The Penn's Grove record., 1895-03-22
THE SECOND BLESSING.

THE SECOND BLESSING.
Mr.. EDIToR:-Will you favor us
with space in your paper to write briefly
in regard to the doctrine named in the
heading of this article which is also
known by other terms, as you are well
aware, such as sanctiication, heart pur-
ity, Christian perfection, sc. Before
We give our views as to the manne in
which it is generally taught, we wish
to be clearly understood that it is not
our intention to handle this matter sim
ply for the sake of an argument in or.
der to differ from some one else, but
we trust that we have a more worthy
object in view; viz: to set forth what
we believe to be the plain teaching Of
the Scripture on this subject and be in
strumental in the hands of God in
clearing away, at least. some Difficult :
ties which perplex the minds of some
good Christian people here in PENIS
Grove, who do not understand this
''Second Blessing" theory as it is usual
ly set forth; that a person who is justi
fed or converted is only partially saved
and though they may be at peace with
God, and enjoy the witness of the Spir-
1t that they are the children of God.
According to the theory there still
remains in the heart of the Christian
thus justified, what is called ''Inbred
Sin;" and also a devil bound, but not
yet cast out. Such teaching is purely
human and cannot be found in the Bi.
bic. For the Scripture nowhere teach.
es that the Lord ever half cured any
person physically Or half saved any per-
o spiritually, and then finished the
work at a subsequent period or future
time. Such an instance cannot be
found in the Bible. For the Lord
"Spake and 1t was done, he command
ed and it stood FAST" A learned Chris.
tian Minister has truthfully remarked
that theology is a made, but the
Bible is GoI-given." We believe in a
Scripture holiness and that it is the
duty and privilege of every professor
and non-professor of religion to enjoy
it, and we take the word Of God for our
witness when we say that every one
that is justified or regenerated by the
Holy Spirit is holy and cannot be other
wise at the time the work is done. He
or she may afterwards fall away from
that exalted state, and seek to regain it
through the medium of what is known
as Sanctifcation, instead of confessing
their departure from God and seeking
it in the same manner and by same
way they did at first.
The idea of the Holy Spirit regenerat-
ing the heart Of a penitent sinner and
yet leaving him or her in a state of III
holiness, such teaching in III judge.
ment is not only an absurdity, but 1t
dishonors the goodness of God and the
work of the Holy Spirit. If we are
justified by. faith we have peace with
God through our Lord Jesus Christ and
T at onement with him, being made
free from the law of sin and death, not
bond servants or aliens, but children of
God, and If children then ''partakers of
the divine nature,n bearing his Spirit
ual image which is righteousness and
true holiness. To be holy is to be pious,
devout, good. To be unholy is to be
implous, profane, wicked. The former
marks the life of n saint, the latter, the
life of a sinner. There IS no middle
ground or neutrality In this warfare.
There is a great deal OF hair splitting
in religious theory, but none in scrip
tural facts. 1t is either saint or sin
ner, holy or unholy, fully saved Gr not
saved at all. The Lord does no half
way work, but His way is perfect"
When Paul, Peter and John, Apostles
Of II Lord, were exhorting the Jewish
and Gentle converts to Christianity in
their day to holiness of heart and life,
1t is not once initimated in their epis-
ties that those converts were not made
holy when they were converted to Chris.
tianity, not at all but were either faith
fully exhorted to continue steadfastly
in the Apostles doctrine lest they should
fall from grace or that they had already
fallen into their former sins and were
to return to God. If We
will just thing for u moment what the
former condition of those converts were
when Jews and Gentiles by religion and
after they embraced Christianity the
difficulties they encountered by coming
In contact with Jewish teachers and
Gentle superstition, then we "a bet
ter understand the contents of the
Apostles writings and not take an iso.
lated text of scripture to support a doc.
trine or theory.
The Scripture is generally its own in
terpreter in matters of salvation. that
is most necessary for mortals to
into and understand, and if it
cannot be clearly understood in regard
to any subject by simply reading q para.
graph in relation to 1t then read the
whole chapter and If it will not give
sufficient light read the entire book in
which it is contained. If it does not