The Plan

of

Salvation

By

Ostis B. Wilson

FAITH PUBLISHING HOUSE

Digitally Published by

THE GOSPEL TRUTH

www.churchofgodeveninglight.com

TABLE OF CONTENTS

MAN’S ORIGINAL STATE AND FALL

WILLFUL SIN

JESUS, OUR REDEEMER

THE TWO STEPS

JUSTIFICATION

Old and New Testament Justification

The Grafting In

Tabernacle’s Two Rooms

Spirit of Christ

Carnal Mind and Carnal Nature

SANCTIFICATION

The Tabernacle

The Blood of Jesus

MAN’S ORIGINAL STATE AND FALL

Mankind, in his unregenerate state, is two degrees or steps below the state of moral purity and holiness in which he was created.

Originally, at his creation, man was in the image and after the likeness of God. Gen. 1:26, 27. In this state he was possessed of “righteousness and true holiness.” In Col. 3:10 we read, “And have put on the new man which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him.” In Eph. 4:24 it says, “And that ye put on the new man which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” These two texts make it clear that the image of God is righteousness and true holiness. This is what man possessed in his original state.

Transgression of the commandment of God by the original pair changed all of this. Sin entered into this world by the willful choice of our foreparents and by this means they apostatized from God. Gen. 3:1.

Sin brought about a change in man’s moral nature. Now, instead of the righteousness and true holiness that he originally possessed, he becomes depraved and corrupt in his moral nature. In

conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts.” Eph. 4:25-31 describes the corrupt deeds of the old man: lying, vs. 25; stealing, vs. 27; corrupt communication out ofyour mouth, vs. 29; bitterness, wrath, anger, clamour, and evil speaking, vs. 31.

The fact that the moral likeness and image of God was effaced from the human soul by this means is evidenced by the fact that when we obtain the salvation of the Lord Jesus Christ we are said to be renewed in that image, Col. 3:10. In other words, it is a restoration to the image of God—hence we conclude it had been lost.

As a result of this, the moral nature of all mankind was affected in this way, became depraved and corrupt. Sin has become universal as a result of the sin of this first pair. Rom. 5:12 says, “As by one man sin entered the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.” Rom. 5:15, “... For if by the offense of one, many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.” Rom. 5:16, “For if by one man’s offence, death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.” Rom. 5:18, “Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation.” Rom. 5:19, “For as by one man’s disobedience, many were made sinners.”

Rom. 5:13, 14 says, “For until the law sin was in the world; but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression.” From Adam to Moses there was no commandment in existence, hence people could not sin after the similitude of Adam’s transgression by breaking a specific commandment but, at the same time, they were in sin and death reigned over them. The only law they had during this time was the law of their conscience. Concerning this we read in Rom. 2:13-15, “For not the hearers of the law are just before God but the doers of the law shall be justified. For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another.” Some have supposed from this text that people could be saved by their conscience. This text does not teach salvation according to man’s conscience but it does teach us that there is sufficient knowledge in every man’s conscience to fix responsibility and render him a responsible being to God. Gal. 3:19 says, “... the law was added because of transgression, until the seed should come, etc.”  But if the law was added because of transgression, what were they transgressing? There was no actual commandment in existence between Adam and Moses when the law was given. There was nothing to transgress only the law of their conscience and these poor, fallen creatures were so under the power of sin they could not even live to their own conscience. Gal. 3:22 says, “But the scripture hath concluded all under sin.” Rom. 3:23, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Rom. 5:12, “... death passed upon all men for that all have sinned.” Rom. 11:32, “For God hath concluded them all in unbelief; that He might have mercy upon all.” 2 Cor. 5:14, “For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead.”

If these scriptures do not prove all men to be under the dismal sway of sin, that they are thus affected because of one man and his sin, and that one man is Adam, what do they teach? Then, how could this all be true except there be something hereditary about sin? Certain diseases, defects, and deficiencies (mental, physical, and otherwise) are said to be transmittable from parent to child and they are called hereditary. If it is carried through different members of the family or through succeeding generations, it is said that this or that runs in the family. Their father or grandfather had that, or was that way, etc. The scriptures conclude something about sin to be hereditary, a depravity of nature to be handed down through the generations of mankind from the original parent.

Adam begat children in his own likeness after his image. Gen. 5:3, “And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth.” At this time Adam had lost the image and likeness of God (righteousness and true holiness). He was now possessed of a depraved, corrupt nature and could only transmit what he had to his posterity.

This fact is further evidenced by the fact that God, in order to get a pure, holy seed into the world (Christ) set the man aside and without the use of the man begat by the Holy Ghost a holy seed within the woman and Christ is called the seed of the woman.

But let us notice a few more scriptures along this line. Psalms 51:5 says, “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.” Gen. 8:21 says, “And the Lord smelled a sweet savour; and the Lord said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake; for the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth: neither will I again smite any more everything living, as I have done.” Gen. 6:5, 6 reads, “And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.”

Further, let us see how God reckons genealogies in the scriptures. In Heb. 7:9, 10 it says, “And as I may so say, Levi also, who receiveth tithes; paid tithes in Abraham. For he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchisedec met him.” Levi was one of the children of Israel and head of one of the twelve tribes. His tribe never received any inheritance in the apportionment of land in the land of Canaan but they were set apart to care for the tabernacle and to administer about the holy things. Their portion was a tithe from all the other tribes. Therefore it refers to Levi who receiveth tithes. But it also said that he paid tithes in Abraham and this is on the grounds that he was yet in the loins of his father when he met Melchisedec and paid tithes unto him. Levi was the fourth generation down from Abraham and was yet an unborn child in his loins when he paid tithes to Melchisedec and it is said that he “paid tithes in Abraham.” In Gal. 3:29 it says, “And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”

In Rom. 4:11, speaking of Abraham and his faith it says: “And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised, that righteousness might be imputed unto them also.” Abraham is the first one of whom it was written that he was justified by faith. There were several champions of faith who accomplished great things through faith before the time of Abraham who are mentioned in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, but he is the first one of whom it is said that he “believed God and it was accounted unto him for righteousness.”

We today become children of God by faith in Christ Jesus and it is said that we are justified by faith in Him. It is also said that the just live by faith and that we walk by faith and not by sight. But this principle of justification by faith and living by faith began in Abraham and therefore he is said to be the father of all them that believe. He was the beginning of a new race (believers) and became the royal head of that race. Therefore when we are brought into fellowship with God through faith in Christ Jesus we are said to be Abraham’s seed by coming under that principle of justification by faith which began in him.

There were 42 generations from Abraham to Christ. We would be the forty-third generation. Yet we are reckoned to be children of Abraham and on the same grounds that Levi is said to have paid tithes in Abraham. We were yet unborn children in the loins of our father (figuratively) when he believed God and it was accounted unto him for righteousness.

On the same grounds, we are all reckoned to be under sin because we were all yet unborn children in the loins of our father, Adam, when he committed sin. The effects of that sin passed upon the entire race.

As further proof that all of the human race is under the effects of Adam’s sin and actually receives something from him by way of a depraved nature, those who obtain salvation in this dispensation are said to put off the old man and put on the new man. Col. 3:9, 10; Eph. 4:22-24.

Adam is the head of the human race according to the first or old creation of God. Jesus Christ is the head of the spiritual race according to the new creation of God. 2 Cor. 5:17 says, “Now if any man be in Christ he is a new creature” (new creation). Eph. 2:10 says, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, etc.” But Christ is called Adam also—“second Adam” or might properly be called the new Adam or new man. 1 Cor. 15:45-47 says, “And so it is written, the first Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual but that which is natural and afterward that which is spiritual. The first man is of the earth, earthy; the second man is the Lord from heaven.” In Rom. 5:14 we read, “Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.” 1 Cor. 15:21, 22 says, “For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.” The terms “new man” and “old man” apparently are derived from these heads of the two creations. The “new man” is identical with the new creature, and refers to our condition in the old defiled creation of Adam.

We partake of the nature of Adam in natural birth. Here is the basic principle which requires our being born again. We were born on the wrong side the first time, hence must be born again to get straightened out on the right course of life. Therefore, the child is one step below the standard of moral purity and holiness in which man was created at birth. Then when he reaches the age of accountability, the inherited nature of Adam causes him to fall into willful disobedience of God’s law and thus he partakes of the sinful life of Adam. He then possesses both the nature and the life of the old Adam or “Old Man.” We might say at this point without changing the meaning at all that in salvation we put off Adam (the old Adam) and put on Christ (the new Adam).

WILLFUL SIN

When the child reaches the age of accountability before God and falls into willful disobedience to God’s law and becomes guilty of sin and a partaker of the sinful life, this is more than just the nature or principle which in itself is not productive of guilt but is the fruit of that nature or the projection of it into a way of life of actual sins committed which bring guilt and condemnation on the soul. This, then, takes him a second step lower than the plane on which man was created. However, we must not confuse the hereditary sin or seed of sin or principle of sin with sin acquired or committed. Some find the idea of our inheriting a seed of sin objectionable on the grounds that they cannot conceive of an infant child just born into the world being a guilty sinner. That is exactly right but just what these folks are doing is confusing sin inherited with sin acquired or committed.

Inherited sin is never productive of guilt. Even though the infant child possesses within him the germ or seed of sin from his first parent, Adam, he remains in a state of perfect innocence before God until he reaches an age of accountability to know right from wrong and by an act of his own free will does the wrong thing.

This is covered by the principle laid down in Rom. 7:9-11, “For I was alive (in a state of innocence and relationship with God] without the law once; but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died [lost my innocence and became guilty before God]; And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death. For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me.” (Note: the words in brackets are mine; not a part of the written text.) Also in 1 John 3:4 we read, “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is a transgression of the law.” Again in Rom. 4:15 it is said, “Because the law worketh wrath; for where no law is, there is no transgression.” Rom. 5:13 says, “For until the law sin was in the world; but sin is not imputed where there is no law.” James 4:17 says, “Therefore, to him that knoweth to do good and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” These scriptures all sum up to the fact that a person must have knowledge of the law or will of God, and know what is right to do and then fail to do it before it is imputed to him as sin or charged against him as such and he becomes guilty before God. What is sometimes called sin inherited, is only a nature and is not productive of guilt. There must be a willful, knowing transgression of God’s law to make one guilty of sin before God. This principle would be applicable to all, beginning with the infant who had no knowledge of moral principles, on through persons of all ages who were innocently ignorant of God’s will on any point and had not yet received light or knowledge on this or that point. Rom. 4:6-8 says, “Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works, saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.”

