SANCTIFICATION
Introduction
- sanctification means to make holy, purify or consecrate; to set apart, to separate
- The process of being made holy resulting in a changed life-style for the believer.
- examples from the Old Testament: o Certain times are sanctified in that they are set apart especially to the Lord: the sabbath, the various festivals, the year of Jubilee. o The land of Canaan, as well as Jerusalem, was holy to the Lord and was not to be polluted by sinful conduct. o The tabernacle/Temple and all the objects related to it were holy. o The priests and Levites who functioned in the sanctuary, beginning with Aaron, were sanctified to the Lord by the anointing of oil.
Illustration
- A coal miner was walking home one day from working all day in the dirty coal mine. A young girl gave him a beautiful flower. He was happy and took the flower home. He put it in a vase on the table, and started to admire the flower. Then he realised that the vase was dirty. And so he cleaned the vase. As he sat admiring the flower, he saw that the table was dirty. So he cleaned the table. As he sat admiring the flower again, he saw that the floor was dirty. So he cleaned the floor too. Finally, he ended up cleaning the whole house. This is what ¡¥sanctification¡¦ means. After we have received Jesus into our life, He will begin to clean us up from within.
Message
- Sanctification is God¡¦s will for us ¡V 1 Thes 4:3
- Sanctification involves the sanctification of body, soul and spirit ¡V 1 Thes 5:23
- Sanctification involves both God and us o Jesus is our Sanctifier ¡V Heb 2:11; God our Father is our Sanctifier too ¡V Jude 1:1 o Our part ¡V purging ourselves ¡V 2 Tim 2:21
„X Be a vessel unto honour and sanctification for the Master¡¦s use
In carrying on with a life of holiness we must create propensities in our lives that are sacred.
New International Version. [Colorado Springs]: Biblica, 2011. BibleGateway.com. Web. 3 Mar 2011. Accessed 22 April 2014.
"Expositor's Bible Commentary---Revised: 8-Volume Old Testament Set." Expositor's Bible Commentary---Revised: 8-Volume Old Testament Set. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 May 2014.
In the article, How Jesus Transforms the Church, Skip Ryan states that “Christ changes us by loving us.” “He purposes to love us.” He also states, “I want you to see the overwhelming, transforming, marvelous, empowering, equipping, and graceful love of Christ, which is only seen against the backdrop of how completely and totally unworthy of it you and I are.” “When someone loves you, it really has the catalytic power in your life to change you; when you are loved, you are transformed by that love, and the degree of the transformation usually correlates to the depth and extent of the love.” “Christ does not first make you holy and then love you.
...the people. Today’s believers are set apart by spiritual birth to be priests in order to minister atonement to others. 1 Petrus 2:9 “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” (NIV). As the priests were consecrated by putting blood on their ears, their right hand thumbs, and their right feet great toes, so we as believers are consecrated to render service with our hands, to hear the voice of God, and to walk a holy life. The oil that was poured on the priests and their garments indicate that we as believers should be daily filled with the Holy Spirit.
On one hand, baptism is a sacrament that any human must have because it is a lifelong process of salvation and it is necessary for eternal salvation. Since Adam’s sin, all human is born spiritually death; therefore a newborn in spirit is necessary, in order for humans to have “spiritual eyes open” It will keep the person closest to God, because “open eyes” helps to discriminate good from bad during the person journey in life. Baptism present two parts, an outward and sensible sign, and an inward and spiritual grace implied, but baptism is not sanctification by itself. Furthermore, baptism is the Church’s external affirmation and proclamation of prevenient grace; it is an initiation and incorporation into Christ Holy church. During baptism church as a whole play an active role; first, by welcoming the new member, then after baptism, the church provides the nurture that makes possible a comprehensive and lifelong process of growing in grace. On the other hand Communion celebration by using bread and wine is a remembrance of Jesus death, and resurrection and the waiting until He comes again. The way in which bread and wine is converting into Jesus’s body and blood is a mystery. When during celebration Jesus says “for you” it connotes expiating and sacrifice meaning to liberates “us” sinners. Participate in communion
(From the Greek expository dictionary)- ?It is used in the NT in Luke 11:38 of washing oneself (as in 2Kings 5:14, ?dipped himself,? Sept.); see also Isa. 21:4, lit., ?lawlessness overwhelms me.? In the early chapters of the four Gospels and in Acts 1:5; 11:16; 19:4, it is used of the rite performed by John the Baptist who called upon the people to repent that they might receive remission of sins. Those who obeyed came ?confessing their sins,? thus acknowledging their unfitness to be in the Messiah?s coming kingdom. Distinct from this is the ?baptism? enjoined by Christ, Matt. 28:19, a ?baptism? to be undergone by believers, thus witnessing to their identification with Him in death, burial, and resurrection (e.g. Acts 19:5; Rom. 6:3-4; 1Cor. 1:13-17, 12:13; Gal. 3:27; Col 2:12). The phrase in Matt. 28:19, ?baptizing them into the Name? (RV; cf. Acts 8:16), would indicate that the ?baptized? person was closely bound to, or became property of, the one in whose name he was ?baptized.?
