What is Sanctification?

Sinful people are saved from sin by faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ on their behalf. At salvation, believers are justified, covered by the perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit indwells believers, setting them apart to love and serve God (Romans 12:1-2). The believer is freed from sin’s penalty and one day will be fully delivered from sin’s presence. However, believers continue to struggle with personal sin while living in this sinful world and are not yet fully delivered from indwelling sin. Growing to reflect Christ in daily thoughts, conversations and actions requires a process known as sanctification (Romans 6:1-23; 8:1-17). Spiritual growth comes when a believer surrenders to the Holy Spirit’s conviction of sin and steps out in specific steps of faith and obedience. Every believer can trust the ongoing work of God to increasingly develop God-pleasing holiness in daily life.

God persistently intervened to mold Jacob’s character and draw him to Himself. In the same way, God orchestrates a believer’s life circumstances to reveal and root out personal sin and promote obedience and surrender. God lovingly and intentionally allows situations that require us to acknowledge our need for Him. Daily life provides regular opportunities to trust and obey God in new and deeper ways. God uses difficulty and even pain to move us to overcome our self-sufficiency. Our joys teach us to trust His goodness in new ways. Our struggles lead us to depend on God in fresh ways. The process of sanctification requires overcoming sin, an often painful process that reveals the new life of the Holy Spirit within the believer.

Without an understanding of God’s loving and perpetual commitment to your spiritual growth, the hard things in life lack context and feel random. You might be tempted to blame God rather than trust Him. Without recognizing God’s gifts of grace in the warm sunshine and gentle breeze moments of daily life, you miss the tender ways God expresses His love to you through the storms. Without an eternal perspective, the ups and downs of daily life overshadow God’s intentional and loving commitment to your growth in faith and character.

Like Jacob, you may struggle with lifelong patterns of sin that make you long to be delivered fully from the domination of sin and self. Believing that God’s deeper work stands behind everything you encounter provides hope when life is hard. Knowing God loves you enough to do whatever it takes to root out rebellion brings perspective to your ongoing battle with sin. God will dethrone your idols and reveal your weaknesses to call you to deeper faith and richer fellowship with Himself. God loves you too much to let you love other things more. One day every believer’s battle with sin will be over. How do you see God’s bigger, deeper work within you in whatever you are facing this week?

Taken from Bible Study Fellowship