Natalie Grant- Your Great Name

Positional Grace and Sanctification Before the Throne and Temporal Reality

Positional Grace and Sanctification and Temporal Reality

 

Romans 5;6;7

 

God, Jesus, through Paul

 

 

 

 

  

5"Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

² By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
³ And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
⁴ And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
⁵ And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us." (Romans 5:1-5)

     Here we see from the lawyer Paul, a vision of a court room setting.  God being the Supreme Judge and Christ the Advocate of His Believers.  Justified has the equated meaning in our current jargon, absolved of a judgment of condemnation for sin, all sin, past, present, and future.  Condemnation is absolved.  The sentence hearing stage of the punishment sentencing is absolved.  Not expunged, completely REMOVED, removed from our account, and crushed upon Jesus, the reason He was forsaken.  That is our position in Christ.  We are now children of the KING!  No more condemnation.

   Now Beloved, there is a movement as old as the Garden of Eden itself, for there is nothing new under the sun, that says God does not see us commit wrong doing, sin, or ungodly acts after we are in grace, absolved of condemnation.  In the aspect of our position in Christ, that is so...that Scripture aligns with, and I am in agreement with and live by.  We would be mistaken to believe anything else but that.  Beloved, that is the head sign of the coin in the teaching of grace  That is positional standing in Christ before the Mercy Seat and throne of God, where the intent and law of God has and is written on our hearts.  Still with me?

6 "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?

² God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
³ Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
⁴ Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
⁵ For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:
⁶ Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
⁷ For he that is dead is freed from sin.
⁸ Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:
⁹ Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.
¹⁰ For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.
¹¹ Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
¹² Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
¹³ Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.
¹⁴ For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
¹⁵ What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.
¹⁶ Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
¹⁷ But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.
¹⁸ Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.
¹⁹ I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.
²⁰ For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness.
²¹ What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.
²² But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.
²³ For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."


     All of Romans chapter 6 had to be posted.  It behooves us all to read chapters 5, 6, 7, of Romans in an unstopped treatise or letter.  Stop for a moment, and remove the passage and chapter numbers and read it as a letter to you, a Christian who is already positional in grace, justified and redeemed, facing not sentence of hell!  Stop now, God read chapters five and six unbroken as the letter it is, and do so in prayer.


   Notice what Paul has just eluded to?  Notice his explanation?  He is showing there is the flesh, the reality of the earthly tent of our bodies that our souls possess, yes, here on Terra Firma, until we pass to the Kingdom, to the presence of God, slipping the constraints of this flesh, which is marred and failing from sin, our physical bodies are dying because of sin, despite being regenerative and born again.  If this was not so, we would not sin post grace and salvation.  Correct?  There is a semi popular "new doctrine" that teaches only positional grace in all aspects of the Believer's life.  As for judgment, condemnation, and forgiveness of sins past, present, and future, that half of the teaching is so!  Amen and amen!  We are now speaking post salvation, as children of the King with law imprinted in our heart.




^5 "For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.
⁶ But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.
⁷ What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.
⁸ But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead.
⁹ For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.
¹⁰ And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death.
¹¹ For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me.
¹² Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good.
¹³ Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful.
¹⁴ For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.
¹⁵ For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.
¹⁶ If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good.
¹⁷ Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
¹⁸ For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.
¹⁹ For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
²⁰ Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
²¹ I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.
²² For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
²³ But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
²⁴ O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
²⁵ I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin."

     See what Paul just did in Romans 7?  He is showing applicable grace for the life, the temporal life of here and NOW!  He is contrasting the battle of the saved soul in position of a flesh body, and the war that exist between the two.  He is showing that the saved soul STILL SINS!  Saved, yet in a battle between two natures until Christ returns and sin is no more a ravish of the Saint's body.  He still recalls "positional grace" the seal that has saved (past tense...finished) act of God in Christ.  No more condemnation.  Every one see where we are now?  That is positional grace before the Judge Who condemns the soul that has rejected Christ.

   Now beloved let us move into temporal "reality of the soul that owns a flesh body." This is know by a few different descriptions:  "Applicable grace on earth (not condemnation) but the aspect of expected Christ like behavior we are called to live in and by per our Lord Jesus, His Words through His Father, disciples, and apostles.  I am about to mention the Decalogue or Ten Commandments.  DON'T SCREAM LEGALISM!  I mention them not for salvation or for redemption, rather as a moral code of conduct.  Saint under grace, is it okay to rape since you are under grace?   Is a lie a lie if told by a Saint?  Is adultery a sin if it is done by a Saint?  Is it a sin to take the Lord our God's name in vain, if we are a redeemed child of Christ?  These are ALL RHETORICAL questions.  Heaven forbid no it is sin regardless of your being forgiven and justified.   Let us use a human analogy for a moment.  I was a teenager over twenty years ago, and previous leaving home for the Marine Corps, I made choices against dad's will.  I turned down scholarships to the University of Mississippi [Ole Miss] to be a Marine, an act that shattered his hopes, desires, and dreams for me His son.  Did that remove me position of  being his first born son?  Heck no!  Did it place a wedge in our relationship, our fellowship,  and our peace?  Yes, resoundingly, emphatically YES!  Did dad see my disobedience?  Of course, but did he disown me?  NO!  The whole crux of this is, the teaching f positional grace only is one sided.  Does God see the acts we commit under grace?  By corresponding epistles and verses in the Old Testament, yes He does.  It is logical and Scriptural.  Consider these verses:
  ^17" I cried unto him with my mouth, and he was extolled with my tongue.  ¹⁸ If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:"  Psalm 66:17-18

     Writing to Christians in Ephesus, John wrote the Holy Spirit's word

 ^6 "If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
⁷ But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
⁸ If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
⁹ If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
¹⁰ If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us."


