26 Sep 2025

The Spirit and Holiness: Entire Sanctification for Today

Note: This article is part of the ongoing series The Spirit Poured Out, exploring who the Holy Spirit is, what He does, and how He works in our lives today—just as in the early church. You can find other posts in this series at the end of this article.

Can I Break Free From Sin?

“I don’t want to do it but I just can’t stop. It controls me!” Or, “I’m going to try hard not to [insert sin], but I don’t think I’ll ever stop.”

I’ve heard these words from believers I’ve discipled. Honestly, I’ve said them myself.

So here’s the real question: is it actually possible to find freedom from sin on this side of eternity? Or do we just assume we’ll always carry around a few pestering sins—doing our best to manage them, but never truly free?

Theologians have a name for this kind of freedom over sin: entire sanctification. It’s one of the boldest, most hope-filled promises in Scripture, and it’s been championed throughout our Wesleyan heritage. The Holy Spirit’s presence in us makes it possible—not just to be forgiven, but to be changed. His love heals sin’s damage, and His power makes freedom from any sin possible.

What Entire Sanctification Really Is

Entire sanctification is not about becoming a spiritual robot who never makes mistakes. It’s not about willpower or keeping a checklist. Entire sanctification is about the Spirit working deep in our hearts, dealing with the root of sin—our pride, our selfishness, our divided loyalties—and filling us with God’s love.

Here’s the good news: God doesn’t just forgive sin, He sets us free from its power. Holiness is about a heart that belongs fully to Him, empowered for mission and reflecting His love.

In our Free Methodist family we explain it this way:

“We believe Entire Sanctification to be that work of the Holy Spirit, subsequent to regeneration, by which the fully consecrated believer, upon exercise of faith in the atoning blood of Christ, is cleansed in that moment from all inward sin and empowered for service.” (FMCUSA Book of Discipline, 2023)

I personally love how our Nazarene brothers and sisters put it. They describe entire sanctification as freedom from “competing loyalties” that hold us back from fully loving God and neighbor (Church of the Nazarene Manual, p. 19). That phrase nails it. We all know the tug-of-war inside—wanting to follow Jesus with all our heart, but also wanting to keep control of certain habits, relationships, or ambitions. Holiness is God healing that tug-of-war and making our hearts whole.

What Wesley Meant by “Perfect”

One of the words that causes the most confusion around holiness is perfect. Wesley talked often about “Christian perfection,” and in today’s language it sounds impossible. We think “perfect” means flawless—never making a mistake. But that’s not what Wesley, or the Bible, meant.

In 1 John 4:18, John says:

“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear.”

The Greek word for “perfect” here is τέλειος (teleios). It doesn’t mean flawless—it means whole, complete, mature, brought to its intended end.

That’s how Wesley understood “perfection.” Not sinless perfection, but love matured in the heart of a believer. A life ruled not by sin but by love—love for God and for people.

Think about a child in school. A kindergartner who knows her alphabet is a “perfect” kindergartner. In first grade, “perfect” looks different—now she’s reading sentences. By fifth grade, it’s essays and fractions. At every stage, she’s complete for where she should be, even though she’s still growing.

Holiness works the same way. Christian perfection doesn’t mean we’ve arrived at flawless living. It means our hearts are wholly God’s, stage by stage, and His Spirit keeps growing us. That’s why Wesley called it “perfect love.” It’s about God’s love being made teleios—whole and complete—inside us.

Sometimes It Helps to Know This Isn’t Just Theory

Christians have been asking the same questions for centuries: Can God really free me from sin’s grip? Can His Spirit actually make me holy now?

Leaders in our own tradition answered with a bold “Yes.”

John Wesley’s Ministry
Wesley recorded story after story of believers who fully surrendered and found freedom. Their hearts were cleansed, their love for God and others deepened, and their lives overflowed with bold service. For Wesley, this wasn’t a bonus feature—it was the normal life God intends for His people.
Phoebe Palmer’s Invitation
A century later, Phoebe Palmer helped countless people take this step of faith. She taught what she called “altar theology”: place your whole self—your struggles, ambitions, and habits—on God’s altar, and trust Him to sanctify you. She urged people not to wait for years, but to believe God’s promise now. And time and again, she saw lives transformed by the Spirit’s fullness.
B. T. Roberts’ Challenge
Closer to home, B. T. Roberts, founder of the Free Methodist Church, called believers to a visible holiness. He argued that holiness should be so evident that “anyone who walks beside [a believer] should see Christ more clearly.” For Roberts, holiness wasn’t private—it was a Spirit-empowered life of love, justice, and mission. His conviction shaped the very DNA of our movement.

These stories aren’t museum pieces. They remind us that God has always been in the business of cleansing hearts and empowering His people. And if He could do it then, He can do it now—in you and in me.

Why This Matters Today

We live in a culture of addiction, distraction, and fractured relationships. Many Christians quietly assume, “Well, I’ll never be free either.”

But entire sanctification declares the opposite. The Spirit wants to:

Break the power of sin in our lives.
Heal the divided loyalties in our hearts.
Fill us with love for God and people.
Empower us to live on mission.

Without this, discipleship is exhausting. With it, discipleship is empowering.

Living Sent: How to Walk in Entire Sanctification

Surrender Fully — Ask: “What am I still holding back?” Place it on the altar.
Ask in Faith — Believe that God really wants to fill you (Luke 11:13).
Trust God’s Promise — This isn’t earned. It’s received by faith.
Obey Promptly — Every “yes” creates more room for the Spirit.
Stay Connected — Keep being filled (Eph. 5:18) through prayer, Scripture, worship, and community.

Holiness isn’t about avoiding sin. It’s about being so filled with the Spirit that love overflows—and that love changes everything around us.

Closing

Some will tell you holiness is impossible. But Scripture, history, and living testimony all say the opposite. God doesn’t just want you forgiven—He wants you free. Not flawless, not without mistakes, but a heart fully His, growing day by day into the likeness of Jesus.

So here’s the question: are you ready to stop settling for half-hearted faith and start asking God to do the deeper work in you? The Spirit who began a good work is ready to finish it.

Series Note

This article is part of the ongoing series The Spirit Poured Out.

Read previous posts in this series:

Stay tuned for the next article: The Gifts of the Spirit for Today.