What does the Christian life look like?
If salvation is the one
and only essential, does that mean it’s just a free-for-all after that?
Are there rules to follow, or standards to which we must measure up?
Why be good when grace is free? Does following the rules cement your
salvation?
Yes? No? Kind of? I’ll explain. It’s called sanctification.
Salvation
is spiritual birth to a new life. It’s the beginning, the one true
essential to the Christian life. Sanctification is living that life, a
life in Christ, after this new birth. Though sanctification isn’t
essential for salvation, it is essential for this new life in Christ.
It’s all about living a rich, full, abundant, godly life, being
harmonized with the will of God and being “conformed to the image of
Christ” (Rom. 8:29).
In short, sanctification is learning to live and love like Jesus—at least
a life-long process. It matters because Jesus says it does. It isn’t
essential to being saved, but it is vital to living faithfully after
being saved. It is where we grow toward wholeness, authenticity, and
wholehearted love.
Just to reiterate: salvation is entirely
grace-based—through no efforts of our own. We’ll always mess up. And
Christ has removed that condemnation, past, present, and future. He has
removed the sins of the past; He will be faithful to remove the sins of
the future.
So why stop? (“Shall I go on sinning so that grace may increase?”)
To echo Paul: By no means!
Why stop? Because we want–we need—to
grow. Sanctification is how this new life becomes rich,
character-building, filled with love, and nourished by Scripture and
other believers while being empowered by the Holy Spirit, working to
heal the world and to lead others to Him. It is full of high adventure
and dismal failure.
It’s where we desire not to sin and sin anyway.
It’s where we get confused and then see clearly.
It’s where we stumble and fall, and are lifted up.
It’s where we doubt and wail and fight, and are loved anyway.
This
is sanctification. Not salvation—nor is salvation dependent upon it.
But it’s the grand adventure of love and growth in our Savior. This is
the core of life and growth as a Christian. This is the great adventure.
It
may not be what gets you your “get out of hell free” card...but who can
resist such an opportunity, such a life, such a calling?
Not I.
In Christ,
Pastor George
Hello Pastor! I agree with what you posted. However for clarification purposes would you agree with the following: when we are saved (justification) we are also sanctified (made holy). This initial sanctification then continues as a process which hopefully makes us more and more like what God wants us to be. (I do not like the phrase (becoming like Jesus) because l am not meant to be like him. God's desire for me is to be like what he created me to be according to what gifts he has provided.
ReplyDeleteI think we need to be cautious using justification and sanctification because they have different meanings for different denominations. I do not mean that in the sense of drawing a line in the sand, rather so that others know what we believe to avoid confusion.
This seems important as far as why we need salvation, when we first needed salvation and what god's solution for us is. I think many are confused, or do not understand why sin is so devastating in our lives.