     What are we confessing?  Sin.  To Whom are we confessing?  God, this only serves to show that God recognizes the wedge of sin in between His child and His heart, (NOT IN CONDEMNATION) not in (LOSING SAVATION OR POSITION) but in growing in the image of Jesus.  Yes our Father commands we remove sin from our lives for His GLORY and our PROGRESSIVE sanctification in these earthly tents, not positional sanctification, this must be taught always with positional grace.  For not to do so is partial truth, incomplete counsel of God, and endangers the Saint to think he can live contrary to the Way, and still please God. 
^12 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
¹³ And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
¹⁴ If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.
¹⁵ If ye love me, keep my commandments.
¹⁶ And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;
¹⁷ Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you."  John 14:12-17 Jesus

  Beloved, please share this, we are called to walk worthy of HIS calling on us.  It is impossible to do so in a life of unconfessed sin.  Love in Christ Jason  


 

 

 



Keep Calm

And Remain Compassionate

 



 

During the Battle of Britain

In WWII the last people to oppose tyranny were the people of the United Kingdom, and her common wealth of nations, Dunkirk had been evacuated, children shipped outside of urban areas, and the RAF was heavily out numbered sometimes three to one, and some times five to one.  Yet, following Churchill's lead, they remained calm.  They knew they fought for right, for liberty and  opposed tyranny.  They were compassionate to their fellow Britain, and refugee Frenchmen, Dutchman, and Jew.  It took compassion, loyalty, empathy, and TEAM WORK to hold out against the onslaught of the Nazi's.  We as Christians face an onslaught every day against the enemy, society and world humanistic secularism, but REAMAIN CALM!

 

     ^8 "Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous."  1 Peter3:8

 

Love in Christ Jason

 

     

Clothed in Christ (Paul Washer)

     Clothed in Christ?  Come to Christ, receive grace, sin absolved, a justified position in Christ, at the bar of God's justice, wrath satisfied, and no more condemnation.  Legally "you ain't going to Hell."  Okay seeing of wrath is paid for by Jesus, and we have access to the throne, because of Christ.  Where do we go from there.  Since sin is no longer an issue, what does it matter how we live?  God's forgiven us right?  Right?  Or does it matter?  Does it matter that we grow in Christ likeness?  Or are we left to be Jason Bryant, choosing Jason Bryant's will over God's plan, will and desire?

    

"12 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,

² Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
³ For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.
⁴ Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.
⁵ And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him:
⁶ For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
⁷ If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?
⁸ But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.
⁹ Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?
¹⁰ For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.
¹¹ Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby."

     Now, if Jesus has cast our sins from the East to the West, remembered no more, then how can God see the sin or willful disobedience, that requires chastisement?  Think about it, if we are no longer with sin [not in regards to justification, or condemnation] how can God see the need or necessity to chastise a child for disobedience? 


      "²⁶ For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
²⁷ But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.
²⁸ He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:
²⁹ Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?
³⁰ For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.
³¹ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God."  Hebrews 11:26-31

   [IF]  God sees no more since on the Believer in Christ, then why is the passage from Hebrews 11:26-31 recorded?  It is written to Hebrew Christians.  I am not saying for condemnation or for salvation, this is post salvation.  This popular or semi popular television evangelist says sin is not to be mentioned, yet that goes against Scripture that says self examination is a must.  Is it a must for self gratification, or is it to compare ourselves to Jesus, you know to see "where we are, and where we are not in Christ likeness?  I know Scripture admonish us to never compare ourselves to other humans, it leads to jealously, and comparison to truth, which leads us to conviction to see how far we fall from God's desire for us...you know Christlikeness.


      "⁶ If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
⁷ But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
⁸ If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
⁹ If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
¹⁰ If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us."  1st John1:6-10

   John the disciple whom Jesus loved, penned these words by guidance of the Holy Spirit's steady hand.  He wrote them to Christians in Ephesus, not unbeliever, but children of God in Christ.  So again, "why"  would God write to Christians, or chastise Christians whose sin He can't see past salvation?

Revelation 2

King James Version (KJV)

'2 Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks;

² I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:
³ And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.
⁴ Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.
⁵ Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.
⁶ But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate.
⁷ He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.
⁸ And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive;
⁹ I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.
¹⁰ Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.
¹¹ He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.
¹² And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;
¹³ I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan's seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.
¹⁴ But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.
¹⁵ So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, which thing I hate.
¹⁶ Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.
¹⁷ He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.
¹⁸ And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass;
¹⁹ I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be more than the first.

If God doesn't see sin under grace,  They how He chastise he just rebuked a churches?

Share with the Beloved!  In Chris Jason

    

 

"Persecution or a Great Awakening" - Paul Washer

The Names of God

The Names of God

 

 

God

 

Elohim- God Mighty Creator: Genesis 1:1

 

El Roi- The God Who sees me:Genesis 16:13

 

El Shaddai- God Almighty: Genesis 35:1-15

 

El Olam- God Eternal-Ancient of Days:Genesis 21:23

 

Yaweh Yireh-  The Lord Whom provides HIMSELF:

 

Yaweh- Lord: Habakkuk 3:5

 

Adonai- My Lord, my Master:Genesis 2:4

 

Yaweh Rophe- The Lord Himself Who is Healing:Exo 15:22-27

 

Yaweh Nissi- The Lord Himself, my Banner in battle:Is 61:3

 

Ela Oklah El Kanna- The All Consuming Fire:Deut 4:24-26

 

Qedosh Yisarel- The Holy One of Israel:2Kings 7:19

 

Yaweh Shalom- The Lord Himself is PEACE:Judges 6:1-24

 

Yaweh Tasbaoth- The Lord of Host [Heaven's Armies]:1 Sam 1:11

 

Yaweh Tauri- The Lord my Rock:Isaiah 26:4

 

