Holiness Challenged

If the teachings of the modern holiness movement are correct concerning the doctrine of holiness and the baptism with the Holy Ghost as an experience for the saints of God today perfecting them in Christian love and freeing them from carnal sin, it seems that we should find some evidences of this faith and teaching in the period of the history of the Church where it was the closest to the days of Christ. At least a germ of all truth should be evident when God planted the Church in the world. The Early Church before it had left its first love should show some traces of such an experience and doctrine. A careful study of this period of church history will show that the early Christians believed in holiness, and that an unbroken chain of witnesses has never ceased to give this great truth to the world. When we examine the writings of the first three hundred years of Christian history, we see that without doubt the Early Church believed in, practiced, and taught holiness. There was a diversity of opinions on some subjects, and sects arose that were not orthodox; yet we find much more on holiness than we would suppose could be found in the Primitive Church. They were in an age far from the intellectual light of modern times. Some of the doctrines of the Church had not been thought out very clearly; yet many of the writings of the best and holiest men of that day show clearly a trace of a belief in holiness. Few early writers do not contribute something to this great doctrine.

We do not say that the statements made in the early literature always mean the same that we would read into similar statements today. Detached expressions separated from the context may at times be misleading, and the translations may not always be exact; yet there is enough left after due allowance is made for all this to show the light of holiness gleaming out from age to age where the saints of God served Him in truth.

Realizing that this phase of the subject of holiness has not had very much study, the author has tried to make this work as exhaustive as possible. Years have been spent examining the literature of the Early Church. Between ten and fifteen thousand pages of the old writers have been tediously gone through from the writings of the Apostolic Fathers, Ante-Nicene literature, Apostolical Constitutions and Canons, apologies, homilies, liturgies, Apocryphal books, Biblical comments, and various other treatises, also old sermons, prayers, hymns, and the creeds from the Early Church. Also the ecclesiastical histories written before Constantine and the recent fragments that have come to light by modern archaeological research have not been overlooked. Most of the early literature has come down to us in the Greek or Latin tongue. Some has come in Hebrew, Syrian, and other languages, and some of this has not been translated. Where possible the author has used the original and the best translations obtainable that have appeared in England and America.

A CHALLENGE TO HOLINESS

The evidence is before you. Did the Early Church teach holiness? Is holiness a heritage of the whole Church? Every great crisis in Bible history was an effort on God's part to bring the world back to holiness; every great revival of religion contributed something to holy living.

It was the message of holiness that the fire-baptized disciples preached. It was the baptism with the Holy Spirit that made the martyr-age of the Church so glorious.

Lactantius says:

By reason of our strange and wonderful courage and strength new additions are made to us; for when people see men torn to pieces with infinite variety of torments, and yet maintain a patience unconquerable, and able to tire out their tormentors, they begin to think (what the truth is) that the consent of so many, and the perseverance of the dying persons, cannot be in vain; nor that patience itself, were not from God, could not hold out under such racks and tortures. Thieves and men of robust bodies are not able to bear such tearing to pieces; they groan and cry out, and are overcome with pain, because not endured with divine patience; but our very women and children (to say nothing of men) do with silence conquer their tormentors; nor could the hottest fire force the least groan from them.

The places of martyrdom became such holy recruiting places where so many were converted to the hated faith that the Roman emperors were forced to forbid the public execution of the holy saints of God.

The young people of this generation have received from their fathers the clear, definite preaching of the doctrine of holiness. Will the children of the holiness movement be as faithful in giving this truth to the world and as consistent in living holy lives before all? They cannot afford to fail. Arise! On with the work of holiness until all have heard the message "holiness unto the Lord."

It is the message of the Holy Bible. Bishop Foster says:

It breathes in the prophecy, thunders in the law, murmurs in the narrative, whispers in the promises, supplicates in the prayers, sparkles in the poetry, resounds in the songs, speaks in the types, glows in the imagery, voices in the language, and burns in the whole scheme, from the alpha to the omega, from its beginning to its end. Holiness! Holiness needed, holiness required, holiness offered, holiness attainable, holiness a present duty, a present privilege, a present enjoyment, is the progress and completeness of the wondrous theme.

It was the original intention of the author to give a study of holiness from the creeds of Christendom and holiness in other periods of church history, but space will make it necessary to use this in other works later.