Tag: sanctification

Striving to be Holy as Our Savior is Holy

John 8:34
Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever.

In Ephesians, Paul taught that before we accepted Our Savior that we all once walked the course of the world, following the spirit that is at work in the lives of the disobedient. Through the teachings of Paul and John in the Holy Word, we learn that Jesus is the only way that we can attain freedom from the slavery of sin that we have been born into.

It is through Jesus Christ that we have victory over our sins. Once we have accepted Jesus as Our Savior, He comes to dwell within us. With the presence of His Holy Spirit within us, we are set free from the bonds of slavery of sin. Sin is no longer the ruler in our house, Jesus Christ is.

Because our freedom of choice is never taken away, our flesh constantly battles to take control over our lives and Satan constantly works to deceive us in an effort to make us slaves to sin again. But Jesus Christ stands with us and, in accordance with His promises, He perfects His strength in our weaknesses and He provides victory over all evil. He provides all that we need to overcome our sins.

Let us seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit as we face the challenges associated with our walk of sanctification. Let us choose to submit to the urgings of the Holy Spirit each time our flesh and the enemy try to take us off our pathway to holiness. Let rejoice in our victory over sin through Jesus Christ as we strive to be holy as Our Savior is holy.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your perfect love that provided Your Son to free us from the slavery of sin. We praise the name of Jesus for taking on all sin so that we may become heirs to Your holy kingdom. We ask forgiveness for all the times that we have chosen to offend You through our sins. We repent of these sins and ask for the fullness of the promise of Jesus to perfect His strength in our weakness. We pray for the grace to surrender today and live forever as bond servants to Our Savior. We ask all these things in the precious, holy and mighty name of Our Blessed Hope and Assurance, Jesus Christ.

Sanctuaries of the Holy Spirit

1 Corinthians 6:19
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?

As Christians, our bodies become sanctuaries of the Holy Spirit. This is a certain sign that we have been washed clean by the blood of Our Savior, Jesus Christ. Because God is holy, holy, holy, He cannot tolerate the presence of sin. If there were any sin in us, the Holy Spirit could not dwell within us. Thus the Holy Spirit is witness to the atoning work of salvation in our lives.

Because in the flesh, we still hold on to the sin nature, there is perfecting work ahead for the Holy Spirit. Upon His indwelling, He immediately begins in us the process of regeneration and sanctification. When He begins the good work of grace, He takes full possession of the body, mind and spirit of each of us. He supernaturally influences our lives, our bodies and our conversations. He works to insure our bodies are fit habitats for Our Savior King.

As we submit to the sanctifying process of the Holy Spirit, we can anticipate that there will be trials in our lives. Jesus Himself told us that it would be so as we followed Him. These trials that create brokenness in our lives are the experiences that the Holy Spirit uses to complete and perfect our regeneration.

Let us surrender to the perfecting work of the Holy Spirit. Let us seek the grace that we need to keep ourselves firmly on the path of sanctification that prepares us for our places in heaven.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for allowing us to be temples of Your Holy Spirit. We rejoice in knowing that through shed blood of Your Son, Jesus, and through the indwelling of Your Holy Spirit in our lives that You can use us to be instruments of Your salvation plan for all mankind. We pray for the aid of the Holy Spirit to build us up in Christ so that we can endure in faith all of our trials. We ask, Father, that we may become free flowing vessels of Your redemptive work. As the Holy Spirit witnesses to Our Savior in our lives, may we witness to Our Savior in the lives of those around us. We ask all these things in the name of the Lord Our Redeemer, Jesus Christ.

Obedience is the Foundation of Being Used by God

Esther 4:14
For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish.

God had a unique will and plan for Esther’s life. He wanted her to be the instrument that He used to deliver His people. He wanted her to know that He would bring favor for His people through her efforts. But God would not make the choice for Esther, she had to make her own choice to follow His instruction. If she did not follow His will, God made it known that He would find someone else who would be the instrument of delivering His people.

God was very clear in conveying the options to Esther. What He did not say to her was, “Thanks, I could not do this without you.” God can accomplish His plans without any help from us. If we are not obedient in doing the things that He asks us to do, the loss is not His. He will find a replacement to do His good work because He loves to use His children to accomplish His work. It brings Him great pleasure and glory.

But if we are not obedient to the things that He asks us to do, it is our loss. The work that we do for the Lord is more about our sanctification process than the results of our work. Who we are in Christ is defined by our obedience to His calling.

