As I said in my last post, what we believe should be based upon the Word of God, the Bible, and not on the opinions of others. The Bible is our map to life and godliness; the Holy Spirit is our compass to help us find the one true way. Remember the way is narrow, “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Matthew 7:13-14 (NKJV)
I also said that it is important that we not lose sight of the fact that the most important aspect of Christianity is the salvation provided by the crucifixion, death, and glorious resurrection of Jesus Christ. Nothing is more important than what Jesus accomplished on the Cross of Calvary. However, we shouldn’t be ignorant of what was provided by Jesus to help us live in spiritual victory. The Helper has been the focus of the last several posts and episodes. We worship Jesus and only Jesus because He was the One who died for us. However, let us not forget that in Jesus’ own words, He promised us a “Helper,” the Holy Spirit.
The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is not an option. Jesus commands His followers to receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. Acts 1:4-5 (NKJV) “And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; 5 for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” The “Promise of the Father” was the promise of the Holy Spirit! Show More
Why did the Lord provide the Holy Spirit to us?
The Covenant of the Law in the Old Testament was given to Israel to show all of mankind that it was impossible to keep the Law in one’s own strength or ability. Without the sacrificial system that the Lord provided through the Levite priesthood, there was no way to be forgiven of sin. Sin led to guilt and shame, sacrifice led to forgiveness and righteousness. The problem was that it was a never-ending cycle of sin, sacrifice, sin, sacrifice, and so on. It was as if sin had power over the individual.
In the New Covenant, Jesus became the perfect sacrifice, Hebrews 10:10-14 (NKJV) “By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 11 And every priest [Levite] stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But this Man (Jesus), after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, 13 from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. 14 For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified.”
Jesus offered Himself as a sacrifice, once and for all, did away with the sin that separated man from God. Now, as a Believer in Jesus and what He did on the Cross, we are redeemed and have been justified, regenerated, and sanctified. All of these terms are theological terms that are found in the Bible; they may sound intimidating, but, they simply mean that we are saved because we are forgiven, declared not guilty, born-again, and made holy. Let’s take a closer look at these spiritual operations that take place in every genuine Christian.
Redemption
In our redemption (salvation or being saved) is God’s act of grace. Jesus paid the ransom to restore us to Himself, Matthew 20:28 (NKJV), “just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” A ransom is what you pay in order to get something in return. Jesus was the ransom that was paid so that mankind, who were separated from God, could be restored into the family of God. This work was totally done by God; we contributed nothing to this plan of God; Salvation is a gift of God. We could not save ourselves; therefore, we needed a savior, Ephesians 2:8-9 (NKJV), “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.”
The entire Bible is a book of redemption. A scarlet thread of blood is woven into the pages from Genesis to Revelation. From the blood of animals in the Old Testament to the blood of Jesus in the New Testament. The term Atonement also is used to describe “the reconciliation of God and humankind through Jesus Christ.” A play on the word Atonement is “at-one-ment”; we are made one with Jesus Christ.
Theologians have described this redemptive act in three parts; justification, regeneration, and Sanctification. These terms may seem deep and complicated, but in fact, they simply mean we are forgiven, born-again, and declared holy in God’s eyes. All because of what Jesus did for us.
Justification
Our justification (forgiveness of all sin) is also an act of grace; we have been declared innocent by the Lord. Romans 5:18-19 (NKJV), “Therefore, as through one man’s offense (Adam) judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act (Jesus) the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. 19 For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.” Again, this is an act of the Lord, and we have nothing to do with it. God’s justification is a free gift of grace. It is impossible for us to justify ourselves. It is Jesus who is our justifier, and as a result, the Lord has declared us innocent! Some try to be “good” and earn God’s salvation, but as the Apostle Paul taught, no one can be good enough.
Regeneration
In our regeneration (we have been Born-again), which is an act of grace, our spirit has been made alive and connected to the Holy Spirit of God. Titus 3:4-7 (NKJV), “But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, 5 not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration (born-again) and renewing of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”
The work of regeneration is another work that is wholly God’s. As human beings, we can rehabilitate, but only God can regenerate! Rehabilitation has to do with the mind and outside of a person, and regeneration has to do with the heart and spirit of a person. Only those who are born-again can see and enter the Kingdom of God; this was what Jesus said to Nicodemus in the gospel of John 3.
Sanctification
In our Sanctification (we are holy and set apart for God). Sanctification is an act of grace and work that we are called and equipped with the Holy Spirit to accomplish. The testimony of the Apostle Paul is instructive in Acts 26:18 (NKJV) “to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.” Faith in Jesus’ ability to sanctify the Believer is both His work and our work. In an instant our position has changed, we are seen as “sons and daughters” in the Lord’s eyes.
The Lord sees us as Holy because of our position in Christ, but as everyone knows, all of us still deal with sin in this life. We may have victory over sin for a time, but we still deal with unrighteous thoughts, words, and actions that we must learn how to overcome. This process of having our lives line up with our position of Sanctification with Christ is called Transformation. Hebrews 2:11 (NKJV), “For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren,” notice the words “He who sanctifies” and “being sanctified.” We are, in a legal sense, sanctified; however, we must learn to fulfill our new role as born-again Christians, a follower of the teachings of Jesus Christ, and this is done by walking in faith to what Jesus taught. Romans 12:2 (NKJV), “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Sanctification requires a change in our view of the world to a Biblical view.
Easton’s Bible Dictionary defines Sanctification in the following way.
“Sanctification involves more than a mere moral reformation of character, brought about by the power of the truth: it is the work of the Holy Spirit bringing the whole nature more and more under the influences of the new gracious principles implanted in the soul in regeneration. In other words, Sanctification is the carrying on to perfection the work begun in regeneration, and it extends to the whole man [spirit, soul, and body].
- Colossians 3:10 (NKJV) “and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him,”
- 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (NKJV) “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.”
It is the special office of the Holy Spirit in the plan of redemption to carry on this work of Sanctification.
- 1 Corinthians 6:11 (NKJV) “And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.”
Faith is instrumental in securing Sanctification because it secures union with Christ.
- Galatians 2:20 (NKJV), “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.“
All of this about Sanctification is clear when we receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of our lives; we are declared sanctified or Holy; this is our new position in the Lord. At the same time, we enter into a process of becoming more like Jesus in our thoughts, words, and deeds. This becomes our life’s work.
Understanding the principle of Sanctification is to understand why Jesus sent us a “Helper,” the Holy Spirit, to lead us, teach us, guide us, and most importantly, empower us to live the life He has called us to.
Conclusion
In the next post, I will be talking about Transformation, which is another term used to describe Sanctification. It is the renewing of the mind which is necessary to do the following:
- To walk in righteousness
- To walk in love
- To overcome sin
- To defeat the enemy, the devil.
- To fulfill the great commission to win the lost, train them up, and send them out.
- For boldness as a Christian to live our faith.
- For the right words to speak in a situation.
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To become more like Jesus in character is our goal. 2 Corinthians 3:18 (NKJV), “But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”