1 John 5:17 says, “All unrighteousness is sin; and there is a sin not unto death.” In Rom. 7:8, 9, it says “But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead. For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.” Here is a reference to a sin that works sin, wrought sin, produced sin. That sinful nature that is inherent in all of Adam’s race lies dead or dormant—that is without power to produce guilt and condemnation—until the individual comes face to face with the commandment of God and a knowledge of God’s will (receives light). Then that corrupt nature, indwelling sin, seed or principle of sin revives, becomes active to cause us to fall into willful acts of sin and produces then guilt and condemnation of conscience because now the law has come to us. The following scriptures confirm this fact: John 3:19 “And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” John 9:41, “Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.” John 15:22-24, “If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloke for their sin. He that hateth me hateth my Father also. If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin; but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father.”

Just as the dust in a room rises or appears when the sunlight is let in; so when the light of God’s law enters the heart it causes sin to appear sin. Then we see in sin that which we had never seen in it before. We see sin in its causes, the bitter root, the corrupt bias. We see sin in its true colors, defining, deforming, breaking a righteous law, affronting an awful majesty, profaning a sovereign crown by casting it to the ground. We see sin in its consequences with death at its heels.

Thus sin revives and we die or lose our innocence before God in which we have lived up until then and become guilty before Him and condemned in our conscience.

There is perhaps nothing about which the natural man is more blind than about original or inherent corruption, concerning which the understanding is altogether in the dark until the Spirit by the law reveals it, and makes it known.

Now let us return to Romans 5:12 and look at it a little further. It is said in this scripture, “... so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.” There would surely be no question in any of our minds about all dying. All our ancestors have died and gone on and we see people around us dying every day and we all accept the fact that we will die. Death is such a common fact to us that we do not question the fact that all die. But in the text the fact that all die is predicted on the fact that all have sinned. Why can we not as readily accept that statement as the one preceding it?

Notwithstanding, there may be some question in the minds of some as to how this could be and whether it includes children, etc. I feel it the safest policy to accept the statement as it is in God’s Word whether we may be able to understand and explain every feature of it or not and especially when a statement that we all do accept without question is predicated upon this statement.

It is my persuasion that small children do sin. They do unrighteous things and “all unrighteousness is sin” (1 John 5:17). Very small children do things that are not right to do and things that they cannot do and remain in innocency before God when they get older and more mature in judgment and know that those things are morally wrong. They deceive their parents, fuss and fight over their toys, strike each other, bite and scratch and pull hair when another child has a toy that they want. They throw temper tantrums when they can’t have their own way and many other things that are not right and is therefore sin in the strict sense of the word. All of this indicates something in that child’s nature that is selfish. Selfishness is a prime evil and the first condition of discipleship is to let a man deny himself and take up his cross and follow Jesus. It also indicates something in that child’s nature to want his own way and to rebel when he can’t have it.

The question has been asked: “What makes a child cry?” Ordinary crying could be for many ordinary causes but when a child throws a temper tantrum because he cannot have his own way, that goes deeper and indicates that something is in his nature to want his own way. His actions show the rebellion inside of him against not being able to have his own way. I have seen some real small children throw themselves in the floor, kick, roll, bump their heads on the floor, scream, yell, and cry because they could not have something their own way. You may say, “My child doesn’t have those kind of spells. I just won’t allow it and he knows just what he would get for trying something like that.” Well, that is real wonderful and you ought not to allow your child to act that way. But if you have your child under better control than that, it does not mean that he does not have the same thing in his nature that the child has that does act that way. But he just knows he could not get by with it. But you just let him alone and exercise no control over him and he will be just as bad as that other child that is not under proper control. Take the whole lot of them and just leave them all to themselves and they will all be bad that way because it is in their very nature to be selfish, to want their own way and to rebel against it when they can’t have it.

Let us compare the moral man who doesn’t lie, steal, cheat, drink, gamble, and commit adultery, etc. with the man who does. We would all agree that he needs salvation just as bad as the man who does those things and will be lost just the same as he, if he isn’t born again. He has the same sin in him as the other fellow but it just has not developed that far and borne that much fruit.

The little child grows up doing or acting wrong all along at times in a greater or lesser degree. But because he is not developed far enough in mental and moral perception to exercise sound judgment in regard to moral principles, sin is not imputed unto him and he is held in a state of complete innocency before God.

We may get the idea that in order for a child to come under condemnation at his age of accountability, he must do something different or commit some special kind of sin. That is a mistake. In many instances the child may cross that line living just like he has all the time from real small childhood. Perhaps he comes to that point with no unusual thing happening in his life in the way of any pronounced or gross sin. Maybe he never steals or swears or takes God’s name in vain or any of these bad sins. But what actually happens in many cases is that the child comes to the point where God sees he is sufficiently developed in his judgment and moral and mental perception for Him to deal with and he can understand now what His dealings will mean to him, so He sends His Spirit to visit this child’s heart, enlighten him, and it suddenly dawns on him, “I am wrong. I have been doing wrong all along. Every time I snatched toys from my playmates and every time I pulled hair, scratched, hit, fussed and fought around with him when he had something I wanted and would not give it up; every time I acted selfishly and even wanted to take something away from him instead of letting him play with it, every time I pouted or stomped, screamed and had a temper tantrum when I could not have my own way, every time I practiced deceit against my parents and took any advantage of them and every time I disobeyed my parents, etc., it was all wrong.” The child begins now to feel these things wrong and understand what is involved in them. He realizes through the conviction of God’s Spirit now what he has never realized before and that is he is wrong (morally wrong) and needs to repent and be forgiven and get things straightened out and adjusted in his life.

Sometimes those who are better instructed and their convictions go deeper, feel it necessary for them to go back to their parents or sometimes others, and confess their wrongs to them, even that they did in innocency before they were morally accountable for it.

Now a grown person living in a justified experience before God, which brings them back to the state of the little child in innocency in God’s sight, (Matt. 18:3) cannot do those things that the small child does and remain justified and in a state of innocency before God because he is already sufficiently developed in judgment, moral and mental understanding, that he understands those things to be wrong (morally wrong) in contradiction with the moral law of God and if he does them he will fall under condemnation before God.

The difference here is in the state of the individuals involved and not in the nature of the things involved. These things are in just as much contradiction with God’s moral law when the small child does it as when the grown person does it. But the small child, being in an undeveloped infantile state in his understanding as well as physically, is not accountable morally for his doings, because he is not even supposed to know and understand these things; while a grown man, being advanced in understanding and mature in judgment as well as physically, is supposed to understand moral principles of right and wrong, and therefore is accountable.

I have in mind a young brother who had much trouble in his early spiritual life. Most of his trouble was because of impatience and temper. And much of the time it would happen to him when he was all alone and things would go wrong. When he would be working in the field and something would go wrong, he would feel impatient or lose his temper. He would feel condemned in his conscience on that account because he understood and knew that was not right. Generally, the people who knew him and had association with him, could not tell from the way he lived that he did not have the victory because he lived outwardly good all the time. But his trouble was mostly with himself; much of the time by himself and within himself because he would be condemned over these things. But a little child does not feel that condemnation over his temper tantrums because he does not know but what that is the way for him to do in order to get what he wants.

But God could not take these little children to heaven having that in them that would cause them to pull hair, strike and scratch each other and scream and kick and squall around and snatch things from each other and fuss and fight. It would turn out to be a very unpleasant place to be. Jesus Christ acts as a guardian for his soul until he comes to accountability and if he dies in that state of innocency before God, not having come to accountability before God morally, so as to act on his will in regard to these things, Jesus applies His blood to his soul without an act of his will and purges him from that nature and fits him to go on into heaven.

Someone asked me that if it were true that we could inherit a depraved or corrupt nature, why would it not also be true that we could inherit a righteous nature? Whatever we may inherit by way of nature, traits and dispositions from our parents, we inherit what they were by nature and not what they are by grace, so that it would not be possible to inherit holiness from them even though both of them may be saved and sanctified. Whatever degree of grace they may possess, it is the work of God, and the work of God in the soul cannot be transmitted from father to son.

But let me stress that the transmission of the one’s spiritual nature is from the royal head of the race, whether it be the old creation (Adam), or the new creation (Christ), and is not from our immediate parents. We were born of Adam (the old creation) the first time and inherited his depravity of nature. Now if we will be born again of God (the new creation), the righteous One, we will inherit from Him His righteous nature.

When one is born again, born of God, he does inherit from Him a righteous nature as the following scriptures will prove. Col. 3:10, “And have put on the new man which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him.” Eph. 4:24, “And that ye put on the new man which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” Acts 26:18, “That they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.” Col. 1:12, “Giving thanks unto the Father which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light.” Acts 20:32, “And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.” Read 2 Peter 1:1-4. Verse 4 says, “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of his divine nature having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” Rom. 8:29, “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.” These scriptures all declare that for the twice-born soul, saints in light, sanctified, there is a special inheritance which consists of a conformity to His image which is declared to be “righteousness and true holiness” and being a “partaker of His divine nature.” So we see that when one is born again of the righteous One, he does inherit a righteous nature. But we must not overlook the fact that everything checks back to Adam and Christ, who are the royal heads of the two races—natural and spiritual.

Once when I was discussing the native depravity before a class and spoke of it as corrupt, someone asked, “What do you mean by corrupt? Do you mean vile, wicked, ungodly?” Now all of these terms are all right when applied properly, but not in their common usage or as they are usually looked upon in their extreme form. All of these have varied degrees from the lesser to the greater as there are also degrees of holiness. When we think of these terms, we commonly think of them in their finished, extreme, exaggerated form and connect them with the drunken sot, the lascivious and unclean wretch, the whoremonger, the woman of the streets and profane and vulgar persons, etc. Consequently we revolt at the thought of looking upon a child as in that class and that is exactly right. The child is innocent. But, at the same time, that child has deep within his being a nature which contains in an undeveloped and embryonic form the seed that may later on produce in his life any or all of these fruits of sin in their extreme form.

JESUS, OUR REDEEMER

We see then that the entire human race stood in need of redemption. Jesus Christ is declared to be our redeemer. Gal. 4:4, 5 says, “But when the fullness of the times was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” Titus 2:14 says, “Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity.” Col. 1:14 says, “In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.” Rev. 5:9, “And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood, out of every kindred, and tongue, and people and nation.”

