Over the past half a decade I have come in contact with many church leaders and aspiring church leaders across denominational lines.
Through this exposure I have discovered there are two types of holiness in the church today. There is what I call Business Holiness and what I call Personal Holiness.
Business Holiness
This is the life we live in front of the crowd. These are the people to whom holiness is a profession rather than a lifestyle. Going through Bible college, and being in full time ministry, one naturally meets the those who are in the business of holiness, student and leader alike, the ones who say the right things and do the right things for the public eye. Yet in one on one relationships the holiness lacks.
The speech that pours out of their mouth is profane and full of gossip. Their actions corrupt. Others' importance to them is directly proportional to one's ability to advance their "career". They are the shining stars for all to see. They preach holiness, yet they do not truly know holiness. They are our modern day pharisees; pointing the pious finger outward.
Personal Holiness
In contrast to Business Holiness, along my journey I have met those who live holiness. These are the ones who have modeled a Christ-like lifestyle to me. They have taken the time for those the stars have cast aside. They see us and know we can not advance their "career", but see their ministry.
Their speech is full of encouragement and points us to the cross. They are transparent enough to allow us to see their passion and their pains. We are not held at arms length but embraced in love, as brothers or sisters. In these times, their struggles are revealed yet are shadowed by their thirst for Christ-likeness.
After having one of those intimate moments with those living Personal Holiness, I always find myself driven to be more like Christ and asking myself, "Am I in the Business of Holiness or am I living Personal Holiness?". Kindof a sobering thought for those of us in full-time ministry.
Is our holiness business or is it personal?
*Please understand is this blog is meant to spur us on to true
personal holiness and is not an attack on any specific individual.*
TSB VIII
2 months ago
8 comments:
You made the distinction well dave. I especially find the part about personal holiness people sharing their struggles.
Business holiness people only joke about their sinfulness.
Matthew, I think there's a misconception that when one has their crisis experience they no longer have struggles or are tempted.
Something you hit on is how those in the Business tend to pretend they are beyond temptation. I think it's generally out of a fear that they would appear inadequate.
Of Course, being Wesleyan we all desire to be "Entirely Sanctified" so it's no wonder we pretend we are to this point in our journey whether we are or not.
In the business it's about advancing ourselves, when it's personal it's about living in community, where we can leave our closets unlocked.
Perhaps I'm a conspiracy theorist, but I think the whole notion of "Entire Sanctification" is something that "business holiness" people may have created in their heads, not to purposely mislead, but just because of the nature of that path, and because they are the "shining stars", it's become a popular notion.
I've never been able to buy entire sanctification beyond the point of "I've decided no matter what, The Lord is my God and I will seek him with all my heart, all my soul, and all my strength".
If that offends the sensibilities of anyone else, my apologies - I am by no means the fount from which all wisdom, theological or otherwise, flows.
I completely disagree Geoff
You ARE the fount from which all wisdom flows
Ah yes, the controversial ES.
This may be the subject for another blog, but...DAH WELL.
I actually don't like the terms Entire Sanctification, 2nd Blessing, or 2nd work. I used to like Baptism of the Holy Spirit, but I now think this term could even be misleading.I prefer the term Crisis Experience.
I tend toward the CE because I tend to think that our will is sanctified at conversion and what is actually sanctified in the "process of sanctification" that we tend to refer to is actually our mind.
Like Arminius I think we were born totally depraved of any desire for good and when we accept Christ that desire is totally replaced w/ a desire for good. However, mentally we are so deceived that we think we still desire sin and the process is the removal of this deception. Thus it is a Crisis Experience because we come to the point of "am I gonna believe my will is completely orientated/submitted to God or not?"
What do u think?
Am I trying to paint the same horse brown?
I think being "entirely sanctified" (or what ever you want to call it) is more than just a change in the will. That may be the most obvious change, but it is also a change in action, not only why we act (which would be a result of the will), but how we act. There is something more than a change in desire, it is a change in method, in understanding, in how we go about living out daily life and relationships
Steph, I never said our will is the only thing to change. I said our will is sanctified at conversion. As the deception is removed we will realize our true desire. As this process occurs our actions are following suit. Actions are A-moral, it is the motivation behind the action that determines it's morality. Just look at how much Jesus emphasized motivation in the Gospels.
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