Often treated like the younger sibling in theology, the doctrine of sanctification has spent the last few decades waiting not-so-patiently behind those doctrines viewed as more senior. With so much recent interest in ideas like election and justification, the question of holiness can often seem to be of secondary importance, and widespread misunderstanding of sanctification as moralism or undue human effort further impedes thoughtful engagement. But what if we have missed the boat on what sanctification really means for today's believer?The essays in this volume, which come out of a recent Edinburgh Dogmatics Conference, address this dilemma through biblical, historical, dogmatic and pastoral explorations. The contributors sink their teeth into positions like the ‘works’ mentality or ‘justification by faith alone’ and posit stronger biblical views of grace and holiness, considering key topics such as the image of God, perfection, union with Christ, Christian ethics and suffering. Eschewing any attempt to produce a unified proposal, the essays included here instead offer resources to stimulate an informed discussion within both church and academy.Contributors include:
– Henri Blocher
– Julie Canlis
– Ivor Davidson
– James Eglinton
– Brannon Ellis
– Michael Horton
– Kelly M. Kapic
– Richard Lints
– Bruce Mc Cormack
– Peter Moore
– Oliver O?Donovan
– Derek Tidball
Cuprins
Preface
Abbreviations
Contributors
Prelude: An Opening Homily
1. Holiness: Restoring God?s Image: A Homily on Colossians 3:5-17
Derek Tidball
Part 1: Sanctified by Grace Through Faith in Union with Christ
2. Living by Faith—Alone? Reformed Responses to Antinomianism
Richard Lints
3. Sanctification by Faith?
Henri Blocher
4. Covenantal Union and Communion: Union with Christ as the Covenant of Grace
Brannon Ellis
5. Sanctification after Metaphysics: Karl Barth in Conversation with John Wesley?s Conception of ‘Christian Perfection’
Bruce L. Mc Cormack
Part 2: Human Agency and Sanctification?s Relationship to Ethics
6. ‘Let the Earth Bring Forth . . .’: The Spirit and Human Agency in Sanctification
Michael Horton
7. Sanctification and Ethics
Oliver O?Donovan
8. On Bavinck?s Theology of Sanctification-as-Ethics
James Eglinton
Part 3: Theological and Pastoral Meditations on Sanctification
9. Gospel Holiness: Some Dogmatic Reflections
Ivor J. Davidson
10. Faith, Hope and Love: A Theological Meditation on Suffering and Sanctification
Kelly M. Kapic
11. Sonship, Identity and Transformation
Julie Canlis
12. Sanctification Through Preaching: How John Chrysostom Preached for Personal Transformation
Peter Moore
Despre autor
Kelly M. Kapic is professor of theological studies at Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, Georgia. He earned a Ph.D. in systematic and historical theology at King's College, University of London (United Kingdom) and an M.Div. at Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Florida. He is the author or editor of eight books, including God So Loved He Gave, Communion with God, and Mapping Modern Theology.