But redemption implies a restoration to a primitive or former state. For an example:  Suppose you borrow $1,000.00 and make a note for that amount to be paid in twenty $50.00 payments and secure it with a mortgage on your home. Then suppose you pay ten of those payments and go to the banker and tell him you would like to have the mortgage lifted off your property. He will check the record and find that you have only paid half of what is owing on the note and will tell you that the mortgage cannot be cleared until you have paid the full amount. Then suppose when you have paid nineteen of the twenty payments, you go to him again and ask for the mortgage to be lifted. He will check his record again and note there is still one payment owing on it and inform you that it cannot be cleared until that payment is made. But when you make the last payment and the full amount of the note is paid, you can require him to clear the mortgage and if he should refuse to do so, you could take him to court and compel him to. This makes it clear that in order for a thing to be redeemed, it must be just as free from debt as it was before any debt was made on it.

This is true of redeeming the soul, also. As already observed at some length, the transgression and consequent fall of Adam affected all of his posterity and plunged the entire human race into sin. Paul said in Rom. 7:14, “... I am carnal, sold under sin.” Our father, Adam, sold all of his posterity down the river and delivered us to be bondservants to another man. The devil held a blanket mortgage on the entire human race which could not be lifted until a suitable sacrifice to satisfy God’s justice could be made. Jesus Christ made this sacrifice. In Isaiah 53:11 it is said: “He shall see the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied.” The sacrifice of Christ fully satisfied the justice of God and the demands of His just law and constituted a full and complete redemption for the soul. When it is obtained in the soul and carried through to its completion, it fully restores the soul to the original state of righteousness and true holiness in which it was created.

Man, today, is, in general, the same as he was created, possessing now the essential characteristics that he did then except in one particular sense. He has undergone a change in his moral nature through the fall and has lost that moral likeness, purity, holiness in the image of God which he possessed when he came fresh from the hand of God.

This is the full aspect of the redemptive plan as it affects man morally. The redemption of the body from death is also part of the plan and that will be realized in its fullness at the resurrection of the dead in the last day when death shall be destroyed and his dominion broken and the body comes forth immortal and glorious to live forevermore.

THE TWO STEPS

Since, as we have already observed and proved, man in his unregenerate state is two steps below the state of moral purity and holiness (the image and likeness of God) in which he was created and since, as has been observed and proved, those two steps are of a different nature consisting first of the native depravity (an inherent corrupt nature in the child at birth but which is not productive of guilt) and later on the committing of actual sin which produced a state of guilt and condemnation; it must be evident that there must also be two steps back to the original state; two parts to man’s salvation, or two works of divine grace. The two forms in which sin exists in the human soul must be dealt with in different ways to suit the nature of the case. The Bible throughout teaches this two-fold salvation—saved, justified; then sanctified or baptized with the Holy Ghost. That is what I believe in.

In 2 Cor. 1:15 we read, “And in this confidence I was minded to come unto you before, that ye might have a second benefit.” The margin here says “grace” in the place of “benefit.” We believe in that. A person is saved, regenerated by a work of God’s grace upon his heart and then he is sanctified—perfected in his experience—by a second definite work of God’s grace upon his heart.

Again in 1 Thess. 3:9, 10 we read, “For what thanks can we render to God again for you, for all the joy wherewith we joy for your sakes before our God; Night and day praying exceedingly that we might see your face, and might perfect that which is lacking in your faith.” We would judge from the first epistle to the Thessalonians all the way through that these people were truly saved and their condition was commendable. Yet there seems to have been a lack in their faith. Sanctification is a work of grace or experience that is entered into by faith the same as justification. If a person does not have sufficient faith to make the required consecration and then receive the sanctifying grace, he certainly has a defect in his faith. Then, too, the faith which was once delivered unto the saints involves a complete experience of full and uttermost salvation and if one is only saved, no matter how truly saved he is, and not sanctified, there is something lacking in his faith. Paul was anxious to see these folks that he might perfect that which was lacking in their faith and he declared in 1 Thess. 4:3 that this is the will of God even your sanctification and goes on in that chapter and the next to describe the experience, the need and to declare God’s ability and faithfulness to do that for them.

Heb. 10:14 says, “For by one offering He has perfected forever them that are sanctified.” This makes it clear that the perfecting of our experience is in our sanctification and that was what Paul was anxious to see the Thessalonian brethren obtain.

In Jude 3 we read, “Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered to the saints.” This does not mean to enter into strife of words and debates nor to contend physically or carnally. These things are all condemned in the Word of God. But we are to contend for that faith in its entirety—its doctrines, its personal regenerating and sanctifying experiences, its spiritual life, its holiness, its power, its gifts of the Spirit, its unity of believers and its fruits.

But first contend for it within yourself against the devil and unbelief, doubts and fears that you may possess within yourself the fullness of the blessings of the gospel of Christ. This is to be done by all and if all do this we will find the entire church in possession of all the provisions of the faith which was once delivered to the saints.

The early church possessed this faith in its entirety and was able to produce its fruits and as a part of it they were ALL filled with the Holy Ghost. It was a wholly sanctified church and was able to live a victorious life and triumph over all opposition. The emphasis with them was on the Holy Ghost. Jesus emphasized the Holy Ghost. In Luke 24:49 He said, “And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem until ye be endued with power from on high.” But He said again in Acts 1:8, “But ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you...” The baptism of the Holy Ghost was the promise of the Father, Joel 2:28; John 7:37-39; Acts 2:16, 17. Again in John 16:7 Jesus said, “Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.” Then in Acts 1:4, 5 just before He was taken from them into heaven He said, “And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.” All believers in the early church were filled with the Holy Ghost. Acts 2:4 and Acts 4:31.

Paul’s first question to the disciples at Ephesus was, “Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed?” Acts 19:1, 2. When the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the Word of God at the preaching of Philip they sent Peter and John unto them to see to it that they received the Holy Ghost. Acts 8:14-17.

Surely that is the next thing in order after one is saved and the sooner the better and easier it is. When one is just in his first love and in possession of a brand new experience with God and relationship with Christ, the burden of sin, guilt and condemnation has just been lifted off him and he is bubbling with zeal and spiritual energy and feels well able to run through a troop and jump over a wall, it would be real easy at that time to present his body a living sacrifice and complete his experience of salvation by receiving the Holy Ghost. Much of the difficulty in obtaining this experience and much of the confusion surrounding the doctrine comes from folks who have halted too long in a justified state until they have had some ups and downs, their zeal has kind of cooled off, their love kind of waned and they actually needed a renewal of their experience. Knowing they needed something they decided it was sanctification they needed and they put in for that, when it was actually a renewing of their experience and covenant with God they needed. When such people have obtained a blessing upon their soul from God, they call it sanctification, when really it was just a renewing of their justification and then when it does not do for them all they thought it should they become confused and begin to flounder around and sometimes never get really established.

Now let us return to the thought that man in his unregenerate state is two steps below the state of moral purity and holiness in which he was created. Then it must be evident unto all that there are just as many steps in a flight of stairs going up as there are going down. Also that the last step coming down the stairs will be the first step going up. Also that one cannot take the second step until he has taken the first one. Also that when one has taken the first step it puts him in a natural position to take the second one in stride.

In this case the first step down is the fallen, depraved nature which we all partake of from Adam and the second step is the actual sins committed in the life of the individual after he comes to an age of accountability before God which produce guilt and condemnation in his soul.

Since man is two degrees below the plane of holiness and purity in which he was created, it must naturally be understood that there must be two parts to his redemption or restoration—two successive steps in bringing him back to the primitive state of purity and holiness in God’s image and likeness—and he cannot be reckoned to be completely restored to perfect purity and holiness until both steps have been taken.

This thought has been objectionable to some on the grounds that they feel that the God that they serve just does not do any half-way work. I agree to that point. But what I am talking about here is not any half-way work. It is two complete, entire works. When God saves a man from sin and forgives his transgressions, He saves him from all sin and forgives him of all his transgressions—no half-way work here. It is the same when He sanctifies him. He sanctifies him wholly, entirely, through and through—no half-way work here—and fills him full of the Holy Ghost and thoroughly purges his nature from all impurity.

But, it is sometimes argued, our God is not so puny that He has to take two efforts at anything to accomplish it and certainly not with our salvation. I readily agree with this point that there is no weakness in God and that from God’s end it would be very easy for Him to accomplish the entire thing in one operation. But the difficulty here lies in man’s weakness and inability; not in any weakness or insufficiency on God’s part. The reason is evident. Sin exists in two forms—inherent and acquired; native depravity and actual transgressions—and must therefore be dealt with in two different ways. But man is an intelligent, free-acting agent, possessing freedom of will so that he can of his own volition decide his course of conduct. God never violates this right of man to exercise his will freely and an act of one’s will is involved in all of God’s dealings with his soul. “Whosoever will, let him take the waters of life freely.” In order to be saved, one must of his own free will choose to repent of sin, forsake it, choose to cast his lot with God and meet all conditions in order to obtain forgiveness for his sins—actual transgressions. But this does not touch that depraved nature within him because that is not dealt with through repentance but through consecration. There must also be a volitional act of one’s will in recognizing this inherent depravity of nature, renouncing and rejecting it. Appealing to God for a purging of it and a willful yielding of one’s body and complete consecration of his life to God before God could be justified in performing this operation within him to purify his nature and fill him with the Holy Ghost.

But since one’s will must act in this part of his salvation as well as in his being saved, it is evident that he must recognize the existence of the thing before his will could act toward God for its cleansing. But it is not possible that we could recognize this depravity of nature within us which within itself is not productive of guilt, hence produces no condemnation so long as our actual sins are crowding our conscience with condemnation. One is never conscious of it and could not be conscious of it until he actually forsakes sin and begins to live a holy life and then he is brought face to face with the reality of it. It is in his special efforts to live this holy life that he becomes painfully conscious of that depraved nature within him conflicting with his efforts to maintain that holy life and his soul begins to cry out to God for an experience of heart purity. But God will never deal with this until we recognize it and become willing for Him to deal with it.

Now let me ask you this. Why did God not reveal unto you the full light and knowledge of His will all at once when you were first saved? Why has it taken this long for you to get where you are in God? The answer is clear. It is because you were not able to receive it that way and God just plainly had mercy on you to not crowd light on you faster than you were able to receive it and thus bring you into condemnation. Why did God not give the children of Israel the full light of this gospel age at Sinai instead of just giving them the law which could not bring them to where He wanted man to be? The answer is the same. They were not able nor in any condition to receive such light as the gospel gives and it would have destroyed them. God had mercy on them in giving them just what they were able to receive at the time even though it did not satisfy Him and He found fault with it from the beginning.

