Tag: Sanctification

The Sanctifying Work of the Holy Spirit | Part 2

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn Practical5 Comments

In my last post in this series, I defined sanctification and talked about the objective moment when we are set apart as God’s children. In this post, I want to introduce the concept of Progressive Sanctification.

Progressive Sanctification: A Definition

Progressive Sanctification is defined as the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in our lives to reveal our sin, in order to remove it, so that we continue to become more and more free from sin and like Christ in our daily lives. It differs from Definitive Sanctification in that it is a continual process, whereas Definitive Sanctification is an objective point in time-space history where we are set apart as Children of God.

A Process that is Never Complete

The process of Progressive Sanctification continues until our death at which time we receive our glorified bodies and finally become like Christ (1 John 3:2). Since Progressive Sanctification is never complete, we will never be without sin before Christ’s return because we live in a sinful body, and our flesh continually wars against our spirit (1 Kings 8:46; Prov. 20:9; Eccl. 7:20; Matt 6:11-12; Rom. 6:12-14; 7:13-25; James 3:2; 1 Jn 1:8).

Instead of reaching a state of perfection, we will continue to grow in Christ’s likeness as the Holy Spirit works in our lives. This does not mean we are to give up, throw our hands up in the air and say, “What is the point of all this then, if we will never be perfectly like Jesus this side of the grave.” Our lack of perfection does not mean we should despair or continue in sin.

We Should Not Despair

In Romans 8:15-16 Paul says,

For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

We should not despair if we do not attain to perfection in this life. The Holy Spirit bears witness to our salvation and adoption as sons. We are not to be racked with guilt over our sin, nor are we to listen to the accusations of Satan that a child of God need be perfect. When we see change occurring in our lives, we can be sure the Holy Spirit is the one working to bring about that change, which proves we are God’s children.

We Should Not Continue To Sin

In Romans 6:1-7 Paul says,

What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin.

God in His grace saves us from eternal damnation through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. When we believe in Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we are united with Him in His death and resurrection, so that His death and His resurrection become our death and our resurrection.

When we are united with Jesus, we are released from the bondage of sin and are free to worship and glorify God in our bodies. We no longer have to follow our former master Satan. The enslavement we once knew has been broken, and we are not to continue as we lived formerly when we were in bondage to Satan and his rule. In other words, we are not to continue to sin because we have been set free from a life of sin through our relationship with Jesus Christ, as well as we are not to presume upon the grace of God.

Conclusion

So we see the the process of Sanctification is also Progressive, in that it continues throughout our entire lives. As the Holy Spirit works in our life to convict us of sin, we grow more and more like Jesus in our daily lives.

We also saw Progressive Sanctification is a process that is never complete. We will never be perfect in this life because of our sinful bodies. Even so, we are not to despair because the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives testifies to our salvation and adoption as sons of God. In addition, we are not to continue to sin presuming upon God’s grace, nor are we to continue to sin because we have been freed from the bondage of sin to a life that is able to live as our Savior Jesus Christ.

Looking Forward

In my next post in this series, I will talk about how the Holy Spirit works in our lives to bring about change Monergistically (by Himself).

Resources

Jerry Bridges, The Transforming Power of the Gospel, Ch. 8

Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology, Ch. 38.

The Sanctifying Work of the Holy Spirit | Part 1

On By Dr. Casey LewisIn Practical8 Comments

As Christian, we are set apart by God to glorify Him in our bodies (1 Cor. 6:19-20). The way we glorify God in our bodies is to become more like His Son, Jesus Christ. The way we become more like His Son is through the transforming work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, which is known as Sanctification. In my next series of posts I want to explore the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit.

Sanctification: A Definition

When I talk about sanctification, I simply mean the process by which we are set apart unto God for His use. There are two types of sanctification. The first is Definitive Sanctification, and the second is Progressive Sanctification. We will discuss Definitive Sanctification today, and leave it to my next post to discuss Progressive Sanctification.

Definitive Sanctification

Definitive Sanctification can be defined by saying our belief in the gospel occurs at a definitive moment in space time history through the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. He is the one who first sets us apart by opening our hearts to the gospel message, allowing us to understand it, and believe in it as our only hope of salvation (2 Thess. 2:13-14; 1 Peter 1:1-2; Jn 3:5-8; Titus 3:5).

Without an objective moment in time occurring where we are set apart through the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, we would not be able to begin to be more like Christ because we would be in bondage to our sin, as well as we would be spiritually dead (Eph. 2:1-5; Col. 2:13-14). In Christ, we are made alive, we are a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17). As those who have been made alive by the work of the Holy Spirit, we can begin to become more like Christ, but not before we are raised from the dead in Christ through the work of the Holy Spirit.

This means that we are only able to become more like Christ after we have been set apart by the work of the Holy Spirit. The gospel does not tell us that we have to first clean ourselves up before we come to Christ. It tells us that the only way we can believe in Christ is if we are made alive by the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Application

Believing the Holy Spirit is the one who awakens dead sinners hearts has radical implications in regards to our evangelism and preaching. By understanding it is the work of the Holy Spirit who awakens a sinners dead heart, we can say several things:

(1) We are freed from the pressure of feeling like we must close the deal every time talk with someone about Christ.

Rather than feeling like we cannot share the gospel with someone until we have our presentation fine tuned, we can share what we know, in the way that works best for us, trusting the Holy Spirit is the one who will close the deal by awakening their heart. No matter how good of a presentation we may give, or how persuasive of a closing argument we have, people will not believe the gospel unless the Holy Spirit has awakened them to it.

From experience you know this is true. Have you ever spent hours on end pleading and showing someone the truth of the gospel only to have them reject it? You answered all their questions, your presentation was solid, you provided them with example after example of how the gospel has changed your life and how you have more joy in Christ than you ever thought possible, but they still do not believe, they still are not ready to commit their lives to Christ. Why you ask? Because the Holy Spirit has not awakened them to the reality of the gospel.

So then, instead of trying to find the next best way to close the deal, be real with people. Share your heart and trust the Holy Spirit will use what you say, no matter how inadequate you believe it to be, to awaken their hearts to the gospel.

(2) We are freed from the belief that people’s blood is on our hands if we do not tell them about the gospel.

In saying this I do not mean to say that we should not seek to tell everyone we meet about the gospel. Rather, I mean that we have a different motivation for presenting the gospel to them. Our motivation is not out of guilt or fear, but out of gratitude for what God has done for us and love for that person. When we tell others about the gospel, we should not tell them the gospel simply to make ourselves feel better, we should present the gospel to them because we want them to experience the same joy, love, and freedom from sin that we experience in Christ as a new creation.

(3) We are freed from manufacturing a worship service that plays on people’s feelings and emotions. 

Rather than manufacturing feelings in people, we are to clearly and boldly explain the gospel message, believing the Holy Spirit will use the Word of God to awaken ones heart to believe in Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

Looking Forward

In my next post in this series, I will introduce and define the concept of Progressive Sanctification.

Resources

Jerry Bridges, The Transforming Power of the Gospel, Ch. 8