Let us ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to us how we can fulfill God’s will and plan for our lives. Let us seek to join the Lord in His good work.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the privilege of serving You on this earth. We rejoice in knowing that we bring You great pleasure and glory when we do Your good work. We pray, Father, that You will open our eyes so that we may see the ways in which You are calling us to serve You. We pray, Lord, that You will prepare our hearts to surrender to Your will for our lives. May all that we do be for Your pleasure and Your glory. We ask all these things in the name of the Great King Over All the Earth, Jesus Christ.

To Be Touched by the Hand of God

Galatians 1:1
This letter is from Paul, an apostle. I was not appointed by any group of people or any human authority, but by Jesus Christ himself and by God the Father, who raised Jesus from the dead.

When Paul was writing and speaking to the Galatians, he made it clear that he was on a completely different path in life when He was touched by the hand of God. Paul emphasized that it was God that changed him and not him who changed himself.

Because of our sin nature, we all begin our lives on an ill conceived path covered by darkness. Until Our Heavenly Father opens our eyes, we can not see the way, the truth and the life that is in Jesus Christ. Only when our new path has been made visible to us by the light of the Holy Spirit, can we receive the precious gift of salvation. All who are converted to be new men and women in Christ are called by the grace of God.

Upon accepting our salvation, we begin yet another journey – the journey to become holy. Just as salvation is not a work of our own hand, neither is the working out of our sanctification. The Holy Spirit within us molds our hearts so that we can submit to Jesus as Our Lord, Our Master and Our King. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to guide us to full submission to Our Savior so that God can do the work in us that is pleasing to Him. All the saved in Christ who are working on their sanctification are under the power and grace of the Holy Spirit working in them.

Let us recognize that there is nothing in this world that can bring us to victory over the darkness that the world offers. Let us be certain that we are totally incapable of overcoming the darkness of the world without the light of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Let us surrender to the urgings of the the Holy Spirit as He carries out the work of sanctification in our lives. Let us rejoice in knowing that our path to holiness was guaranteed on the Cross.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your loving kindness, Your mercy and Your grace that is expressed to us through the gift of our salvation. We praise You for taking us from the darkness of our lives in the flesh into the light of Your Holy Spirit. We rejoice in being guided into full submission to Our Lord, Our Master and Our King, Jesus Christ. We pray, Father, that You will strengthen us and regenerate us as we strive to overcome the world in order to live our new lives in Christ. We ask all these things in the name of Our Most Gracious Savior, Jesus Christ.

God Confirms His Plans for Us Through People and Events

1 Corinthians 1:2
To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours.

When Paul addressed the Corinthians, he emphasized their sanctification through Jesus Christ. He confirmed that they would be among all the saints in heaven who had also called on the name of Our Lord as their Savior. He stressed that they would all be part of the Body of Christ.

By the grace of God, we are all called to be heirs to His kingdom. Our Heavenly Father’s hand never leaves us as He prepares us to be His saints. It is for His good pleasure and for His glory that He provides His Holy Spirit to prepare us to be His saints. But God also brings commonplace people and commonplace events into our lives to teach us, to encourage us and to confirm the plans that He has for us. He may at times use extraordinary people and extremely uncommon events when He needs to drive a message home.

Let us take careful consideration of the people that God places in our lives. Let us be aware of the challengers who are there to test us on an ongoing basis in order to stimulate our spiritual growth. Let us also be aware of the challenged who are there for us to encourage, build up and serve.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your perfect plan to have us join You in heaven for all eternity. We bless the name of Jesus for His shed blood that washes us clean and makes it possible for us to enter into Your presence. We pray, Lord, that You will release many teachers, encouragers and confirmers into our lives. We ask for ears to hear them and the wisdom to follow their counsel. We pray that we may also become teachers, encouragers and confirmers in the lives of others on their journeys to sainthood. We ask all these things in the name of Our Holy and Awesome Lord, Jesus Christ.

Each Moment is an Opportunity to Call on the Power and Presence of the Lord

Mark 6:45
Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd.

The directive was clear to the disciples. “Get in the boat. Go to the other side of the lake. Wait on Me.” So off they went, obedient to the directive given them. They probably assumed this would be a relatively easy trip. Little did they know that their journey would be difficult. In fact, their journey was described as painful for the wind was strongly against them. But in the midst of their struggles, Jesus showed up and the winds ceased. Once again they were reminded of the power and ever presence of the Lord in their lives. Once again God received the glory.