Yaweh Roi-The Lord my Good Shepherd: Psalm 7:17

 

HASHEM-The Name: Exodus 3:13

 

Ha Melek- The King of kings:Psalm 10:16

 

Miwah Yisirael-The Hope of Israel:  Jeremiah 13:17

 

Ish-The Bridegroom my husband: Hosea 2:19

 

El Chay-The Living God: Genesis 31:13

 

Shophet- The Judge:Psalm 94:2

 

Yaweh Tsidkenu-My God my RIGHTEOUSNESS: Isaiah 61:3

 

El Elyon-The Most High God: Genesis 14:20

 

Yaweh Shammah-My God is Here!: Ezekiel 38:45

 

ABBA-AB- My Father, daddy: Mark 14:36

 

YHWH-Jehovah-I AM that I AM: Exodus 3:14

 

Jesus-Yeshua-The visible image of all the above: Col 1:15

    Want a deeper understanding of Whom God is?  What characteristics where in Jesus?  Who and what the One we pray to is able and beyond capable to fulfill through Jesus for us and to us, on our behalf in His glory?  Look up these passages, write them down beside Jesus' name, then pray to God in Jesus Name, I promise you, your prayer life will be DEEP. Your faith will abound.  Love in Christ, Jason

 

 

 



When God Reveals His Name, What Happens?

When God Reveals His Name, What Happens?

God

 

 

 

God Almighty

 

Genesis 35:1-15

35 And God said unto Jacob, Arise, go up to Bethel, and dwell there: and make there an altar unto God, that appeared unto thee when thou fleddest from the face of Esau thy brother.

² Then Jacob said unto his household, and to all that were with him, Put away the strange gods that are among you, and be clean, and change your garments:
³ And let us arise, and go up to Bethel; and I will make there an altar unto God, who answered me in the day of my distress, and was with me in the way which I went.
⁴ And they gave unto Jacob all the strange gods which were in their hand, and all their earrings which were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was by Shechem.
⁵ And they journeyed: and the terror of God was upon the cities that were round about them, and they did not pursue after the sons of Jacob.
⁶ So Jacob came to Luz, which is in the land of Canaan, that is, Bethel, he and all the people that were with him.
⁷ And he built there an altar, and called the place Elbethel: because there God appeared unto him, when he fled from the face of his brother.
⁸ But Deborah, Rebekah's nurse died, and she was buried beneath Bethel under an oak: and the name of it was called Allonbachuth.
⁹ And God appeared unto Jacob again, when he came out of Padanaram, and blessed him.
¹⁰ And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name: and he called his name Israel.
¹¹ And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins;
¹² And the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land.
¹³ And God went up from him in the place where he talked with him.
¹⁴ And Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he talked with him, even a pillar of stone: and he poured a drink offering thereon, and he poured oil thereon.
¹⁵ And Jacob called the name of the place where God spake with him, Bethel.

     When we meet folks or even call the ones we love, we do so engaging a name.  When we really ponder the simplicity of a name, and how often we use names, it is amazing how integral they are in communication and every day living.  Consider Beloved the fact that we use names for every object, place, and person we deal with.  I am going to Walmart.  I am going to my wife' job  in the town of Atlanta, Georgia, (fictitious) I am married to the Lord.  I am going to pick up my son Carson at East Jones Elementary School in my Mitsubishi Montero.  Oh wait a moment, its Tuesday, I don't have to go pick Carson up.  I am leading Bible study and prayer meeting at Glade Baptist Church on Wednesday.  So Beloved, in just everyday secular events we use a name. 

     In the Bible, in the Kingdom aspects of God, His character, His nature, Who He is.  Here in Genesis 35, God changes Jacobs name to Israel, and claims covenant ownership of him and his seed.  He establishes the land deed to fulfill the promise to Abraham and Isaac.  He reveals to Israel formerly Jacob the deceiver, His name of El Shaddai, God Almighty.  god who is able to restore Sarah's dead womb, Abraham's dead reproductive system, and God Who gives His Believers a new name that is engraved on His hand, and tattooed on His heart, and as John recorded in prophetical New Testament verses, a new name in Heaven.  Remember Paul says there is ONLY ONE Name we can call on for salvation.  It is Jesus.  Names are necessity.

     When God revealed El Shadaai to Israel, look what transpired.  Israel built an altar, poured out a drink offering, anointed the altar in oil. He worshipped the Most High God!  When we in Spirit and Truth, with clean heart and clean hands as Jacob instructed his family in verses 1-4 we call upon the Name of the Lord, then we worship.  That is what happens when God reveals His Name to us.

Share with the Saints!  Love in Christ Jason!



What is worship?

What is worship?

The 1828 edition of Webster's defines worship as: "2. Reverence offered unto a supernatural or divine being; or act of expressing such reverence. 3. A religious practice with its creed or rituals. 4. Respect or admiration for, or devotion to an object of esteem."

Here in this definition we can clearly see man's listed description of what worship is. It is taking the thought, attitude, and mind of man, and placing it on something else. Notice that even in man's definition, the focus is taken off of the one who esteems, and places it on someone or something else. Now Beloved, see how the definition above mentions an act of expressing, placing, moving the focus from the individual to something or someone else.

We can see that the someone or something to which the focus is placed on, is held in high regard. The object or person being worshiped is esteemed, admiration, and devotion are mentioned. Let us take a few minutes and go around the room, and each of us describe what our own definition of worship has been up to this point in our lives as Christians.

