Second work of grace
According to certain Christian traditions, a second work of grace is a transforming interaction with God that may occur in the life of an individual Christian. The defining characteristics of the second work of grace are that it is separate from and subsequent to the New Birth, and that it brings about significant changes in the life of the believer. In the Methodist, the Quaker and the Holiness Pentecostal traditions of Christianity, the second work of grace is traditionally taught to be Christian perfection.
Methodism (inclusive of the holiness movement)
John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist movement, taught that there were two distinct phases in the Christian experience. In the first work of grace, the new birth, the believer receives forgiveness and becomes a Christian. During the second work of grace, entire sanctification, the believer is purified and made holy. Wesley taught that entire sanctification is "wrought instantaneously, though it may be approached by slow and gradual steps". Entire sanctification eradicates original sin ; the free will to backslide into sin and commit apostasy, however, exists, and on sin after entire sanctification, churches upholding Methodist theology teach:The systematic theologian of Methodism, John William Fletcher, terms the reception of entire sanctification as Baptism with the Holy Spirit. A Holiness text from 1897 explicates this:
Fletcher additionally emphasizes that the experience of entire sanctification, through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, empowers the believer for service to God. After Wesley's death, mainstream Methodism "emphasized sanctification or holiness as the goal of the Christian life", something that "may be received in this life both gradually and instantaneously, and should be sought earnestly by every child of God." Before a believer is entirely sanctified, he/she consecrates himself/herself to God; the theology behind consecration is summarized with the maxim "Give yourself to God in all things, if you would have God give Himself to you."
The Holiness movement emerged in the 1860s with the desire to re-emphasize Wesley's doctrine of entire sanctification. Many Holiness preachers emphasized the reception of entire sanctification as an instantaneous experience. In Wesleyan-Arminian theology, the second work of grace is considered to be a cleansing from the tendency to commit sin, an experience called entire sanctification which leads to Christian perfection. The Core Values of the Methodist Connection of Churches">Methodism">Methodist Connection of Churches thus teaches:
Still, many within holiness movement emphasize that before a person could be entirely sanctified, they must put to death the carnal nature through a process of renunciation; this is known as the 'death route to entire sanctification'. Though the belief in the death route to Christian perfection is held by many throughout Methodism, it is especially emphasized in the Emmanuel Association of Churches and the Immanuel Missionary Church.
Wesley, who articulated the doctrine, taught that those who had been entirely sanctified would be perfect in love, engaging in works of piety and works of mercy—both of which are characteristic of a believer's growing in grace. This growth in grace occurs both after the New Birth and entire sanctification. Having Christian perfection is to be distinguished from absolute perfection, Which only God possesses; additionally, having infirmities are not inconsistent with a person who has been entirely sanctified.
Quakerism (inclusive of the holiness movement)
George Fox, the founder of Quakerism, taught perfection in which the Christian believer could be made free from sin. In his Some Principles of the Elect People of God Who in Scorn are called Quakers, for all the People throughout all Christendome to Read over, and thereby their own States to Consider, he writes in section "XVI. Concerning Perfection":The early Quakers, following Fox, taught that subsequent to the New Birth, through the power of the Holy Spirit, man could be free from actual sinning if he continued to rely on the inward light and "focus on the cross of Christ as the center of faith". Fox emphasized "personal responsibility for faith and emancipation from sin" in his teaching on Christian perfection. For the Christian, "perfectionism and freedom from sin were possible in this world". This traditional Quaker teaching continues to be emphasized by Conservative Friends, such as the Ohio Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends and Holiness Friends, such as the Central Yearly Meeting of Friends.