"For their sakes," says the blessed Saviour, "I sanctify Myself that
they also might be sanctified through the truth," or as the margin,
"truly sanctified," or as the Revised Version, "that they themselves
also may be sanctified in truth." The Lord Jesus Christ most assuredly
did not need to be made holy, but all His redeemed children being
subjects of inbred sin do need it. As for Him, He was the "holy thing"
that was to be born of the Virgin Mary. "He knew no sin," He "did no
sin," He was "holy, harmless, undefiled and separate from sinners,"
and, therefore, when He says "I sanctify Myself," He means nothing more
nor less than I consecrate Myself, or I set Myself apart, but in the
other clause where the term sanctify is used in reference to His
people, it must mean that they may be cleansed from all sin entirely
sanctified, made holy or pure in heart. He sets Himself apart,
therefore, to the work of redemption and salvation that He may have a
holy people on earth, as without controversy He must and will have a
holy people in heaven.
We have shown that entire sanctification is coetaneous with the baptism
with the Holy Ghost, in fact, that the two experiences are in an
important sense identical, or, at least, so related to each other that
whoever has one has the other. It is Christ and none other who baptizes
with the Holy. Ghost. "He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and
fire," not as some imagine, I think erroneously, that there are to be
two baptisms, first that of the Holy Ghost, and afterwards that of fire
in the way of affliction or persecution, though plenty of these are
promised and experienced by those who would live godly in Christ
Jesus, but simply that He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost under
the similitude of fire, that is, that dross and tin and reprobate
silver, or, in a word, all inbred sin may be consumed.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account