Nelson's Biblical Dictionary defines worship as "Reverent devotion and allegiance pledged to God; the rituals or ceremonies by which this reverence is expressed. The English word "worship" comes from the Old English word "worthship," a word that denotes the worthiness of the one receiving special honor or devotion." Doesn't take long for we Christians to be able to relate in the human sense to this definition, does it? Worth. A word we all are accustomed to hearing and understanding. We all place value or worth on everyday things in this temporal world. What are some things or people we place value on in our society today? Our spouses, kids, grand children, homes, cars, bank accounts, land, jobs, and education are some to name a few. Now let's discuss some earthly things we place value on, and why the mean something to us.

As with me me Beloved, we all place value or attribute worth on things, I just mentioned in the paragraph above. We value these people and things because we love them, we appreciate them, and the have a place in our hearts and minds. They are a part of our lives by choice, by consummation of marriages, and by necessity. We need our vehicles, our families, our jobs, and homes. They are channels through which God Has met our needs through His goodness, in his grace, and of His love and provision to us. Most of the things we all named and placed value on, are things that are mentioned directly in the Bible in relation of God's concern for us, such as health, spouses, kids, and jobs. So looking at these temporary things loaned to us on this earth, we ascribe value to them.

Now that we have established an understanding of "worth" in our every day lives, let us look at God's worth. Seeing how all or most of us in here are Believers, it stands to reason we know that God is a necessity in our lives. Beloved He unlike the things and relationships we just discussed is eternal. He will always be there. He will not fail us, disappoint us, break down on us, or hurt us. We can't say that about anything we mentioned in the previous paragraph. As tonight's lesson closes let's all discuss why God is worthy of praise in our lives. It can be His acts on our behalves, His revelation to us personally, or just His goodness and mercy on us. Just be candid and honest why we place our idea of "worth" on the Most High.

Awesome testimonies and Biblical attributes of His worth that was mentioned. Amen! He sure is good isn't He? On these take home sheets are Scripture passages and a few discussion questions to answer after you've prayerfully studied the passages, and prayerfully answered them. Bring these back next week, completed and ready to share in open discussion next Sunday night. I am doing one as well. This week as you prayerfully study the passages. Ask God to reveal things in these passages to help us understand His worth. Remember Beloved that "worth" is the root meaning of Biblical worship.

Judge Not Lest Ye Be Judged?

Judge Not Lest Ye Be Judged?

 

My many apologies for the shared content the last two days, and for the next two days to come.  I make no excuses, I simply am sharing these teachings because I have finals Wednesday, and these are teachings that I have learned this year.  Original content will be back on Wednesday the 26th Beloved.  In Christ, Jason.

 

 

 

 

 

 



Sanctification

Sanctification

C.S. Lewis

 

"Mere Christianity"

 

"Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on: you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of — throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were going to be made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself."

 

 

 

 

 

Sanctification



 

