Holiness

I have had a deep conviction for many years that practical holiness and entire self-consecrationto God are not sufficiently attended to by modern Christians in this country. Politics, or controversy,or party-spirit, or worldliness, have eaten out the heart of lively piety in too many of us. The subjectof personal godliness has fallen sadly into the background. The standard of living has becomepainfully low in many quarters. The immense importance of "adorning the doctrine of God ourSavior" (Titus 2:10), and making it lovely and beautiful by our daily habits and tempers, has been fartoo much overlooked. Worldly people sometimes complain with reason that "religious" persons,so-called, are not so amiable and unselfish and good-natured as others who make no profession ofreligion. Yet sanctification, in its place and proportion, is quite as important as justification. SoundProtestant and Evangelical doctrine is useless if it is not accompanied by a holy life. It is worse thenuseless; it does positive harm. It is despised by keen-sighted and shrewd men of the world, as anunreal and hollow thing, and brings religion into contempt. It is my firm impression that we want athorough revival about Scriptural holiness. and I am deeply thankful that attention is being directedto the point.

- Taken from "Holiness" written by J. C. Ryle, ISBN13: 9781670548696 ISBN10: 1670548694 Material Type: paperback