This passage reminds us that life is not about achievements, not even achievements in the areas that God is leading us. We may have the feeling that God is leading us to a particular end. He is, but not how we are thinking about it. The goal of getting to a particular end is simply a by product of the process that God is taking us through. With God, the process is the end.

All the trials that we encounter in life become part of the process of preparing us for our eternal place with the Father. The process is complete when we seek the will of the Father in every circumstance in our lives. His purpose is that we call on Him and His power in each moment that we live, regardless of the end that we may be working toward.

Let us be alert to each precious moment in our lives. Let us recognize that each moment is an opportunity to surrender to Our Savior and to obey the calling of Almighty God. Let us understand that it is our growth that is important to God, not the end result.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for being ever present with us during the chaos of our lives. We thank You that we can call on You every single moment of our lives to be our strength when the trials of life come against us. We pray that You teach us how to live every moment of our lives aware of the sanctifying process that You are taking us through. May our relationships with You mature beyond our expectations as we experience the fullness of Jesus Christ in our lives. May we savor each moment, knowing that it brings glory to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. We ask all these things in the name of the Lord over all, Jesus Christ.

Being Shown What Is Pleasing to the Lord

Hebrews 13:20-21
Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.

Upon receiving Jesus Christ as Our Savior, the Holy Spirit begins to show us what sanctification means. The job of the Holy Spirit is to show us what is pleasing in the sight of Our Savior. As a result of this process, everything that we do that is displeasing to the Lord also comes to light. Thus begins the struggle of the old man versus the new man.

Jesus became man so that He could die for our sins. When He comes to dwell within us, there is no room for the sins of the old man. We must allow our old selves to die as we assume our new life in Christ. The two cannot abide together. To try and hold on to our old lives once Jesus has arrived is to enter into a struggle that is filled with endless pain. The new life of joy is found only in the death of our old lives.

As we work toward a life that is well pleasing in the sight of Jesus, we must recognize that the work of grace is necessary. Without the good work of grace, we are not capable of overcoming the nature of the old man within us. But be certain, the work of grace is not the work of man. It is the work of God alone. It is an internal work done in the heart of men by Him. It is a gradual and progressive work. It will not be perfected until we stand before Him. But indeed, when we stand before Him all the displeasing things in us will be gone forever and all the pleasing things in His sight will shine brightly for all eternity.

Let us begin each day by asking the Lord for fresh grace. Let us ask the Lord to equip us with everything good that we may do His will for our lives. Let us seek the Holy Spirit to guide us and direct us on our paths of sanctification. Let us rejoice in knowing that the victory is ours through Jesus Christ.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for giving us Your Holy Word that defines the things that please you. We praise You for revealing to us all the things in our lives that displease you. We bless the name of Jesus for giving us victory over the sins that try to defeat us. We pray, Lord, that the Holy Spirit will strengthen us in our struggles to overcome the torments of our flesh and the attacks of the enemy. May the Holy Spirit enlighten us in the areas that the world tries to redefine as acceptable when You have already defined it as sin. May all that we do be acceptable in Your eyes. May it all be for Your glory. We ask all these things in the name of the Captain of Our Salvation, Jesus Christ.

Goodness That We Can Only Approach Through Christ

1 Corinthians 11:1
Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.

In Paul’s letters to the Corinthians, he exhorted them to pattern their lives after Jesus Christ. Paul understood that obedience to a creed simply takes us to a proper and higher level of lifestyle. Accepting Jesus Christ as Our Savior and patterning our lives after Him will move us toward a level of perfection, holiness and purity that only He could attain and we can begin to approach through Him.

In truth, it is not good enough to be good. It is not good enough to do great works. The only thing that we can do that is of any eternal value is to submit our lives to Jesus Christ as Our Savior, to die of self and to take on the spirit of the One who dwells within us. Anything less than full submission to Our Lord and Master and anything less than becoming imitators of Jesus Christ as His disciples leaves us short of being true Christians.

What is the goal then? The goal is to imitate Jesus Christ in our daily lives. What is the challenge? The challenge is that we are incapable of achieving our goal without the presence of Jesus Christ in our lives. What is the answer then? The answer is to surrender all that we are and all that we have and all that we will ever be and all that we will ever have to Our Lord and Savior. Then we must turn to the Holy Spirit daily to guide us and strengthen us as the natural man within us refuses to surrender. Finally, we should rejoice and praise God for He has provided the unchanging, unfailing way, the truth and the life that will allow us to fulfill our stated goal.

