here is the call. Expect such faith, and wait for it patiently in the works that God has directed to be the means by which his grace comes to us.
There in then no danger: you can be no worse, if you are no better, for that expectation. For were you to be disappointed of your hope, still you lose nothing. But you shall not be disappointed of your hope: it will come, and will not tarry. Look for it then every day, every hour, every moment! Why not this hour, this moment? Certainly you may look for it now, if you believe it is by faith. As I read, I wonder why we remain so unpersuaded by Wesley. Is there something deficient in his theology here? Dare we suggest that God does not want us to be perfect as the Father is perfect, holy as the Father is holy, or merciful and the Father is merciful? Dare we suggest that he is unable to bring us to that state of holiness, that he cannot make white what is stained by sin? Dare we tell him that he cannot do it now?
And by this token you may surely know whether you seek it by faith or by works. If by works, you want something to be done first, before you are sanctified. You think, I must first be or do thus or thus. Then you are seeking it by works unto this day. Could this be the cage that keeps us from the hope of entire sanctification? We cannot let go of the idea that we have to earn it. We cannot free ourselves from the devilish notion that we must do something in order to receive this gift, and we find ourselves unable to do those things.
If you seek it by faith, you may expect it as you are; and expect it now. It is of importance to observe, that there is an inseparable connexion between these three points, –expect it by faith; expect it as you are; and expect it now! To deny one of them, is to deny them all; to allow one, is to allow them all. Give me this faith, my God. Help me. Convince me by your grace that you promise, will, and bring about such holiness that drives out all sin and leaves me only a vessel of love. Only you can do this. Help me to expect, to look, and to believe.
Do you believe we are sanctified by faith? Be true then to your principle; and look for this blessing just as you are, neither better nor worse; as a poor sinner that has still nothing to pay, nothing to plead, but “Christ died.” And if you look for it as you are, then expect it now. Stay for nothing: why should you? Christ is ready; and He is all you want. He is waiting for you: He is at the door! Let your inmost soul cry out,
Come in, come in, thou heavenly Guest!
Nor hence again remove;
But sup with me, and let the feast
Be everlasting love.
Amen.
John Meunier 
As to be “expected,” your exposition of Wesley’s argument is fruitful. Immediately, I was taken by your theme: “Expect it by faith, expect it now.” Is this Wesley emboldened by Scripture, or pressing a prescription too far? The narrative arc of Methodism from the early years of enthusiasm to the latter years of organizational muck suggests that the church is ambivalent about its salvation/sanctification.
I think that question about whether Wesley pushed things too far is a fascinating one. As a matter of fact, most Methodists have concluded that he was going too far, or they act as if that is the case.
For my part, I have been praying recently as he urges us to pray. I have been praying for God to give me that faith, to grant me that conviction that he has promised this, that he can do it, and that he will do it in me. I can report that I have not received that full sanctification, but to even praying for it has been full of grace and encouragement.