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PREACHING AND DEFINITIVE SANCTIFICATION

by MICHAEL CHRIST in Vol. 7 No. 2 / Oct 2021

DOI: https://doi.org/10.35285/ucc7.2.2021.art7



This article proceeds from the assumption that the way a preacher conceptualizes a Christian’s identity in Christ shapes how he brings moral exhortation to the congregation. The concept of definitive sancti- fication—first coined by John Murray and developed by Richard Gaffin and others—identifies the believer as, in some sense, holy in Christ. This is not the holiness of imputed righteousness but a renovative change. Moreover, having been made holy, believers must act according to the logic of their identity in Christ. Three implications for preaching emerge from definitive sanctification: (1) preaching Christ and moral commands must be kept together, (2) the biblical indicative and imperative must inform each other, and (3) preaching must be eschatologically oriented.

Keywords
Sanctification, John Murray, Preaching, Eschatology, Definitive Sanctification, Union With Christ
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Other Articles in
Vol. 7 No. 2 / Oct 2021

Guest Editorial: Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield, 1851–1921 by PAUL HELM
Overcoming the World: Bavinck on Faith and Knowledge by HENK VAN DEN BELT
How Did God Hate Esau (Malachi 1:2–3)? by RON BERGEY
Divine Righteousness and Forgiveness: The Old Testament Background of Hilastērion in Romans 3:25 by MICHAEL C. MULDER
New England Election Sermons: A Model for a Public Pulpit by TIMON CLINE
Judgment and Mercy: Spurgeon’s Preaching of Hell by JEREMY WALKER
Böhl on Justification and Regeneration: Some Implications for Preaching and Pastoring by MEINE VELDMAN
Preaching and Definitive Sanctification by MICHAEL CHRIST
Spiritual Disciplines for Holiness in the Life of a Minister by JOEL R. BEEKE
Preaching to All of the Heart by A. CRAIG TROXEL
The Priority of Preaching in the Church’s Global Mission by JOHN CURRIE
The Stigmatization of HIV/AIDS Victims in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Gospel by PHILLIPUS J. BUYS
The Challenge of Communicating Christ in Melanesian Culture by RYAN DEJONGE
Interview with Timothy J. Keller by PETER A. LILLBACK
Edmund P. Clowney’s Triangle of Typology in Preaching and Biblical Theology by VERN S. POYTHRESS
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