The Apostles whom Jesus chose to be with Him and whom He made foundation stones in the Church of God were not able to receive all that He said unto them while He was with them. Then Jesus told them in John 16:12 that He had many things to say unto them yet but they were not able to bear it at that time. He never said those things to them, either. But why didn’t He? Simply because He knew they were not able to grasp them and they, no doubt, would have become confused and discouraged by those things which were beyond them. Jesus left it for the Holy Spirit to teach them many things. It was some time before even the Holy Spirit could get to them all they needed to know because way down in the 15th chapter of Acts we find most of them were still holding to circumcision and clinging to fragments of the law. It took some strong arguments and some special dealings and revelations to them to get them out of that teaching.  At that time they had been filled with the Holy Spirit for some time.

God, in His wisdom, has from olden times revealed Himself and His attributes, nature, truth, and will to man little by little and in various ways. Now, would any of us say that in any of the above mentioned cases that God did not reveal the full light and knowledge of His will to the new convert, or did not give the full light of this gospel age to the children of Israel at Sinai, or did not say everything He had to say to the Apostles, or revealed Himself to mankind little by little, because He did not want them to have the full light or know His perfect will or that He was not able to make it known to them or was not able to reveal Himself in all of His attributes and nature all at once and by direct means? Of course not. Then why didn’t He? Simply because He was too wise and merciful to do it but has dealt in simple ways and means with mankind according to man’s capacity and ability for receiving the things of God. The provisions of salvation are set up on this basis also and herein lies the cause why God cannot complete the full work of perfect salvation all in one operation.

Even though man has been given a mind that is capable of a vast expanse of development, the foregoing sums up to the fact that he can only receive so much at one time and the unfolding and expanding of his intellect is more or less gradual. This fact coupled together with our free moral agency and the requirement that our will must act in every dealing of God with our souls is a plain, clear answer as to why there must be two operations in our salvation and a gradual increase of light and knowledge beyond that.

The universal testimony of the holy scriptures in both the Old Testament (in type) and the New Testament (in anti-type and actual experience) is that there are two parts to man’s salvation—two works of grace—and that his salvation is not complete without both of them.

JUSTIFICATION

Let us consider the two compartments in the tabernacle and also the children of Israel crossing the Red Sea and subsequently the river Jordan.

These and other related points will be dealt with in more detail later. But, at least for the present, since there were two parts in the tabernacle and since the type must conform exactly to the anti-type, there are conclusive grounds to prove two parts to man’s salvation. That is sufficient for the present purpose.

Since the last step down was the actual sins and transgressions in the life which produced guilt and condemnation in the soul, then the first step up must of necessity be to deal with that and have the guilt and condemnation removed out of the soul and restored to a state of innocence before God, as we were in early childhood, by the forgiveness of those sins and the purging of them out of our hearts by the blood of Jesus. This, then, is the first part of our salvation.

This work of grace in the heart is based upon true Bible repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. In Acts 20:21 we read, “Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.”

REPENTANCE—Acts 17:30 says, “The times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent.” In Acts 3:19 Peter says: “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.” Acts 5:31 says, “Him hath God exalted with his right hand, to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.” In Acts 2:38 we read, “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” Luke 24:47 says, “And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.” Luke 13:3 says, “... except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.” Mark 1:15 says, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.”

REPENTANCE INVOLVES—First, a forsaking of sin. In Isa. 55:7 it says, “Let the wicked forsake his ways and the unrighteous man his thoughts ...” Again in Isa. 1:16, 17 we read, “Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil:  Learn to do well; ... .” Webster defines repentance as a turning away in heart and practice from that which is forbidden to that which is required. This definition is sustained also in the Holy Scriptures. Ezek. 33:11 says, “Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?” Ezek. 18:30-32 says, “Repent and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin. Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit ... For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.” In James 1:21 we read, “Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.” 1 Pet. 2:1, 2 says, “Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies and all evil speakings, As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.” Eph. 4:22 says, “That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind.” Read on through verse 32. Read also Col. 3:8-14.

SECOND—A confession of sins. In 1 John 1:9 we read, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.” Psa. 32:5 says, “I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin.” Prov. 28:13 says, “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper; but whoso confessed and forsaketh them shall have mercy.”

THIRD—A making of restitution. In Ezek. 33:14-16 we read, “Again, when I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; if he turn from his sin, and do that which is lawful and right; If the wicked restore the pledge, give again that he had robbed, walk in the statutes of life, without committing iniquity; he shall surely live, he shall not die. None of his sins that he hath committed shall be mentioned unto him, he hath done that which is lawful and right; he shall surely live.” Among other things that Zachaeus said to the Lord in Luke 19:8, 9 were these words, “If I have taken anything from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold.” In Matt. 5:23-26 Jesus taught that if we bring our gift to the altar and remember there that our brother has ought against us, to leave our gift before the altar and first go and be reconciled with him. In other words, make our wrongs right and straighten up our past life with every person. This is very important and many fail to obtain mercy and saving grace at this point.

FOURTH—A forgiving of those who have wronged us. In Matt. 6:12 Jesus taught us to pray, “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” And when He had finished teaching them to pray, He went back and picked up this thought again and said in Matt. 6:14, 15, “For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” Luke 17:3-6 says, “Take heed to yourselves; If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him. And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him...” Mark 11:25, 26 says, “And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any; that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.” In Matt. 18:21-35 we are taught by Jesus Himself the great importance of having mercy and forgiving all and that those who fail to do this are held under the bondage of their own sins—unforgiven because they fail to forgive. We are taught here that we are to forgive seventy times seven times which surely would require that we be possessed of a spirit of mercy and forgiveness. This is so important to one seeking mercy and pardon from God and many fail to obtain salvation for no other cause only failing to forgive another.

BIBLE REPENTANCE is predicated upon godly sorrow. 2 Cor. 7:10, 11 says, “For godly sorrow worketh repentance unto salvation not to be repented of: For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness is wrought in you, yea what clearing of yourselves.” This kind of repentance plus a saving faith in Jesus Christ brings about a complete absolution from guilt and restores one to a state of complete innocence before God as he was when a small child.

This experience is called in the scriptures:

FIRST: Justification. This is the legal aspect of our salvation and signifies an absolving from guilt. Man has a responsibility to God’s law and when guilty of a transgression of that law possesses no power to free himself from the law’s just claims. But Christ gave Himself as a ransom for sinners, thus paying a sufficient satisfaction to God’s justice and on that basis when our sins are confessed in the Bible way, they are laid upon Him and His righteousness becomes ours and we stand in the same relation to God as though we had never sinned. Guilt and condemnation are removed from us and we stand acquitted, pardoned and entirely innocent before God. The following scriptures confirm this to be so. 2 Cor. 5:21, “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” Rom. 5:1, “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Rom. 5:17-19. “For if by the offence of one death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ. Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.” Rom. 3:23-28, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what

law? of works? Nay; but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the works of the law.”

SECOND: Conversion. In Matt. 18:3 Jesus said, “...except you be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” In Acts 3:19 Peter said, “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out,” etc. Conversion in its general sense refers to a change from one state to another state. In scripture and as it pertains to our salvation, it refers to a real change in heart and life from an evil state to a righteous state. Acts 26:18 says, “To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God...”

THIRD: The new birth. In John 1:11-13 we read, “He came unto His own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power (right or privilege—margin) to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:              Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” Jesus said in John 3:3, “... Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Again in verse 5 He said, “... Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” And again in verse 7 He said, “Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.” In 1 John 5:1 we read, “Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: ...” 1 John 3:9 says, “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin because he is born of God.” 1 Peter 1:23 says, “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever.” 1 John 2:29 says, “If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that everyone that doeth righteousness is born of him.” 1 John 3:1, 2 says, “Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God;... Beloved, now are we the sons of God.” And finally Rom. 8:16 says, “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.”

The prominent idea connected with birth is life. In 1 John 3:14 we read, “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.” And again in John 5:24, “He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”

This birth is of the Spirit and from above. John 3:3, 5 (margin). Birth is connected with new life, and not the mature life. In this experience a new spiritual life (the life of Christ) is imparted to the soul. In 1 John 5:11, 12 we read, “And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.” 1 John 4:9, “In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.” Col. 3:4 says, “When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.” Note this text states Christ to be our life. In John 6:51-58 we read of our eating of Christ’s flesh and drinking of His blood and that by so doing we have life and if we do not do this we have no life in us. Verse 57 says if we eat of Him we shall live by Him. This scripture shows Christ to be received into the soul in a mariner comparable to food being received into the body—eating and drinking. It is the food that we take into our body which sustains our life and rebuilds and replenishes the cells of the body. That food becomes assimilated into our bodies and absorbed into our bodies until it becomes inseparable from our bodies and actually becomes in a very real sense our bodies. So when one is born of God and receives Christ into his soul, he receives Him in the very same manner and Christ becomes absorbed into his life until He, in a very real sense becomes our very life and being.

Old and New Testament Justification

The justification obtainable under the New Testament is far superior to the justification obtainable under the law. In Acts 13:38, 39 we read, “Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.” Note, it is stated here that we who believe can be justified from all things from which they could not be justified under the law.

Justification under the law was obtained by the shedding of blood. Heb. 9:22, “And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.” But in that case it was the blood of animals. Lev. 6:6, 7 says, “And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the Lord, a ram without blemish out of the flock, with thy estimation, for a trespass offering unto the priest. And the priest shall make an atonement for him before the Lord: And it shall be forgiven him for any thing of all that he hath done in trespassing therein.” In Lev. 4:20, 26, 31, and 35 where the sin offering is under consideration, it gives instruction how to proceed with the sin offering and it says in these verses that “The priest shall make an atonement for him as concerning his sin, and it shall be forgiven him.” Also read Lev. 5:10, 13, 16, and 18 which only states the same thing over. The same thing is stated again in Num. 25:25-28.

In all these texts a promise is contained of the forgiveness of sins when the blood of animals is shed. The forgiveness of sins is all that was promised here and that is the only justification they received under the law. But they did obtain pardon and the pardon they received is as good as the pardon we receive through the blood of Christ. Now please do not misunderstand me to be saying here that their salvation was as good as ours; far from it. But pardon is pardon no matter on what condition it is granted. But that was the full extent of justification obtainable under the law. Such sacrifices were not sufficient to take away sins. Heb. 10:3, 4 says: “But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.” Verse 11 says: “And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices which can never take away sins.”

