Quotes on God's Third Dimension of Grace
by John Wesley
"By salvation I mean not barely accordingly to the vulgar notion deliverance from hell or going to heaven but a present deliverance from sin a restoration of the soul to its primitive health its original purity a recovery of the divine nature the renewal of our souls after the image of God in righteousness and true holiness in justice, mercy, and truth"
- John Wesley
"By justification we are saved from the guilt of sin, and restored to the favour of God; by sanctification we are saved from the power and root of sin, and restored to the image of God."
- On Working Out Our Own Salvation, 1785
"And at the same time that we are justified, yea, in that very moment, sanctification begins."
- The Scripture Way of Salvation
"Every one, though born of God in an instant, yea and sanctified in an instant,
yet undoubtedly grows by slow degrees..."
- Letter, 27 June 1760
"We allow, it is the work of God alone to justify, to sanctify, and to glorify; which three comprehend the whole of salvation."
- Predestination Calmly Considered
"In using all means, seek God alone. In and through every outward thing, look only to the power of His Spirit, and the merits of His Son. Beware you do not get stuck in the work itself; if you do, it is all lost labor. Nothing short of God can satisfy your soul. Therefore, fix on Him in all, through all, and above all... Remember also to use all means as means-as ordained, not for their own sake...."
- How to Pray: The Best of John Wesley on Prayer
"[In entire sanctification] the heart is cleansed from all sin, and filled with pure love to God and man. But even that love increases more and more, till we 'grow up in all things into Him that is our Head;' till we attain 'the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.'"
- On Working Out Our Own Salvation
"[Full Salvation] is the grand depositum which God has lodged with the people called Methodists; and for the sake of propagating this chiefly God appeared to have raised us up."
- Letter to Robert Carr Brackenbury, September 15th, 1790
"I continue to dream and pray about a revival of holiness in our day that moves forth in mission and creates authentic community in which each person can be unleashed through the empowerment of the Spirit to fulfill God's creational intentions."
- How to Pray: The Best of John Wesley on Prayer
Quotes by Other Writers
"There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry out, Mine!"
- Abraham Kuyper
"Christian perfection is salvation from sin - from its power or dominion in the new birth and its root(false self-centeredness) in full salvation - but it is not sinlessness, since 'the best of [persons]... come[e] short of the law of love' and therfore always 'need the atonement.'"
- William Greathouse, Love Made Perfect
- Quotes from John Wesley, A Plain Account of Christian Perfection
"Following Thomas Aquinas, Wesley declared that Christian perfection is 'that habitual disposition of soul, which, in the sacred writings, is termed holiness.' It is a 'habitual disposition,' not habitual perfect performance."
- William Greathouse, Love Made Perfect
- Quotes from John Wesley, The Circumcision of the Heart
"At the deepest, holiness is not a matter of holy habit patterns; these are simply a cut-flower arrangement if we do not sustain an intimate relationship with Christ. But if we abide in Him, His life becomes our life, His love our love, and His joy our joy.
- William Greathouse, Love Made Perfect
"Entire sanctification is more than an experience; it is a life-changing work of God's grace that purifies the heart from its self-idolatry, perfects it in the love of God and neighbor, and accelerates the believer's growth in Christlikeness.
- William Greathouse, Love Made Perfect