Following on from Dave’s talks on repentance Neal looked at Sanctification – The work of the Holy Spirit to cleanse us from all unrighteousness and make us Holy – more Christ like.
We started by looking at 1 Corinthians 6 vs 9-11
And such were some of you But God came
You were washed – Baptised in Water/Cleansed by the blood Of Jesus You were sanctified – Made Holy – Free from sin or guilt You were Justified – You are not Guilty!
Justified is about our position in Christ – Not based on our experience - You are either condemned or justified and we have been found not guilty – so we are justified by the blood of Jesus and found not guilty.
Romans 8 vs 1 – There is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus – Why? Because we have been found not guilty! There is no condemnation for past sins, for present sins and for future sins.
Romans 5 vs 18-20 –
Sanctification – We are like rough diamonds – we need to be washed, cleansed and cut to create something beautiful – that is the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives – taking us as sinners and creating something beautiful.
Romans 6 vs 12-23 – The picture Paul gives is one of being slaves to sin or slaves to righteousness – We are no longer slaves to sin - sin may call but you do not have to follow – resist the enemy and he will flee from you!
We hear people say Its just how I am? Its part of my character I was born like that Its just my nature
And yet we are told that we are a new creation and we have been born again by the Holy Spirit? God changes us day by day, week by week, year by year – He renews our thinking and our actions – we are no longer controlled by our own nature but are a new creation in Christ!
2 Corinthians 5 vs 17-21 and Colossians 3 vs 5-15 were the readings
So why doesn’t God just sanctify us completely when we become a Christian – It would be so much easier! We know that eventually when Jesus returns the Church will be presented to Jesus as a beautiful bride, holy and pure – and that’s us – but why wait? Because this is part of God’s great plan and we have to reply on him to achieve it! It’s based on our relationship with God rather than being told what to do – based on love – we sin and it breaks our relationship so we need to come back – be forgiven and be filled back up everyday. Also would pride be an issue? We could and probably would think that we had something to do with our own righteousness rather than our total reliance on God.
2 Corinthians 4 vs 7- 10 – Treasure in jars of clay
Titus 3 vs 4-6 – He saved us not on the basis of deeds done in righteousness but according to his mercy!
Sanctification works in us day by day to cleanse us, smooth down the rough edges and bring forth something of value and beauty – Galations 5 vs 16-26 – The result – The fruit of the spirit – This is what we want – to be more like Jesus and have the fruits of the spirit evident in our daily lives – more love, more joy, more patience, more kindness, more goodness, more faithfulness, more gentleness and more self control.
How? If we live by the spirit – let us also walk by the Spirit!
Questions