It is not said here that these sacrifices could not obtain forgiveness of sins, but that they could not take away sins. There is a difference between forgiving sins and taking away sins.

For instance: If one who was a liar would receive law justification, he would be forgiven for all the lies he had told, but would not receive power over the evil habit to refrain from lying thereafter. He had been a liar because he was inwardly disposed to lying and as the law sacrifices could only forgive sins but could not take away sins, he would not be delivered from the inward disposition to falsify. He would soon be found indulging in the evil practice again and would stand in need of another repentance. Hence, there was a remembrance of sins made every year and a big annual day of repentance and sacrifice for sins was observed. Read. Lev. 23:27-29.

But in New Testament justification under grace the individual is actually justified from those things from which he could not be justified under the law. In other words, he does not only receive forgiveness for the sins committed but he also receives a cleansing away of all sinful habits out of the heart thus enabling him to live without committing sin. Under the law dispensation there was a remembrance made of sins every year but in this dispensation God says that our sins and iniquities will be remembered no more. Heb. 10:16, 17. This is based on the fact that the blood of Christ not only forgives our past sins but imparts at the same time grace to live without committing sin. Hence, no further remembrance of sins is necessary.

Justification is twofold. It has a positive and negative side to it. It provides for the forgiveness of all past sins when properly confessed and forsaken and also provides for a cleansing from the power of all sinful habits thus enabling one to refrain from committing sin. In 1 John 1:9 we read, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Righteousness in this text refers more to one’s outward acts than to their inward condition or nature. Righteousness is a form of the word right and signifies a doing of those things which are right. Unrighteousness, then, would signify a doing of those things which are not right or committing sin.

In New Testament justification, life is imparted unto the soul, the very Christ-life. This was not obtainable under the law justification. In Gal. 3:21 we read, “Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.”

New Testament justification brings peace with God. Rom. 5:1, “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Guilty sinners under condemnation could not have this. Isa. 48:22, “There is no peace, saith the Lord, to the wicked.”

But New Testament justification frees one from condemnation. Rom. 8:1 says, “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”

New Testament justification produces a holy life. Those who are justified before God do not commit sin but live a holy life free from sin. 1 John 3:8, 9 says, “He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.” And again in Heb. 3:1 we read, “Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling,...” In this text the brethren are called holy brethren but they were not perfected because the great burden of the entire epistle is to show an advanced degree of grace under the types of the Jewish Sanctuary and is an exhortation to go on to perfection. Heb. 6:1, “Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection.” And also it contains an exhortation to enter into the holiest of all which was not possible before the shedding of Christ’s blood. Heb. 9:8 says, “The Holy Ghost this signifying that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as yet the first tabernacle was yet standing.” Again Heb. 10:19 says, “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus.” We are told in 2 Cor. 7:1, “Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” This perfection is our sanctification. Heb. 10:14, “For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.”

In Rom. 12:1, 2 we are instructed to present our bodies holy unto the Lord and this is so we can prove the perfect will of God and the will of God is declared to be our sanctification in 1 Thess. 4:3.

All of these texts sum up to the fact that one who is justified is living a holy life free from sin but that there is another degree of holiness to be obtained which is declared to be “perfecting holiness.”

The Grafting In

I will here consider a question that has been advanced by some in regards to Luke 6:43 and Matt. 7:17, 18 which declare that a good tree cannot bring forth corrupt fruit and a corrupt tree cannot bring forth good fruit. The question is: If the depraved nature still exists in the justified person and he needs an additional cleansing and work of grace to free him from it, can he do right and bring forth good fruit?

When one is born again, he receives a new life into his soul which is the Christ life and is holy—free from sin. In the 11th chapter of Romans we have a discussion of how the Jews were cast away and the Gentiles were accepted in among the people of God and it is referred to as a grafting, verses 17-24. Of course, this was referring to people and nations, etc., but what applies to them collectively will also apply individually so far as God and the principle is concerned because the application of salvation is on an individual basis. Job 34:29 says. “When he giveth quietness, who then can make trouble? and when he hideth his face, who then can behold him? whether it be done against a nation, or against a man only.”

Whatever or however much this passage in the 11th chapter of Romans involves, it at least serves to instruct us that there is a spiritual process with God that is equivalent to grafting and is called grafting. This pretty well explains how I see the receiving of the Christ-life in the justified experience while the inward depravity of nature still exists in the individual.

This experience is called a circumcision of the heart in Romans 2:29. This circumcision is said to consist in our putting away the sins of the flesh (the old sinful life) in Col. 2:11.

The process of grafting in the 11th chapter of Romans is described as breaking off the natural branches and grafting in others. Naturally, in grafting, an incision must be made and the new graft inserted. This is equivalent to this process called circumcision of the heart. It is described as putting away the sins of the flesh (the old branch is broken off) an incision is made (an operation takes place) and the new graft is inserted and from then on the fruit is according to that which was grafted in.

Lining the long driveway leading into the saints’ camp ground in Pacoima, California are 15 orange trees on either side. This is all grafted stock which means that a part of a tree bearing a different kind of fruit has been grafted in on a different root stock. These trees all produce good oranges. But something happened to two of these trees and they got broken off and then grew out from beneath the bud and produced a different kind of fruit to what it did before. The fruit produced on these two trees now has a real thick, rough, pale peeling and is real sour like a lemon and we use them to make lemonade. In this case the root was different from the tree and when the tree got broken off and grew out from beneath the bud it grew from the old root and produced different fruit.

So in the justified experience. The Christ life is grafted into the incision made and the fruits of the Christ-life are born. As long as the person is very watchful, prayerful and careful and keeps a close contact with God and keeps victory over sin in his life by the grace of God, he will continue to bear the fruits of the Christ-life. As long as he does well, he will be accepted (Gen. 4:7). But if by any means he becomes a little slack, gives advantage to Satan, succumbs to his temptations, fails of the grace of God, loses his victory and his contact with Him and lets sin get into his life then that grafted tree is broken off and the tree will grow up from the old root and bear a different kind of fruit.

Romans 11:24 declares grafting to be contrary to nature. We know that all grafting is contrary to nature. A person in a justified experience is not altogether according to nature either from the standpoint of sin or holiness. When in sin, we are by nature the children of wrath (Eph. 2:3) and naturally produce the fruits of wrath which is sin. Likewise the wholly sanctified person is a partaker of the divine nature (2 Pet. 1:4) and by nature, then, he produces his fruit unto holiness—the fruits of the Spirit. But the justified person is more or less in an intermediate state (unnatural). The Christ-life has been grafted in contrary to nature (his depraved nature) and he is more or less in a dual state still possessing the inherent depravity of nature but having a grafted-in Christ-life which is holy. Anyone in such a condition, we could readily see would be unestablished and therefore we can easily see the urgent need of such a one pressing on to the completion of his salvation and obtaining that grace wherein we stand or are established (Romans 5:2).

A clear type of this is seen in the children of Israel. In Egypt which is a type of sinful bondage they lived off the natural fruit of the ground—leeks, garlic, onions, lintels, melons, etc. which all grew from the natural soil. In the wilderness they had no natural products of the soil to sustain life but God sent them manna from heaven. This was only a temporary arrangement for them and a very unenduring substance and when they got in the land of Canaan which is typical of the sanctified experience they again lived off the natural produce from the soil and ate the old corn of the land. There never was any more manna after they arrived in the land of Canaan which shows it to be only a temporary provision—Josh. 5:10-12.

I see it this way with one’s life. When in sin one produces fruit according to his nature which is a depraved nature. When he becomes justified—born again—he receives a grafting in of the Christ-life and produces fruit according to that and not according to his nature. When he presses on into the wholly sanctified state and experience, he again bears fruit according to his nature but in that experience his nature is changed and now he possesses the divine nature.

I have been challenged on this point and was told that we were inducted into Christ or grafted into Him and not Him into us. My answer to that argument is that the Bible teaches just as much about Christ being in us as it does us being in Him and our being born again is plainly declared to be our receiving of Christ in John 1:12, 13.

Tabernacle’s Two Rooms

Let us at this point consider another question which has been asked by some in regard to the two compartments of the tabernacle being typical of two parts of our salvation. The question is this: If that is the case and the holy place would be typical of the first part of our salvation or justification and the holiest of all or most holy place would be typical of the second part of our salvation or sanctification and if one still possessed the depraved nature in his justified state, would that mean there was corruption in the holy place and if not, why not since the justified man was in that place and still had his depraved or corrupt nature?

As already observed, the two compartments in the tabernacle are typical of two parts of our salvation or two degrees of grace. The first compartment is, of course, typical of the first experience of divine grace which in scripture is called justification, conversion, the new birth, and regeneration. That is what we are dealing with now and all the conditions for it—repentance, confession, restitution, forgiving those who have wronged us, etc. and all the results of it—forgiveness, remission of sins, putting away the body of the sins of the flesh, etc. This all has reference to the way we have been living and the things we have actually done (the sins we have committed) and does not deal with the inward condition of inherent depravity with which we were born. Therefore that depravity of nature is not dealt with in this experience.

However, as we have seen, a person is made a partaker of the Christ-life in this experience and that life is holy. He is saved from all sin and receives deliverance from the power of sinful habits, thus enabling him to live a life free from sin. When we lay the pattern down on his experience and that holy place covers his actual life and not his inward condition, applying it on that basis, I will say there is no corruption there. That life must be kept free from sin with no corruption in it for one to retain his justified relationship with God and free from condemnation. If corruption and sin get into that life,

it cancels his relationship with God and puts him clear outside the tabernacle.

Spirit of Christ

Let us consider here another important scripture that has been a stumbling block to some in understanding this wonderful truth. Rom. 8:9 says, “Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ he is none of his.” The reason this has proved a stumbling block to some is that they have interpreted this scripture as referring to the Holy Spirit and consequently conclude that one could not be saved without possessing the Holy Spirit—hence the conclusion is that a complete salvation is obtained at one time. But I do not interpret this text that way and for the following reasons:

We would certainly agree that Christ’s spirit was holy. He knew no sin (2 Cor. 5:21). He did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth (1 Pet. 2:22). He was tempted in all points as we are; yet without sin (Heb. 4:15). Hence He was holy and possessed the spirit of holiness.

Christ also possessed the Holy Spirit within Him (He came upon Him in the bodily form of a dove at His baptism) the same as we possess Him when we are sanctified or baptized with the Holy Spirit.

But the Holy Spirit is a definite personage and is always identified in His own person the same as Jesus, the Son, and God, the Father.

