Wesley Corpus

But this is a very partial account of it. Every child that has learned his Catechism can tell, that forsaking of sin is included in it; living in obedience to God’s will, when there is oppor tunity; and even when there is not, a sincere desire and pur pose to do so, and a faith in God’s mercies thrbugh Christ Jesus.” (Page 92.) I had said, “In order to God’s giving us faith and pardon, nothing is indispensably required but repentance,” that is, “conviction of sin, producing real desires and sincere resolu tions of amendment.” But you “apprehend that I am here in a great mistake;” that I give a “very partial account of repentance;” that I ought to “include therein a sincere desire and purpose” to obey God. I do: I have said so expressly;-- and “living in obedience to God’s will, when there is oppor tunity.” Very well; but I here speak of what is indispensably required, that is, whether there is opportunity of actual obedi ence or no;--“and a faith in God’s mercies through Christ Jesus.” A very great mistake indeed!--my not including faith in that repentance which I say is indispensably required in order to faith ! “Secondly. You make sinless perfection necessary after jus tification, in order to make us meet for glory.” And who does not? Indeed men do not agree in the time. Some believe it is attained before death; some, in the article of death; some, in an after-state, in the Mystic or the Popish purgatory. But all writers, whom I have ever seen till now, (the Romish them selves not excepted,) agree, that we must be “fully cleansed from all sin” before we can enter into glory. 3. After what has already been allowed, I cannot think it needful to dispute farther, on the head of justification. Rather suffer me to close this part of our debate, by transcribing what I assent to, from that clear recapitulation of your sentiments which you have given in pages 45 and 46: “(1.) Justification is the act of God, pardoning our sins, and receiving us again to his favour. This was free in him, because undeserved by us; undeserved, because we had trans gressed his law, and could not, nor even can now, perfectly fulfil it.