Bradford A. Mullen



"The generic meaning of sanctification is "the state of proper functioning." To sanctify someone or something is to set that person or thing apart for the use intended by its designer. A pen is "sanctified" when used to write. Eyeglasses are "sanctified" when used to improve sight. In the theological sense, things are sanctified when they are used for the purpose God intends. A human being is sanctified, therefore, when he or she lives according to God's design and purpose.
The Greek word translated "sanctification" (hagiasmos [aJgiasmov"]) means "holiness." To sanctify, therefore, means "to make holy." In one sense only God is holy ( Isa 6:3 ). God is separate, distinct, other. No human being or thing shares the holiness of God's essential nature. There is one God. Yet Scripture speaks about holy things. Moreover, God calls human beings to be holy as holy as he is holy ( Lev 11:44 ; Matt 5:48 ; 1 Peter 1:15-16 ). Another word for a holy person is "saint" (hagios [a&gio"]), meaning a sanctified one. The opposite of sanctified is "profane" ( Lev 10:10 ).
From time to time human beings are commanded to sanctify themselves. For example, God commanded the nation of Israel, "consecrate to me every firstborn male" ( Exod 13:2 ). God said through Peter, "in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord" ( 1 Peter 3:15 ). One sanctifies Christ by responding to unbelievers meaningfully, out of a good conscience and faithful life. God calls his own to set themselves apart for that which he has set them apart. Sanctify, therefore, becomes a synonym for "trust and obey" ( Isa 29:23 ). Another name for this action is "consecration." To fail to sanctify God has serious consequences ( Num 20:12 ).
Human beings ultimately cannot sanctify themselves. The Triune God sanctifies. The Father sanctifies ( 1 Cor 1:30 ) by the Spirit ( 2 Thess 2:13 ; 1 Peter 1:2 ) and in the name of Christ ( 1 Cor 6:11 ). Yet Christian faith is not merely passive. Paul calls for active trust and obedience when he says, "Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God" ( 2 Cor 7:1 ). No one may presume on God's grace in sanctification. Peter reminds believers to be diligent in making their calling and election sure ( 2 Peter 1:10 ).
A person or thing can be sanctified in two ways according to God's creative purpose or according to God's redemptive design. All sanctified in the first sense are used by God in the second sense. Not all God uses in the second sense are sanctified in the first sense.
Sanctification According to God's Creative Design. God created the universe and human beings perfect (i.e., sanctified). Everything and everyone functioned flawlessly until Adam and Eve believed Satan's lie. The fall plunged the human race and the universe into a state of dysfunction ( Gen 3:14-19 ). Neither was so distorted by the fall so as to obliterate God's original purpose and design completely. Fallen human beings still bear God's image ( James 3:9-10 ). Fallen creation still witnesses to God's existence and attributes ( Psalm 19:1-6 ; Rom 1:20 ). Yet both, depending on the analogy employed, are skewed, broken, fallen, dysfunctional, "unsanctified."
The imperfect state of creation is a reminder that God's fully sanctified purpose for it has been disrupted by sin. Evil is the deprivation of the good that God intends for the creation he has designed. The creation groans, awaiting its sanctification when everything will be set right ( Rom 8:21-22 ; Rev. 20-21 ).
Human beings, made in God's image, were the pinnacle and focus of his creation. The sanctification of human beings, therefore, is the highest goal of God's work in the universe. God explicitly declared it to be his will ( 1 Thess 4:3 ). He purposed that human beings be "like him" in a way no other created thing is. Human beings are like God in their stewardship over creation ( Gen 1:26-31 ). Yet this role is dependent on a more fundamentally important likeness to God moral character. By virtue of God-given discretionary autonomy (faith), human beings may so depend upon God that his moral character (communicable attributes) are displayed.
The unsanctified state of fallen humanity is not caused merely by lack of effort or poor motivation. It constitutes an inherent structural flaw. When Adam sinned, he and his race forfeited that which made it possible for them to function as designed the presence of God himself. Adam and Eve's pre fallen sanctification was not a result of their inherent capabilities. God's indwelling presence was responsible for the manifestation of his attributes in them. Sanctification always requires God's presence. His presence is more than his "being there" a corollary of his omnipresence. It is his dynamic presence, producing fruit for which he alone is the source. "Indwelling" is not God's way of getting close to us sensually. It is a theological, rather than experiential, reality; it is "experienced" by faith, not by feeling.
Human beings "fall short of God's glory" ( Rom 3:23 ) because they lack God's presence, which produces glory. "Glory" is always the manifestation of the attributes of God resulting from the presence of God. God's presence was the essential missing factor in Adam and Eve's post fall state. God called out to the fleeing man, "Where are you?" ( Gen 3:9 ). God was not seeking information. He was clarifying to sinful humanity that his presence was now lost.
God sought Adam and Eve, indicating that restoration of the original purpose would be undertaken by him. Sanctification, therefore, is exclusively the work of God in grace ( Lev 21:8 ; Ezek 20:12 ; Heb 2:11 ; Jude 1 ). Functioning moral likeness to God, lost in the fall, is restored through God's redemption in Christ ( Eph 4:23-24 ; Col 3:9-10 ). Human beings are "made holy" through Christ's work. The blood of Jesus Christ sanctifies ( Heb 13:12 ) because his substitutionary atonement reversed all of the dysfunctional, as well as legal (i.e., guilt), effects of sin. Human beings are progressively sanctified now through faith in Christ and by the indwelling Spirit ( 2 Cor 3:18 ), while awaiting full sanctification at the resurrection. Believers under both the old and new covenants are sanctified the same way by grace through faith.
Sanctification According to God's Redemptive Purposes. In addition to designing the goal of creation (functioning human beings in a fittingly perfect environment), God has also designed the means of achieving that goal. He not only wants to make the universe, especially human beings, sanctified. He also uses sanctified (set-apart) means to accomplish his end.