The Holy Spirit is a member of the triune Godhead and is co-existent with God, the Father, and Jesus Christ, the Son—the Word. In Heb. 9:14 He is called the Eternal Spirit. And He is as distinct a person as either of the other two. Therefore it would be no more proper to refer to the Spirit of Christ meaning the Holy Spirit than it would be to turn it around and say the Christ of Holy Spirit. In either case we would be failing to observe the proper distinction between distinct persons.

Now let us notice some other scriptures which use the term “spirit of.” In the one referred to above (Rom. 8:9) we read of the Spirit of God and the Spirit of Christ. But let us look closely at this as we pass. It is said in the first part of this verse that “Ye are not in the flesh but in the spirit if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you.” I agree this could refer to the Holy Spirit because that is the Name of the entire God-head. But there is a period at this point and the sentence is complete. It expressed that complete thought. Then the verse goes on to say, “Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ [not the Spirit of God this time] he is none of His.” Then the next verse goes on to say, “And if Christ be in you,” etc. Here it seems to me that the Spirit of Christ in the last part of verse 9 and Christ Himself in the first part of verse 10 are used interchangeably.

This seems to me to correspond quite well with a couple of texts in the third chapter of 2 Cor. Verse 6 says that God has made us able ministers of the New Testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit; for the letter killeth but the spirit giveth life and verse 17 says, “Now the Lord is that Spirit.” Here it is declared that the Lord is that Spirit and it is clear that it is not the Spirit of Christ but Christ Himself is the spirit or heart or life of the gospel message. Surely there would be no question in anyone’s mind but that the Spirit and the Lord are used interchangeably in these two texts.

But let us go further in considering texts which make reference to the “spirit of.” In Eph. 4:23 it says, “And be renewed in the spirit of your mind.” In 1 Cor. 2:11 it says, “For what man knoweth the things of a man save the spirit of man which is in him,” etc. 1 Cor. 2:12 says “Now we have received not the spirit of the world;” Rev. 16:14 says, “These are the spirits of devils working miracles,” etc.

In all the above texts we read of Spirit of God, Spirit of Christ, spirit of man, spirit of the world, spirit of the devil and spirit of your mind, but nowhere do we read of the spirit of Holy Spirit. Again I say that He is a definite personage and is always identified in His own person and this distinction must be maintained to produce proper sense.

It would, no doubt, be easy for us to understand that the “spirit of your mind” would refer to the tendencies, disposition, nature, actions, and controlling influences of one’s mind. The spirit of the world would refer to the natural tendencies, dispositions, controlling influences and behavior of the world. Then the Spirit of Christ would refer to the nature, disposition, tendencies and behavior of Christ.

In 1 Cor. 6:17 it says, “But he that is joined to the Lord is one spirit.” This corresponds with Rom. 8:9 which says, “If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His.” Surely all who are saved and joined unto Christ are made a partaker of His Spirit, which, as has already been observed, is His nature, disposition and characteristics of life and behavior.

The Spirit of Christ is declared to be a spirit of liberty in 2 Cor. 3:17. It is a spirit of obedience as stated in Phil. 2:8 where it is said that He became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Heb. 10:9 says, “Then said He, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God.” Matt. 26:39, “And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.” Matt. 26:42, “He went away again the second time, and prayed saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.”  John 3:34 says, “Jesus said unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.” John 8:29 says, “And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.”

We receive that same spirit of obedience when we get saved. John 14:15, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” And John 14:21, “He that hath my commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me,” etc. In Heb. 5:9 we read, “He became the author of eternal salvation to all them that obey him.”

The Spirit of Christ is a spirit of humility. Phil 2: 5-8 says, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” In Matt. 11:29 Jesus said, “I am meek and lowly in heart.”

But we are instructed in Phil. 2:5 to let this same mind, or disposition or nature or characteristic be in us. Jesus said in Matt. 5:3, “Blessed are the poor in spirit [humble spirit] for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.” Again Peter says (1 Peter 3:4) “But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.”

Christ’s spirit is a spirit of mercy. Matt. 10:20 says, “A bruised reed will he not break, and a smoking flax will he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.” This same spirit is to dwell in them who are joined to Him. In Matt. 5:7 Jesus said, “Blessed are the merciful; for they shall obtain mercy.” Again in Luke 6:36 Jesus said, “Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.” This comes in line with the very same thought as is dealt with in the fifth chapter of Matthew which concluded in verse 48 with these words of Jesus: “Be ye therefore perfect; even as your father in heaven is perfect.” It is the same thought and sums up to being perfect in mercy and in our attitude toward our fellow men. Read Luke 6:35 and Matt. 5:43-48. Jesus forgave his enemies and died to save them, praying, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.”

In Mal. 4:5 there is a prophecy concerning John the Baptist, which comes in good place here. It says, “Behold, I will send you Elijah, the prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.” To prove that this was John the Baptist we refer you to Matt. 11:10-14, “For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare the way before thee. Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come.”

Now someone may say, “How could John the Baptist be Elijah or Elias?” But this is clarified in the statement of the angel to Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, in Luke 1:17, “And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, etc.”

This makes the point clear and throws some light on the text in Rom. 8:9. John came at a time of deep apostasy and great spiritual darkness such as the time that Elijah, the most outstanding of all the prophets, came to Israel and he turned the hearts of the people to God as Elijah had done in his day and he manifested the same vehemence against error and the same zeal and boldness for truth that Elijah had shown in his day and it brought a great spiritual awakening such as Elijah’s work had brought so it is said he went in the spirit and power of Elijah in so much that he was called Elias.

This is the way I see our having the Spirit of Christ. It is our possessing within ourselves that same vehemence and righteous indignation against sin and error, the same zeal and boldness for truth and righteousness, the same humility, meekness, gentleness, mercy, obedience, behavior and every other characteristic of Christ Himself and doing His work. Col. 1:27 says, “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Eph. 3:17 says, “That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith.” John 6:56 says, “He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.”

The way, then, that I interpret having the Spirit of Christ is to have Christ living within us and the Christ-life predominant in all our behavior because the Lord is that spirit.

Carnal Mind and Carnal Nature

Now we will consider another difficulty in the minds of some in dealing with this subject—THE CARNAL MIND. In Rom. 8:6 we read: “To be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” The margin says, “minding of the flesh” and “minding of the spirit.” In other words, “carnal” is inferred to be the opposite of “spiritual” and pertains to the things of the flesh in contradistinction to the things of the spirit.

The dictionary defines “carnal” as “of or pertaining to the body as the seat of appetites. Fleshly. Lacking spirituality, unregenerate, worldly.”

In Gal. 5:17 we read, “For the flesh lusteth against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh and these are contrary the one to the

other ...” In 1 Peter 2:11 we are instructed to “abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul.” In Gal. 5:16 we are told that if “we walk in the spirit, we shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh.” In Rom. 8:1 we are instructed that to be in Christ Jesus means for one to “walk not after the flesh but after the spirit.” Rom. 8:4 says, “That the righteousness of the law is fulfilled in us who walk not after the flesh but after the spirit.” Rom. 13:14 instructs us to put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof. Gal. 5:24 says, “They who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.” This gives us to understand that one cannot be in Christ Jesus and living after the flesh at the same time. In fact, we are told in Rom. 8:8 that “They who are in the flesh cannot please God.” Then we are told in Rom. 8:5 that “They who are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh but they that are after the spirit the things of the spirit.” By all these scriptures we see why it is death (spiritually) to be carnally minded and why, according to Rom. 8:7 “The carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.”

So let us look a little closer at this carnal mind. First of all bear in mind that it is the carnal MIND that is under consideration and not the carnal NATURE or native depravity. Confusing the carnal mind with the carnal nature or native depravity has led some to a conclusion which has fed error rather than truth and that one who possessed this could not live a justified life before God, free from committing sin, because the Bible said that the carnal mind was not subject to the law of God and could not be. So they conclude that the carnal nature is removed in justification because one could not live justified with it because it was not subject to the law of God. This mixture of identification leads to confusion and error in the light of all the general tenor of the scriptures.

The carnal MIND would have reference to the thoughts, plans, schemes, conniving and meditations of the mind for ways and means to satisfy the desires of the flesh.

Eccl. 7:29 says, “God made man upright but he sought out many inventions.” First of all this text carries the thought that man’s inventions have offset his uprightness and led him away from God. But “invention” is defined as “A fabrication of the imagination—a device, contrivance or the like originated after study and experiment.” Again “invent” is defined as, “To fabricate mentally, create or devise in the imagination.”

Thus we see that in this text man’s inventions would refer to his study and experimenting, creating, and devising in his imaginations and fabricating mentally (in his mind) devices and ways and means to glorify himself and satisfy the desires of his flesh (natural man).

But lest we overlook some of the emphasis of this, let us go a little farther with it. “Invention” is defined as a “fabrication of the imagination.” But “imagination” is defined as “a scheme, plot or project, especially of evil; a mental image; a creation of the mind.”

But in Gen. 6:5 it says that God saw that the “imaginations [creations of men’s minds] and thoughts of the heart were only evil continually.” In other words, men were continually creating in their minds schemes, plots, and projects of evil to satisfy the desires of their flesh according to their depraved natures. Also the word “imagine” is defined as “to form a mental picture of; to produce by the imagination; to contrive in purpose; to scheme; to fancy, think, suppose.” But one of the definitions of the word “imagine” is “to fancy” and “fancy” is defined as “the object of one’s interest.” Projecting this thought into the text of Gen. 6:5, it indicates that these people were primarily interested in evil and in devising ways and means to execute their evil plots, plans and schemes.

In Psalm 36:4, speaking of the wicked, (vs. 1) it says, “He deviseth mischief upon his bed ...” Again, speaking of the wicked in Prov. 6:14, it says, “... He deviseth mischief continually.”

In these texts and several more it speaks of “devising” mischief. Cruden’s Concordance says that in the scripture “MISCHIEF” is very frequently used to denote wickedness and iniquity. “DEVISE” is defined as “to form in the mind by new combinations of ideas. Invent, contrive, to plan for.” Further, “contrive” is defined as “to devise, plan, to form schemes or designs.” In other words, this makes it plain that those who devised mischief were planning, scheming, designing, and seeking even by new ideas in their minds how to accomplish their evil, fleshly desires.

Now all of this shows the disposition of the carnal mind; that it is continually inventing, fabricating, imagining, studying, experimenting, creating, devising, scheming, plotting, contriving, purposing, etc. for projects of evil and fleshly indulgence. Of course, such a mind would produce spiritual death and would be enmity against God and would not and could not be subject to the law of God and no person could be a child of God and be governed by such a mind. But let me emphasize that it is the carnal mind under consideration and not the carnal nature—native depravity. There is a difference.

