Holiness: A Biblical, Historical, and Systematic Theology

by Matt Ayars, Christopher T. Bounds, and Caleb T. Friedeman

Be holy because I am holy. Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.

The Christian life includes many demands, but perhaps none are as challenging or as misunderstood as the biblical command to “be holy” (Leviticus 11:44 and 1 Peter 1:16) or to “be perfect” (Matthew 5:48). How should we understand these charges?

In this volume, three scholars from the Wesleyan tradition offer a collective treatment of the theme of holiness that includes:

• exegesis of key biblical passages
• a survey across church history
• theological reflections on the relationship between entire sanctification and other doctrines

In addition, the coauthors constructively argue for a “neo-holiness” model that encourages the pursuit of Christian perfection but avoids the pitfalls of Pelagianism by incorporating historic understandings of grace and the work of the Holy Spirit with the best of the Wesleyan tradition.

Here, the commands to “be holy” and to “be perfect” take on new meaning. What may have been a burden becomes a blessing.