God calls specific people at specific times to be sanctified for a particular role in his redemptive program. God uses all people for his purposes, even those who defy him ( Rom 9:21-22 ). For example, God used Pharaoh even though he did not let Israel go ( Rom 9:17 ). God also used Cyrus, a pagan ruler, to discipline Israel ( Isa 45:1 ). The Scripture, however, is largely the story of how God wants to use willing "vessels." He set apart some to be kings, priests, and prophets. God sanctified Jeremiah even before birth for his prophetic ministry ( Jer 1:5 ). The Holy Spirit "set apart" Paul and Barnabas for missionary service from among the gathered church ( Acts 13:2 ). Every believer has a "calling" or "vocation" based on "gifting." Just as each Israelite had a role in the corporate life under the old covenant, so the church functions by the ministry of gifted and called individuals. Each one has a gift. The prominence of ministry will vary from person to person. Yet each sanctifies his or her calling through faithfulness.
It is possible, to one's peril, to confuse God's calling to "be redeemed" and God's calling to "be a redemptive agent." The former is a prerequisite for the latter. The latter cannot substitute for the former. Many Israelites were unsanctified personally because they presumed that their calling to be a redemptive nation guaranteed God's sanctifying grace. They disregarded God's Word, lacked faith in God ( Heb 4:2 ), and became proud of their achievements. Jesus spoke his harshest words against the unsanctified Pharisees ( Matt 23 ). God judged Israel as a nation by setting them aside as God's channel of blessing for the world ( Matt 21:43 )this but for a time. God is determined to fulfill all of his promises to his redemptive channel ( Rom 11:25-29 ). God used Israel, nevertheless, as a disobedient people. From a remnant within ethnic Israel, God built his church. Paul confronted an oft-posed question, "How can an elect [i.e., sanctified] nation be lost?" (Rom. 9-11). He reminded his Jewish audience that when God elected Israel to be a redemptive agent ( Gen 12:1-3 ), he did not guarantee redemption for every Israelite. Paul also warned non-Israelite believers, likewise blessed as redemptive agents (the church), not to confuse privilege with standing when he said, "Do not be arrogant, but be afraid. For if God did not spare the natural branches [Israel], he will not spare you either" ( Rom 11:20b-21 ).
Jesus Christ: The Sanctifier and Model of Sanctification. The singular means of God's sanctifying grace is Jesus Christ: "We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all" ( Heb 10:10 ). Christ was qualified to sanctify because he himself had been sanctified through suffering ( Heb 2:10-11 ). First, Jesus Christ was the only human being since the fall to live a continuously, perfectly sanctified life. He was without sin, therefore, without guilt or dysfunctionality. He was sanctified from the moment of his conception ( Matt 1:18-20 ; Luke 1:35 ). He was rightly called the "Holy One of God" ( Mark 1:24 ), sanctified by the Father ( John 10:36 ). In his character, therefore, Jesus Christ was morally sanctified. Second, he was vocationally sanctified. Christ did what the Father called him to do ( John 5:19 John 5:30 John 5:36 ; 6:38 ; 8:28-29 ; 12:49 ). He accomplished his vocational purpose through time, yet he continually fulfilled his moral purpose. He sanctified himself by fulfilling his unique calling as the Messiah ( John 17:19 ), being declared the Son of God at his resurrection ( Rom 1:4 ). Jesus Christ, therefore, is the model human being for both moral and vocational sanctification ( Php 2:5-11 ).
Just as all forgiveness of sin was provisional until the ministry of the Messiah was complete, so all sanctification was provisional ( Heb 9:13-14 ; 10:10-12 ). The incarnation was an indispensable means for sanctifying humanity because it was necessary that the sanctifier be from within humanity ( Heb 2:11 ). Christ's sacrificial offering of himself to God achieved comprehensive sanctification for all people ( Hebrews 10:10 Hebrews 10:14 Hebrews 10:29 ; 13:12 ). In addition, the return of Christ will mark the beginning of remade heaven and earth ( 2 Peter 3:10-13 ).
Anything that prefigured the work of Christ was holy in a redemptive sense. Something need not be inherently holy to serve a sanctifying purpose. Though God instructed his people to choose animals for sacrifice that were "without spot, " this was technically impossible. Only the unblemished Lamb of God was qualified to sanctify the world. Nevertheless, the lambs, bulls, and goats used in the ceremonial sacrifices in the Old Testament were sanctified because they anticipated the one sacrifice for sins forever. Jesus was the fulfillment of the Old Testament offices of prophet, priest, and king. Yet many of these are not numbered among God's faithful. Everything is rendered holy by its proper use. The New Testament emphasis is that everything can be sanctified in a redemptive sense. When the believer glorifies God by thanking God for everything ( 1 Cor 10:31 ; 1 Thess 5:18 ), the believer thereby sanctifies everything. Nothing that God has created is unclean in itself. Its misuse renders it unclean.
God has ordained specific means, however, by which the church sets Christ apart. For example, participation in the new covenant "Table of the Lord" sanctifies the believer. Apart from what Christ has done, the exercise of eating bread and drinking wine would be common. God sanctifies a believer through his or her faithful remembrance of Christ's redemptive work according to the command of the Lord. People may so profane the Lord's Supper so as to receive judgment prematurely from God ( 1 Cor 11:27-32 ).
Worship under the old covenant foreshadowed Christ. Israel was ever conscious of the "sanctuary" (hagion [a&gion])the place where God resided and which he loved ( Mal 2:11 ). During Israel's captivities, the people were separated from the sanctuary and, hence, alienated from the assurance of God's saving blessings. It was the geographical and spiritual center of the nation's life.
The material used for the earthly sanctuary was made "holy" by virtue of its use. God stipulated strict standards for the sanctuary's construction (Exod. 25-40) and operation (Leviticus). Everything to do with the tabernacle and temple was holy: garments ( Exod 28:2 ), anointing oil ( Exod 30:25 ), crown ( Exod 39:30 ), linen tunic ( Lev 16:4 ), convocation of the people ( Lev 23:2 ), water ( Num 5:17 ), vessels ( Num 31:6 ), utensils ( 1 Kings 8:4 ), ark ( 2 Chron 35:3 ), day ( Ne 8:11 ), and place ( Exod 28:29 ; 1 Kings 6:16 ). The items and procedures had typological significance. Although every typological feature cannot be established with absolute precision, Scripture indicates that the tabernacle and temple, including its priestly service, foreshadowed Christ ( Heb 8:5 ; 9:23 ).
The old covenant sanctuaries were merely provisional. Only Christ could take away sin, "perfecting for all time those who are being sanctified" ( Heb 10:14 , marginal reading ). The Hebrew writer contrasts the earthly sanctuary of Israel with the heavenly sanctuary. It was the latter that Christ entered and opened for all who come to God through him ( Heb 8:1-6 ; 9:23-26 ; 10:19-22 ).