The term “native depravity” indicates a depravity of nature at birth. Then it is something in the nature of the infant child. The universal testimony of scripture which is also supported by the universal witness of experience bears witness to this. Actually, the principal or maybe even the only argument for being born again is because we were born in the wrong state and condition the first time and, consequently must be born again to get straightened out and made right. Perhaps the most of us would agree in general that the depraved or carnal nature is existent in the infant child. But the carnal mind could not be existent in an infant child because he would not be capable of exercising his mind to invent, study, fabricate, imagine, scheme, plot, purpose and create projects of evil and fleshly indulgence. Thus we see that the carnal mind could not possibly be identical with the carnal nature but is a product of it and is acquired by those who are more advanced and developed in capacity and ability and established in the practices of carnal, fleshly desires.

Col. 2:18 mentions man as “Vainly puffed up in his fleshly mind.” “Fleshly mind” and “carnal mind” are one and the same thing. In the 8th chapter of Romans where it mentions “carnal mind” the margin says, “fleshly mind.” But it belongs to the fleshly life.

When one puts off the deeds or works of the flesh which are catalogued in a general way in Gal. 5:19-21 and repents of his sins, and through faith in Christ Jesus is saved (born again) and receives the Christ-life into his soul, which is called “newness of life” in Rom. 6:4, he also receives a “renewing in the spirit of his mind” Eph. 4:23. In other words, the disposition and tendencies of his mind are changed to conform to the change in his heart and life. Therefore the mind of one who is saved is not scheming, planning, plotting and inventing projects for satisfying fleshly desires but is rather thinking, planning, meditating on ways and means whereby he may maintain, improve his spiritual life, better please God and may have time and opportunity to engage in His services.

But let me emphasize that a distinction must be maintained between the carnal mind and what is sometimes referred to as the carnal nature. And on this basis:

Romans 5:12-19 declares all men to be under the dismal sway of sin and further proves that they are thus affected because of one man and his sin. It also declares that one man to be Adam who was the royal head of the human family. This could not be true unless there is something hereditary about sin. The scriptures conclude something about sin to be hereditary, a depravity of nature to be handed down through the generations of mankind from the original parent. Adam begat children in his own likeness after his image Gen. 5:3.

But for a thing to be hereditary it must be inherent in a child at birth and not something acquired later on in life. Hence, this depravity of nature must be in the infant child at birth. But since the infant child has no ability to imagine, devise, contrive and invent projects of fleshly indulgence in his mind, it must be concluded that the fleshly or carnal mind is not inherent in him at birth but it is the product of the more advanced exercise of the carnal nature and is therefore more attached to the fleshly life than to the nature only.

In Matt. 18:3 we learn that conversion or the new birth makes one as a little child. Jesus said here: “... Except ye be converted and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” 1 Peter says, “As new born babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.” This is the full extent to which justification, conversion or the new birth brings one—the condition of the little child. One who is justified before God is entirely absolved from all guilt and is completely innocent before God as though he had never committed a sin. This is the same condition of innocence the little child is in. But as we have already observed at much length, the child possesses an inherent depravity of nature when he is born which is unlike the pure, holy nature which God gave man in the creation and, therefore, the child is one step below the plane of perfect holiness when he is born. Since conversion restores us to the child state, we are therefore still one step below the plane of perfect holiness.

SANCTIFICATION

It is God’s purpose and plan through a full and uttermost salvation to completely restore man to the creative, Edenic state of perfected holiness in the image of God. Col. 3:10 says, “And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him.” Eph. 4:24 says, “And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” Gal. 4:4, 5 says, “... God sent forth his Son ... to redeem them that were under the law.” But redemption, as already observed, involves a complete restoration. In the matter of financial obligations and mortgages, etc. it means for a thing to be just as free from debt as before any debt was put on it. In scripture and as it pertains to our salvation, it means for one to be just as free from sin and corruption as before sin was ever introduced into the world.

Therefore; a second experience of divine grace which completes the work of restoration and is termed in the scriptures “Sanctification” or “Baptism of the Holy Ghost” is necessary and is available to all believers.

SANCTIFICATION has two meanings and signifies two distinct things.

1. The act of consecrating or of setting apart for a sacred purpose; consecration.

2. The act of sanctifying or making holy; or the state of being sanctified or made holy; the act of God’s grace by which the affections of men are purified, or alienated from sin and the world, and exalted to a supreme love of God; also the state of being thus purified or sanctified.

SANCTIFY is defined as: 1. To make sacred or holy; to set apart to a holy or religious use; to consecrate by appropriate rites, to hallow. 2. To make holy or free from sin; to cleanse from moral pollution and corruption; to make fit for the service of God, and the society and employments of heaven.

The term is used in the first sense throughout the Old Testament and involves only the consecration or setting apart for sacred purposes and does in no way and at no time refer to a moral change in one’s nature. In Lev. 27:14-29 we note that the term “sanctify” is used in regard to houses (vs. 14), lands (vs. 17), animals (vs. 26), and the term “devoted” is used interchangeably with “sanctify” in verses 21, 28, and 29.

In Ex. 40:9 the tabernacle and all its furnishings were sanctified (hallowed), the altar was sanctified (vs. 10), the laver was sanctified (vs. 11) and Aaron and his sons were sanctified for the priest’s office (vs. 12, 13).

In Ex. 19:10, 14 Moses is commanded to sanctify all Israel and it is said that he did sanctify them. In Lev. 11:44 the people are commanded to sanctify themselves to be holy unto the Lord. We see here that inanimate objects which were not capable of receiving any moral change were sanctified under the law. Also that the sanctification of the people was done by man or by themselves and was not a work of God at all. This term was used generously throughout but this is sufficient to show its general use in Old Testament times.

The term is also used in a limited way in this sense in the New Testament but generally in the New Testament the term is used in the second sense meaning to make holy or free from sin; to cleanse from moral corruption and pollution.

In John 17:19 the term is used in both senses. It is said here that Jesus sanctified Himself that we might be sanctified through the truth. In John 17:17 Jesus prayed unto God that He might sanctify His followers through the truth. This was a work that God was to do and could not be done by man as in the case of Old Testament sanctification.

That Old Testament sanctuary of God had to be sanctified before He would dwell in it but that sanctification was a legal, ceremonial, ritualistic sanctification or consecration done by man. That tabernacle was a type of God’s holy temple in this age of time.

In the first eight verses of the ninth chapter of Hebrews a detailed description of the Old Testament sanctuary with its furnishings, its altars and sacrifices, etc. is given. Then in verse 9 it says, “Which was a figure for the time then present ...” In Hebrews 9:24 it says, “For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; ...” Here we learn that the Old Testament sanctuary was a type or figure of the true or New Testament sanctuary. Then in Heb. 8:2 speaking of Christ’s ministry and priesthood it says, “A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched and not man.” Here it is said that the true tabernacle was built by the Lord and not man and that Christ Himself is its high priest and minister. In Matt. 16:18 we learn what the tabernacle which the Lord built is. Jesus said here “Upon this rock I will build my church.” The New Testament church, then, is the true tabernacle of the Lord which He built in this age of time.

But the New Testament Church is composed of men and women who are saved and cleansed from sin through faith in the blood of Jesus. In Heb. 3:6 we read, “But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of hope firm unto the end.” And again in Eph. 2:21, 22 it says, “In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.” Again in 2 Cor. 6:16 we read, “For ye are the temple of the living God.” And in 1 Cor. 3:17 it says, “For the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.”

Since the Old Testament sanctuary or temple was a type of the New Testament temple or church, and, since this holy temple (New Testament church) is composed of men and women who are saved by faith in Christ’s blood, we conclude that every object in that Old Testament tabernacle is to be found in its reality and fullness in our own personal experience of salvation.

Then, the fact that there were two compartments in the tabernacle, the first and second (Heb. 9:2, 3) or the holy place and holiest of all (sometimes called the most holy place) there must of necessity be two parts or experiences or works of grace in our salvation. Also, since the ark of the covenant containing the tables of the covenant was in the second compartment (Heb. 9:4) we see that we do not reach the place where God’s law is fully written in our hearts and His holy will perfected in us until we enter that second experience of divine grace which completes our salvation. Heb. 10:14 says, “He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.” Here it is made plain that sanctification is the completion of our salvation and the perfecting of our experience and where God’s law is fully written in our hearts, etc. Also, since the golden pot that had manna was preserved in the ark of the covenant in the most holy place, it would be good for us to notice it as it signifies something very important in our experience.

The Tabernacle

By reading the 16th chapter of Exodus, verses 16 through 35 we will get the story of God’s supplying the manna for the children of Israel in the wilderness. This manna was of such an unenduring nature that if it were kept overnight it spoiled and bred worms and stank. (See Exodus 16:20). However, the Lord instructed them to gather an omer of it and put it up for a memorial for their generations, etc. This did not spoil but was preserved in the ark of the covenant in the most holy place, Ex. 16:32 and Heb. 9:4. This signifies that our first experience, first love and sinless life, must be maintained in that way right up to the time we present ourselves before God to be filled with the Holy Ghost. We must be just as free from sin in our lives at that time as we were when God saved us from our sins and we became justified and innocent or absolved from guilt in His sight. It also signifies that sanctification is the preserving, or keeping, or standing grace. Aaron’s rod that budded being kept in this most holy place signifies that the sanctified experience and life is the time of prolific fruit bearing in the Christian’s life. There are many wonderful, rich, and glorious truths brought out in these types but we will go no farther with it at this time as this gets the thoughts we are after particularly in this lesson.

God will not dwell in this holy temple without it being sanctified any more than he would that Old Testament sanctuary without it being sanctified but the sanctification of this holy temple involves something more and different and cannot be done by man but Jesus was calling on God to do this sanctifying.

Surely, so far as consecrating and setting apart for sacred use, etc. is concerned, man could do that. But New Testament sanctification involves that which we must do ourselves and also that part which God must do and which we cannot do.

Our part according to Rom. 12:1, 2 is to present our bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, etc. Note: Our bodies are to be holy when we present them to him in this case and our lives are to be acceptable to Him. This is a second presentation of ourselves to God. The first time we presented ourselves dead in trespasses and sin, repenting of sin and pleading God’s mercies upon us by the merits of Christ’s shed blood. God has now had mercy on us and saved us from our sins and made us alive in Him so we now present our bodies a living sacrifice and we are able to present ourselves now holy— living a sinless, holy life before God. When we do this we can prove what the good, acceptable, perfect will of God is toward us and we are told in 1 Thess. 4:3 that the will of God is our sanctification.