Within the ritual of baptism, these three stages can be clearly outlined. The first stage of the ritual process, separation, consists of the detachment of an individual from their previous condition, status, or state. In the stage of separation, individuals are separated physically or socially from those who are not participating in the ritual. In the example of Jesus’ baptism, Jesus approached John the Baptist in the River Jordan to be baptized. By physically separating himself from the people on the land and joining the group to be baptized in the water, Jesus detached himself from the structures and values of society, choosing instead to repent, “radically transforming his status, rendering him marginal, an outsider.” Similarly, individuals that are baptized in a church are separated from the group prior to their baptism as individuals that are no longer participating in the “adulterous and sinful generation,” but are not yet initiated as “those who lose their life for [Jesus’]
Thessalonians 4:3 says, “It is God’s will that you should be sanctified” It is God’s goal for his people is to be blameless and holy. Once saved, we are no longer prisoner of our sin and sanctification begins. Sanctification is a process and not instantaneous. It involves you and God to make you free from sin. The process is striving to live a Christian life-style according to the word of God. In order to continue sanctification we have to put forth effort into our transformation by putting away vices and renewing our mind to be holy and just. Sanctification affects us and everyone around us and brings peace and joy into our lives. It makes us become an example to help fellowship with others in Christ and to support and grow with each other. As we grow in holiness, we aim to reflect Christ.
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptiz- ing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” ( Matt. 28:19-20 NIV ). The idea of sharing in the death of Christ connects remission of sins with baptism which the death of Christ effected. ( Act 2:38; 1 Pet. 3:21). Just as physical washing cleanses our bodies from filthiness, so also baptism symbolically cleanses our spirits through participation in the death of Christ. “For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink (I Cor. 12:13 NIV). In addition, baptism connects with spiritual birth along with the Spirit’s reception. Hence, participation in Christ’s resurrection indicates that the Holy Spirit is presently in our lives. Baptism is an indication of the relationship we have with Christ and wherever we find ourselves in the world, our deportment, attitude and disposition should be in alignment with our confession of faith. Jesus’ baptism should help us realize how much we are loved by God. Jesus died to pay a debt he did not owe to release from a debt we could not pay. Baptism is a two-fold operation because we are symbolically
Becoming a Christian is considered by many to be the greatest thing that one can do in life. Praying, worshipping God, and studying His word are all valuable parts to a walk in faith. Yet, some tend to forget an important action that should take place to attest a stand for Christianity. Baptism is an act of confirming that one is a Christian while symbolizing the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Through the teachings of the Bible and Jesus, it is apparent that the Southern Baptist view of baptism is the most accurate to the symbolization of Christ’s perfect resurrection and declares the public statement to necessary to affirm the relationship with Jesus. While baptism is not necessary for salvation, but does assert the example that Christ portrayed.
Holy Bible: Contemporary English Version. New York: American Bible Society, 1995. Print. (BS195 .C66 1995)
Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ” (New International Version). Werdel, Dy-liacco, Ciarrochi, Wicks, & Breslford (2014) state that “religiosity and spirituality are multidimensional variables that incorporate cognitions, sentiments, and behaviors including both positive and negative aspects of an individual’s relationship with the Divine”. One’s spiritual journey is not likened to a one dimensional flat line, but a line that has peaks and valleys along the way. Majerus and Sandage (2010) believe that “maturity is a developmental and teleological theme in Christian spirituality and is described throughout Scripture”. To understand spiritual maturity one needs to look toward Scripture and to investigate what God has planned for His children. Spiritual maturity is a process with the end goal of becoming likened to the
This passage reflects what Christianity care teachings “taught by Jesus” are to good by everyone, which can be observed i...
This paper will discuss the important points of spiritual maturity. Throughout the class, I learn many things that in the end, lead back to my spiritual maturity in Christ. This paper will elaborate on the process of spiritual maturity in the life of believers. During my learning, I did some reflections on what I have learned in the class. I believe that one important lesson that I learn from this class is maturing in my spiritual journey with Christ by learning to love God and with others. Overall, I enjoyed my time attending this class, and I learn so much from every meeting that I had.