GUILT AND POLLUTION

     Guilt, as has already been stated, supposes voluntary transgression and is a subject for forgiveness; carnality is pollution, it is involuntary and is not a subject for forgiveness, but for cleansing. Guilt is not the transgression, but comes as a result of willful transgression. It is a legal defilement or quality, by which the sinner is considered unclean in the sight of the commandment, while carnality is a constitutional defilement by which its possessor is actually unclean both in the sight of the law and in fact. Not every transgression of the law produces guilt; the guilt depends upon the intention. The same act under different circumstances may be praiseworthy or censurable, according to the intention. But carnality does not lie in the intention, it is back of that. Man cannot control anything that lies beyond or behind the intention. Consequently, no matter how defiled his nature may be he is not responsible unless he willfully retains and glories in this defilement after a way is provided for his cleansing -- he is only to be blamed when he willfully yields to or retains his polluted nature.

     The confession and prayer of the sinner is, "I have transgressed, forgive me," while the confession and prayer of the seeker for holiness is, "I am unclean, cleanse me." No matter how much religion a person may profess when he falls on his knees and his heart is broken before God, he generally prays the right thing. If there is no other means by which we can tell his standing we can quite often do so by the way he prays.

     The sinner is both guilty and unclean, while the justified man is only unclean and this uncleanness is limited to that biased nature which he has by inheritance. He does not inherit guilt, but he does inherit pollution. The latter was born with him, the former he has willingly contracted.

     Are you guilty of committing sin? Have you yielded to the carnal nature of your soul? Is the prayer of your heart for forgiveness, for power to keep from sin? If so, the chances are that you are not ready for entire sanctification, you need to be regenerated. Your prayer may be all right, but you misname the goal for which you seek. You must be saved from actual sin before you are a proper candidate for holiness.

     The sinner yields to the evil tendencies of his heart, the Christian does not. In justice to strict truth this statement must be properly qualified.

     1. The unregenerated man does not always yield; some so thoroughly deny themselves and live such straight lives that their neighbors think they are Christians, and they often succeed in deceiving themselves. Among these are those formal professors that every one calls good, but who, when the light of truth comes streaming in, are convinced that they are wrong and straightway seek the Lord and get saved. Such persons are liable to get blest and call the blessing which they receive, holiness. If you willfully yield to sin you are a sinner, no matter if you are a preacher.

     2. While the justified Christian does not willfully yield to the evil tendencies of his soul, yet, as has already been stated, ^[1] he sees that his actions are not always governed by pure love to God or man. Although God reigns supreme yet He has a rival in the unclean nature of the soul. Although the Christian does not yield to impatience, yet he is not as patient as he should be, for he feels impatience within, and may catch it glancing from his eyes and moving in his hand or influencing to some degree the modulation of his voice. This is not yielding, for yielding is willful, while this is the involuntary movings of sin in the affections, which manifest themselves in his ways. It may be that his neighbors do not see these imperfections, yet he does. While this state of things is consistent with justifying grace, yet the person feels that it is a hindrance to grace. While the justified Christian is not proud, he is not as humble as he should be. This is seen from the fact that when he is commended there arises an involuntary feeling of self-sufficiency.

     Let us repeat that this is not yielding to the sinful bent of the soul, for yielding is intentional, and the things which are mentioned above occur amid struggles against inherent evil, which, by these unclean motions on the border-land of the will, is endeavoring to find its way to the surface.