There were two altars connected with the service of the tabernacle—the altar of sin offering which stood in the court and the golden altar which stood before the second veil or entrance to the most holy place. Altars are significant of sacrifices or offerings and this would clearly signify two different sacrifices or offerings of the individual to Christ. It is at this second altar that the offering of ourselves according to Rom. 12:1, 2 is made after we have already presented ourselves at the brazen altar of the sin offering for our salvation and have been washed in the laver which is significant of the washing of regeneration. When God accepts this offering, the blood of Jesus is applied as we shall observe further on in this lesson and a cleansing from all moral pollution—native depravity—takes place and we are accepted into the most holy place to dwell in the presence of God which is signified by the cherubim overshadowing the mercy seat. This is the part of New Testament sanctification that is a work of God and which he must do for us as we are not able to do it for ourselves.

Some have thought there was a cleansing of self in this experience but could not agree that the native depravity was reserved to be cleansed at this time but it was removed in the first experience. I fail to be able to separate between the native depravity and the self-life. Neither of them could possibly exist independent of the other.

We have already noted farther back in this study that sin exists in two forms. 1—The inherited principle or nature of sin. 2—The sins that we have actually committed after coming to the point in life when we become responsible before God for our doings and willfully, knowingly transgress the commandments of God. These two kinds of sin being of different natures must be dealt with in different ways. The sins we commit bring guilt and condemnation upon the soul and are dealt with and removed through repentance and faith. Repentance involves a renouncing and forsaking of all sinful practices and deeds, a restitution and clearing of our past life, a forgiveness of all who have wronged us and a confession toward all we have wronged and seeking their forgiveness toward us and putting our faith in the shed blood of the Son of God to cleanse our sins away.

The native depravity or inherited nature of sin is a principle only and is not productive of guilt; hence could not be repented of. It is dealt with in a different way— by consecration and faith. Since we did not commit it and are not responsible for it, we could not sincerely and intelligently repent of it but we can and must recognize it and that it is a corrupt and unclean thing, renounce and reject it. We must consecrate ourselves, body, soul and entire life, to God for divine service and sacred use to henceforth live entirely unto Him and not unto ourselves. This is that second offering of ourselves upon the golden altar in the holy place and then the blood of Christ is applied a second time as we shall see as we proceed and that depravity of nature with its principal offspring, the self-life, is purged out, the Holy Spirit takes possession, fills us and we are ushered into the most holy place—the sanctified experience.

The Blood of Jesus

God could not perform His part of our sanctification without a suitable sacrifice and efficacious blood being provided for it. Therefore, it is said that Jesus sanctified Himself (consecrated Himself, set Himself apart unto God for the work of redemption) that we might be sanctified. There was no moral change involved in Him sanctifying Himself because Jesus was morally perfect. He knew no sin. The term is used here in a similar sense as under the Old Testament signifying a setting apart for sacred use. Isa. 53:10, 11 says, “Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.” Heb. 9:26 says, “But now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” And Heb. 9:28 says, “So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; ...” Again Heb. 9:14 says, “How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”

And Christ did this that we might be sanctified. It takes the blood of Christ to accomplish New Testament sanctification. Heb. 13:12 says, “Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate.” And our sanctification is a work of God. John 17:17 is where Jesus Himself prayed to God saying, “Sanctify them through thy truth: Thy word is truth.” Heb. 10:19 tells us that we enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus. The Holy Spirit is the agent through which this is accomplished. Rom. 15:16 says. “... That the offering of the Gentiles might be acceptable being sanctified by the Holy Ghost.” We see then, that we are sanctified with the blood of Jesus, through the truth, by the Holy Spirit.

Just as we have already noted that there are two parts to one’s justification, a negative and a positive, a taking away of sin and an imparting of the Christ life, so there is also a negative and a positive part to one’s sanctification. Someone may say that the Holy Spirit will not dwell in an unclean temple and if He comes in to dwell there at the time of our sanctification, then the temple must have previously been cleansed and made ready for Him. I agree that the Holy Spirit will not dwell in an unclean temple and that the temple must be cleansed and prepared before He enters in to dwell. But when our consecration to God is complete and our sacrifice acceptable (Rom. 12:1) the Holy Spirit who is the agent brings the blood of Christ which is the element of cleansing or detergent for sin and applies it to the heart purging and cleansing all impurities out of our nature and then comes in to abide there as our constant guide and comforter. Just as the two parts of justification are simultaneous, so are the two parts of sanctification simultaneous and occur at the same time. Then it is by obeying the word that we are brought to this point and instructed as to what and how to do this and it is brought to pass.

The first Testament was dedicated (sanctified) with blood—the blood of animals (Heb. 9:18-22). This was called the pattern of the heavenly things (Heb. 9:23). Then it speaks of the heavenly things themselves requiring a better sacrifice to purge them. The remainder of the chapter enters into a discussion of Christ and His sacrifice and blood. It indicates here a comparison between Old Testament sanctification and New Testament Sanctification. Heb. 9:11-14 is a clear comparison of the two sanctifications and shows the superiority of the sanctification through the blood of Christ over that through the blood of animals.

Referring again to Heb. 10:19, we emphasize the truth that we enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus.  This is very necessary to a clear understanding of the truth on this subject. The holiest was the second part of the tabernacle. There was no entrance to it except from the holy place. The tabernacle had no rear or side entrances. The only way to enter it was to go through the court past the brazen altar and the laver which was typical of the washing of regeneration, having our sins washed away in the blood of Jesus, into the holy place which was typical of the holy life of the justified believer. From there the most holy place or holiest could be entered. In other words, one must be in the holy place, genuinely converted to God, born again, living a sinless life before he is a scriptural candidate for sanctification.

The early disciples were born of God, John 1:12, 13. Their names were written in heaven, Luke 10:20. They were keeping the Word of God and had been given to Christ out of the world, John 17:6. They belonged to God, John 17:9. They were not of the world even as Christ was not of the world, John 17:16, 16. Yet Jesus prayed that they might be sanctified. We can see a need of an additional work of grace in their hearts and the outcroppings of something in them that was not according to complete godliness. Two of them showed a desire for preeminence, Mark 10:35-37. The other ten became indignant against them over this, Mark 10:41. And the reason they did was because they had the same thing in their own hearts because on one occasion they all showed a personal ambition for greatness and argued among themselves who would be the greatest, Mark 9:34.

These are things that never showed up in them any more after they were baptized with the Holy Spirit which confirms the fact that a definite change was wrought in them by the receiving of the Holy Spirit. Neither do I claim that all that the apostles did before the day of Pentecost was an example for us in our justified life. They were still under the law where “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth” was standard and accepted practice and consequently might be expected to want to call fire down from heaven upon those who rejected their master. We could not do that now and be justified in it because we are clear out from under that standard of life and know better than that. Also, the disciples along with the Jews of their day were expecting Christ to restore the kingdom of Israel in its splendor and glory as it had been in former days and would naturally be expected to seek prominent places in that kingdom. But we in our day who understand the spiritual nature of the kingdom of God and the establishment of it in our hearts and the humility of Christ as was later understood and taught by the apostles themselves could not act in such ways and aspire to such positions and be justified in it. But the main point here is to note the great change in their moral nature that took place in them when they received the Holy Spirit. He was able to teach them Christ’s true mission, character, the true nature of His kingdom and they were able to see how wrong they had been in those things. They were particular to teach us the truth on those lines so that we today have much advantage over them at that time and could not follow such examples in our justified experience and maintain our justification.

It was to brethren who were “In the Father, and in the Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thess. 1:1) that Paul said “This is the will of God even your sanctification” (1 Thess. 4:3) and “The very God of peace sanctify you wholly,” etc. (I Thess. 5:23). Jesus said the world could not receive the Holy Spirit (John 14:17) but the disciples were not of the world and were ready to receive Him. Paul asked the disciples at Ephesus if they had received the Holy Ghost since they believed (Acts 19:1-6). The New Testament affords many more such scriptures proving the same thing but this is sufficient to prove that one must be in the holy place, born of God, etc., before he is a scriptural candidate for sanctification and that sanctification or the baptism of the Holy Ghost is a second work of grace wrought in the heart of man by the Holy Spirit of God.

But we must enter into this experience through the blood of Jesus. This signifies a definite cleansing in this experience. The blood of Jesus is always a detergent for sin.

Returning now to the pattern of the heavenly things— the type—we find that the blood of the sin offering was to be sprinkled on the altar of sweet incense which was before the veil and also to be sprinkled on the mercy seat and also to be sprinkled seven times before the mercy seat in the most holy place. (Lev. 16:11-16 and Lev. 4:7.) Bear in mind this was the blood of the sin offering he was talking about and it was to be used from the brazen altar of the sin offering clear on through and in the most holy place before the Lord and it is said that it was to make an atonement for the holy place because of the uncleanness of the people, etc. Let us insert here the full text of Lev. 16:15, 16, “Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the veil, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat: And he shall make an atonement for the holy place because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins: and so shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation, that remaineth among them in the midst of their uncleanness.”

Now Christ is our sin offering and it is said we must enter by his blood into the holiest which signifies an atonement must also be made there for our uncleanness.

But clear, undisputable proof of the cleansing in sanctification is found in Eph. 5:25, 26 where it is said that Christ gave Himself for the church that He might sanctify and cleanse it. This is not dealing with types and shadows this time but is a plain, definite statement of fact. This is the church he is talking about here. It is not the world of sinners lost but the church which is not of the world and those who are in the church have been given to Christ out of the world. But they needed some cleansing, too.

Now, in conclusion, let us take one more look at the pattern of the heavenly things. We note that the mercy seat was in the most holy place or second compartment of the tabernacle which signifies this is the place of the Christian’s rest (Heb. 4:1-9). Also the fact that there was no seat or lounge or any place of reclining or rest in the holy place signifies that was not a place to stop and loiter but just a place to pass through in getting to the most holy place where the place of our rest was. In other words, God does not want you and me lingering in the justified state but He saves us to the end that He might sanctify us and perfect us in Him and bring about a full and complete salvation and restoration in us. So let us not loiter and linger in a justified state, but let us bestir ourselves and press on just as earnestly and rapidly as possible into the sanctified experience so that we may be made full and complete in Him.

–Ostis B. Wilson