Old and new covenants are linked by Christ. For example, the Sabbath and other designated days were to be kept "holy" ( Gen 2:3 ; Exod 20:11 ; Num 29:1 ). Christ is the Sabbath rest for believers ( Heb 4:1-11 ). Because of the sanctifying ministry of Christ, each day may be lived equally to the glory of God. Even in cases when believers differ in this matter, Paul urges all to live each day for the Lord ( Rom 14:5-12 ) for he is the "substance" ( Col 2:16-17 ). God's name is to be sanctified ( Psalm 103:1 ; Isa 29:23 ). We sanctify God's name when we worship him properly. Christians are "sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy" ( 1 Cor 1:2 ). Jesus taught us to pray, "Our Father hallowed [sanctified] be your name" ( Matt 6:9 ). Praying in Jesus' name sanctifies our prayers ( John 15:16 ).
Key Concepts. God's usual modus operandi is to sanctify common things for his redemptive purposes, rather than to employ perfect heavenly things ( 1 Cor 1:26-31 ). He sanctified common coats of skin to cover Adam and Eve's nakedness ( Gen 3:21 ). He sanctified a common man, Abram of Ur, in order to make a great nation ( Gen 12:1-7 ). He sanctified a common bush in the Sinai desert from which to commission a man to lead Israel out of bondage. Moses stood on "holy ground" ( Exod 3:5 ), on a "holy mountain" ( Eze 28:14 ). God made Jerusalem a "holy city" ( Neh 11:1 ; Isa 48:2 ). In dramatic fashion, God sanctified the common womb of a common virgin girl by which to incarnate his Son. God's presence was with her ( Luke 1:28 ). Jesus sanctified the world by his presence, "tabernacling" with us ( John 1:14 ). God's method is grace. He alone is to be credited.
God's law is holy ( Rom 7:12 ). Christ sanctified God's Law by fulfilling it ( Matt 5:17 ). That means Christ fulfilled the ceremonial purpose of the Law by being the antitype of all that it prefigured, and fulfilled the moral demands of the Law by living perfectly according to its standards. The "law of Christ" ( Gal 6:2 ) is synonymous with the moral demands God places on all humanity. We sanctify God's Law by obeying it. Obedience is not contrary to faith. It is not works-sanctification. Biblical faith is a faith that works (James 2). The New Testament is full of commands, imperatives, laws. God is pleased when the believer does "good works, " for he designed them from the beginning ( Eph 2:10 ).
It is understandable why some downplay or even deny any present usefulness of "law" in the sanctification of believers. They appeal to such verses as, "you are not under law, but under grace" ( Rom 6:14b ). They are right that "law" is not the dynamic that sanctifies ( Heb 7:18-19 ). But the Law was never given for that purpose ( Gal 3:21 ). Its purpose for unbelievers is to show them how far from the original design they have come. It has an evangelistic purpose ( Gal 3:24 ). Its purpose for believers, however, is to guide them to where grace is leading them. The old covenant anticipated a fuller application of the Law. God said to Old Testament Israel that he would inaugurate a new covenant in which he would put his Law within them, and write it on their hearts ( Jer 31:33 ; Heb 8:10 ; see Ezek 36:27 ). Jesus reiterated, however, the continuing sanctifying function of the moral law, which can never be superseded ( Matt 5:17-20 ).
Legalism threatens sanctification by distorting the biblical teaching about the Law to the opposite extreme. In short, legalism is substituting law for grace, achievement for faith. The Pharisees followed the Law, having first tinkered with its meaning and application. Yet they would not come to Christ ( John 5:39 ). The Judaizers followed after Paul, preaching a pre gospel "gospel" of legalism. Paul flatly condemned it ( Gal 1:6-9 ; 2:16 ; 3:11 ). It is legalism when one obeys in order to glorify self before God or others ( John 5:44 ). Similarly, insisting that forgiveness from unremitted guilt requires more "work" or "penance" from the supplicant is legalism masquerading as humility.
Sanctification is applied justification. By its very nature justification does not have a progressive character. It is God's declaration of righteousness. The focus of justification is the removal of the guilt of sin. The focus of sanctification is the healing of the dysfunctionality of sin. Since all spiritual blessings, justification and sanctification included, are the Christian's the moment he or she is "in Christ" ( Eph 1:3 ), sanctification is total and final in one sense ( Acts 20:32 ; 26:18 ; 1 Cor 6:11 ). Yet, unlike justification, sanctification also continues until it will be consummated when Jesus Christ returns. For then we will be like him ( 1 John 3:2 )perfect and complete. Sanctification, therefore, has an initial, progressive, and final phase. A believer's present preoccupation is with progressive sanctification ( 2 Cor 3:18 , note the present continuous tense, "are being transformed" ), by which the child of God lives out the implications of initial sanctification with an eye to the goal of final sanctification. The sanctified life is victorious ( Rom 8:37 ), though it is lived out in the context of temptation and suffering. God promises the "overcomers" in Revelation 2 and 3 to restore all that was lost in the fall ( Romans 2:7 Romans 2:11 Romans 2:17 Romans 2:26 ; Romans 3:5 Romans 3:12 ). In sanctification, the believer is simply applying the implications of his or her justification.
The Holy Spirit is the dynamic of sanctification. Jesus said that he had to go away so that the Holy Spirit would indwell believers ( John 14:16-20 ). The "Holy" Spirit is so named not because he is more holy than the Father and the Son, but because his specific ministry vis--vis salvation is sanctification ( Rom 15:16 ; 1 Thess 4:3-4 ; 2 Thess 2:13 ; 1 Peter 1:2 ). The Spirit that inspired the Word of God now uses it to sanctify. Jesus, therefore, prayed concerning his own, "Sanctify them by the truth" ( John 17:17 ). The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth ( John 16:13 ). The blessing of the new covenant is the presence of the Spirit ( Ezek 36:27 ; Gal 3:14 ).
The Holy Spirit not only is the restoration of the presence of God in believers; he also equips believers to serve the church and the world. As the fruit of the Spirit are the result of the reproduction of godly character in believers ( Gal 5:22-23 ), so the gifts of the Spirit ( Rom 12:4-6 ; 1 Cor 12 , 14 ) are the means by which believers serve others.
Though God sanctifies by grace, human beings are responsible to appropriate God's grace by faith. Faith is "the" means of sanctifying grace. The Bible indicates that there are other means at the disposal of believers to promote the direct faith the Word, prayer, the church, and providence. The Word reveals God's will ( John 17:17 ). Prayer allows the believer to apply faith to every area of life. The church is the context in which mutual ministry takes place. Providence is God's superintendence over every detail of life so that a believer will always have a way to grow in grace. Whether abounding or not ( Php 4:11 ), whether certain of the outcome or not ( Est 4:11-5:3 ), the people of God may sanctify each situation knowing that God has allowed it and is present in it. In the case of temptation, the believer knows that there always will be a sanctifying faith response available ( 1 Cor 10:13 ). When God disciplines his children, it is for their good, that they may "share in his holiness" ( Heb 12:10 ).
