Wesley Corpus

On Perfection

AuthorJohn Wesley
Typesermon
Year1784
Passage IDjw-sermon-076-000
Words230
Means of Grace Repentance Scriptural Authority
On Perfection "Let us go on to perfection." Heb. 6:1. The whole sentence runs thus: "Therefore, leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection: Not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God;" which he had just before termed, "the first principles of the oracles of God," and "meat fit for babes," for such as have just tasted that the Lord is gracious. That the doing of this is a point of the utmost importance the Apostle intimates in the next words: "This will we do, if God permit. For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, and have fallen away, to renew them again unto repentance." As if he had said, If we do not "go on to perfection," we are in the utmost danger of "falling away;" And if we do fall away, it is "impossible" that is, exceeding hard, "to renew them again unto repentance." In order to make this very important scripture as easy to be understood as possible I shall endeavour, I. To show what perfection is; II. To answer some objections to it; and, III. To expostulate a little with the opposers of it. I. I will endeavour to show what perfection is.