Let us yoke ourselves to Our Redeemer. Let us yield to Him as He guides us on our path of sanctification. Let us surrender to Him as He prepares us to stand in righteousness before the Father for all eternity.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for allowing the Word to become flesh so that we could see the standard to which we are all called. May we stand before You one day in the image of Your Son, washed clean by His blood and perfected by His presence within us. Father God, we pray that the Holy Spirit will teach us how to become true disciples of Jesus as we spend our time on earth preparing for the glorious day of coming into Your presence. We ask all these things in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of the Most High God.

Standing Watch

Mark 14:34
And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.”

Through Jesus, we receive the exchanged life of joy for the old life of sin and its miserable consequences. Jesus paid a great price for our redemption. He suffered physically, mentally and emotionally to go to the Cross for us. He knew in advance the bodily torments, the agonizing death and the inconceivable burden of the weight of the sins of all men that He would suffer. To secure our redemption, He chose the only path that fulfilled God’s plan for our salvation.

As Jesus approached His time of great suffering, He was very sorrowful. He was feeling the full agony of knowing that He would be taking on the burden of all sin. His suffering was so great that He took Peter, James and John with Him to stand by Him in prayer as He prayed for strength in His most awful time of distress. Three times He left the apostles to pray. Each time He asked them to remain and watch. Each time He found them asleep when He returned. The apostles in their weakness were not able to provide Jesus with the support that He requested as He prepared to take on His Cross. But even though the apostles left Jesus to take on the Cross alone, Jesus was given the strength that He needed by the Holy Spirit.

Ultimately, we must choose to take up the Cross of Jesus Christ. We must choose the way of Christ or the way of sin. This is an impossible decision for us to make on our own. Just like the apostles, our flesh is too weak. But like Jesus, we have the power and the strength that we need to overcome sin because the Holy Spirit stands by us and prepares our hearts to take our victory over sin.

Let us strive to live the joyous life of holiness. Let us be watchful and persistent in fending off the oppressive life of sin. Let us seek the Holy Spirit to stand by us and strengthen us as we walk on our paths of sanctification.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for sending Your Son, Jesus, to die for our sins. We praise the name of Jesus who chose to take all the sorrow and grief that He endured on our behalf. We thank You for the Holy Spirit who guided us in choosing to accept Jesus as Our Savior, so that we might overcome the sin in our lives that separates us from You. We pray for wisdom to always seek the strength and the counsel available to us through the Holy Spirit that stands on watch against sin with us. We ask all these things in the name of the Slain Lamb, Jesus Christ.

Victory Over Sin Was Settled at the Cross

Philippians 2:12-13
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

When Paul wrote to the Philippians, he knew that they were struggling with sin in their lives just as we all are. He knew that they found it easier “to behave” when they were in his presence, just as we are more on guard in the presence of others. He exhorted them to be constant in their battle against sin whether He was there or not.

He was not telling them that they were working to earn their salvation. He was telling them how to overcome the ongoing attacks of the flesh which would try to lead them back to the sin that had been washed away forever by their Savior. He was reminding them that their victory had already been set aside by the One who had died for their sins and dwells within them. He was emphasizing that they must live in reverent awe of their Savior and not be lead by the whims of their flesh.

So it is with us. We do not work to earn our salvation. If we have received Jesus as Our Savior, we have been redeemed and washed clean of all of our sin. The work of salvation that Paul speaks of is really the work of sanctification. It is the process that we go through as we learn to lean on Jesus and not our own strength to overcome the work of the enemy in our lives.

Let us ask the Holy Spirit to inspect us and to reveal to us the sin that we are holding on to. Let us surrender to the purifying work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Let us rejoice in pleasing the Lord as He strengthens us to walk the path of sanctification.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we proclaim our sin before You and ask for Your forgiveness. We thank You that this issue has been settled on our behalf for all eternity. We pray that we may be continually washed by the blood of Your Son and strengthened daily by His presence in our lives. We ask to live in reverent awe of who You are so that we will come under the purifying conviction of the Holy Spirit. We ask all these things in the name of the Tower of Salvation, Jesus Christ.