God detests sacrifices that are not offered by faith ( Psalm 40:6 ; Heb 10:5-7 ). On the other hand, a person is sanctified by presenting to God offerings that he proscribes ( 1 Sam 16:5 ; Job 1:5 ). In New Testament language, we present ourselves as "living sacrifices" ( Rom 12:1 ). According to the old covenant, sacrifices are usually slain. Yet in the new covenant a believer dies with Christ in order to live a new holy life in the power of Christ's resurrection and in identification with Christ's suffering ( Rom 6:1-11 ; Gal 2:20 ; Php 3:8-10 ).
A believer grows in sanctification by living according to his or her new identity. Before being "in Christ" the believer was "in Adam" ( Rom 5:12-21 ). To be "in Adam" is to be spiritually dead. Death means "separation, " not "annihilation." A spiritually dead person is separated from God, the Life which alone can make one "godly." While separated from God, the unbeliever develops a working relationship with three related counter-sanctifying influences the world, the flesh, and the devil. "The world" provides an allure to which "the flesh" readily responds, so that the believer has a topsy-turvy outlook that places created things before the Creator ( Rom 1:23-25 ). All the while "the devil" Satan, the liar and slanderer of God along with those under his sway, give hearty approval.
Faith in the gospel places the believer "in Christ, " where everything becomes new ( 2 Cor 5:17 ). Scripture calls all that the "new" believer was outside of Christ the "old man" or "old self." That identity has passed away through faith-solidarity with Christ in his death. The new identity is characterized by faith-solidarity with Christ in his resurrection so that "we might bear fruit to God" ( Rom 7:4b ; cf. Rom 6:1-11 ; Col 3:1-4 ). Formally, the transformation by faith is immediate, but does not automatically result in changed thinking or behavior. The world, the flesh, and the devil still operate in their usual insidious way, but the power of each has been rendered inoperative ( Rom 6:6 ; Heb 2:14 ) for those who live by faith according to their new identity. Faith includes repentance identifying and forsaking everything that characterizes the "old man." Faith also includes trust living in the light of everything that characterizes the "new man, " even if it doesn't "feel" right. All of this is done in hope, or forward-looking faith confidence that God will carry out his sanctifying purposes to the end. When Christ returns to complete his work, he will remake the world, resurrect believers, and banish Satan eternally.
Sexual purity is a frequently mentioned application in Scripture of a properly functioning sanctified life ( 1 Cor 6:18-20 ; 1 Thess 4:3-8 ). This is so, in part, because marriage is the most revealing context from which to understand Christ's sanctifying purpose for the Church ( Eph 5:25-30 ). Believers' bodies are sanctified by controlling them in such a way that God's purposes are being fulfilled by them ( Romans 6:19 Romans 6:22 ; 12:1-2 ; 1 Thess 4:4 ).
Sanctification has a negative and positive orientation. Negatively, sanctification is the cleansing or purifying from sin ( Isa 66:17 ; 1 Cor 6:11 ; Eph 5:26 ; Titus 3:5-6 ; Heb 9:13 ). The laver in God's sanctuary provided a place for those offering sacrifice to God to ritually cleanse themselves. Christ cleanses the sinner once for all. The believer testifies to this through a lifestyle of self-denial ( Matt 16:24 ). Biblical self-denial is not asceticism withholding pleasure or causing pain as an inherent means of spiritual growth. It is placing the interests of God before the interests of self. Believers do not deny or ridicule legitimate human desires. These desires, however, need to be continually prioritized according to God's purposes ( Matt 6:33 ).
Positively, sanctification is the growth in righteous attitudes and behavior. Good deeds ( Eph 2:10 ), godliness ( 1 Peter 1:15 ), Christ-likeness ( 1 Peter 2:21 ), and fulfilling the demands of the Law ( Rom 8:4 ) are all ways of referring to the product of sanctification. The believer "presses on" by laying hold by faith on the promises of God ( Php 3:12 ), striving according to his indwelling resources ( Col 1:29 ).
The initial avenue of spiritual experience is the mind. Faith must have an object. God transforms believers from a worldly perspective and lifestyle by renewing the mind ( Rom 12:2 ). The Word of God makes us wise ( 2 Tim 3:15 ), for "faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ" ( Rom 10:17 ). We need the mind of Christ ( Php 2:5 ), by which we take every thought captive ( 2 Cor 10:5 ).
The result of sanctification is glory the manifestation of God's presence. Glory is symbolized by a fire that does not consume ( Exod 3:5 ), by a visible pillar of cloud and fire hovering above the Holy of Holies ( Exod 40:34-35 ), by fire and violent quaking accompanying the giving of the Law on Sinai ( Exod 19:18 ), and by the splendor that will accompany Christ's return to earth ( Rev 19 ). God's sanctifying presence among people results in the manifestation of his glorious moral attributes. The new covenant brings greater glory than the old ( 2 Cor 3 ). The Spirit occupies the place in the new covenant that the Lord did in the old covenant ( 2 Cor 3:17 ). He progressively grows believers into God's likeness from glory to glory ( 2 Cor 3:18 ). So, whereas sanctification has been accomplished fully and finally in Christ and all those who are in Christ are positively sanctified, the Christian is progressively sanctified through the Spirit's ministry.
The New Testament stresses moral, not ritual sanctification. Christ's atoning work put an end to the ceremonial foreshadowing of Israel's cultic practice. Jesus' reference to the temple altar in Matthew 23:19 was from the perspective of the practice he came to supersede.
A sanctified believer has assurance that he or she is Christ's. The call to sanctification reminds the Christian that he or she cannot presume upon justification. Professing believers are to "pursue" sanctification ( Heb 12:14 ). Apart from God's sanctifying work in human beings, "no one will see the Lord" ( Heb 12:14 ). God will judge any person claiming identification with Christ while not actively engaged in pursuing sanctification ( Matt 7:21-23 ). John bases assurance on a faith that perseveres in sanctification ( 1 John 2:3-6 ; 5:2-4 ). Though sanctification is never complete in this life ( 1 John 1:8-10 ), it is not an optional extra tacked on to justification."

Bradford A. Mullen