2002-10-28
Good Morning Dear Ones,
You already know that I always take some time at the end of these messages to talk about ways that God shows His love for us. That’s because a large number of people, even those who have been committed Christians for a long time, often forget or neglect to see the manifestations of this precious truth. We especially forget when we are angry, have had a disappointment or loss, are suffering, or are being sorely tempted by the enemy. Some of us are even foolish enough to blame God for our troubles, when in reality He had nothing to do with bringing them on to us. All of these human foibles are present, because even after we have been justified and saved, we need to be purified or perfected in preparation to be ready to answer the call of the last trumpet [shofar, in Hebrew] to come to that meeting in the air with Christ [1 THESS 4: 13-17]. I mention this often, because of 1 THESS 4: 18, which tells us to encourage one another with these words. The process by which God perfects and purifies us is called sanctification, and it is the second aspect of salvation. Remember that justification is the first one.
Justification for all believers is a done deal, a thing which was accomplished in past when we repented and came to faith in Christ. God then deemed us acceptable to Him and imputed His righteousness to us [GN 15: 6; RO 4: 3; GA 3: 6]. Sanctification, on the other hand, is an on-going process in the present. RO 12: 2, “Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world, but let God transform you inwardly by the renewal of your mind. Then you will be able to know the will of God-what is good and is pleasing to Him and is perfect.” There is quite a bit to consider in this statement. To begin, God is asking us to be the proverbial salmon swimming upstream. The world’s values and practices are going in one direction, and God is asking us to commit to taking the difficult path, that hard path from the narrow gate spoken of in MT 7: 13-14, in the opposite direction. What Satan wants is always the opposite of what God wants. By obeying what God teaches us to do, we are rendered able to know His will and recognize what pleases Him.
I’ve often written about RO 7: 14-15, the section which talks about the conflict between the outer fleshly self and the inner spiritual self that goes on during the process of sanctification. This is further illustrated in 2 COR 4: 16-18, “For this reason [God’s grace] we never become discouraged. Even through our physical being is gradually decaying, yet our spiritual being is renewed day after day. And this small and temporary trouble we suffer will bring us a tremendous and eternal glory, much greater than the trouble. For we fix our attention, not on things that are seen, but on things that are unseen. What can be seen lasts only for a time, but what can not be seen lasts forever.” As we can see from this passage, our minds are redirected by God and our cooperation, of course, on to things which transcend the grave and away from ephemeral things which satisfy bodily desires for the moment. We are taught to think in the big picture, long-term frame of mind. Satan hates that!
When a person is driven by bodily lusts and all kinds of fleshly desires, he is putting serious distance between himself and God. Satan is delighted by that. Sin is defined as putting distance between oneself and God. EPH 2: 13-14 reveals what doing the opposite to sinning can bring about. “But now, in union with Christ Jesus you, who used to be far away, have been brought near by the death of Christ. For Christ Himself has brought us peace by making Jews and Gentiles one people.” That tells me that one small decision to obey God multiplied by all the people who make it can bring about tremendous change for good. Artificial, man-made barriers people erect between themselves can be brought down, and the people involved forwarded in their purification and perfection.
Where is our real life and permanent home? The answer goes all the way back to GN 1: 27, “So God created human beings, making them in His image.” Remember those mansions that Christ told us in JN 14: 2 are prepared and waiting for us in heaven? They remind us that we are “tent-dwellers” here on earth, waiting for that time when we will be called to our permanent home with the Father in heaven. Yes, Dear Ones, we were created in His image. While Satan messed that up for awhile, he does not have to succeed in doing that permanently leading to our spiritual deaths. Instead, when we cooperate with God’s efforts to sanctify us, we are allowing Him to reduce the distance Satan put between ourselves and Him. We are helping Him in His life-giving work and recognizing that the home described so beautifully in REV 22: 1-5 will be our home for keeps. Spiritually, we will see the truth of COL 3: 3-4, “For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. Your real life is Christ and when He appears, then you too will appear with Him and share His glory!”
PRAYER: O Lord, the love that You have for us is so strong and perfect that You created us in Your own image. When Satan tried to befoul Your plan to bring us close to You, You sent Your Son to disrupt and destroy his agenda. You are a God of compassion and mighty strength. At the same time, You are gentle and tender toward Your children while being powerfully effective against Your enemies. PS 98: 1-3, “Sing a new song to the Lord; He has done wonderful things! By His own power and holy strength He has won the victory. The Lord announced His victory; He made His saving power known to the nations. He kept His promise to the people of Israel with loyalty and constant love for them. All people everywhere have seen the victory of our God.” With such gentleness of heart, You gave David the words of PS 50: 15, “Call to Me when trouble comes; I will save you, and you will praise Me.” You ask us to make difficult changes in our lives, but never with evil purpose. It is done, so that we will gain strength and build faith in preparation for going home to heaven with You in joy and fellowship for eternity. Repeatedly through the writers of the NT, You have reminded us that the trouble we endure on earth are small in comparison to the glory You will share with us in heaven. This assuages our suffering and puts it in perspective, a view the faithless can never have or understand. All they know is hopelessness and despair. Your victory in sanctifying us is also our victory over Satan and the fleshly desires he directs in us. When that Day comes and You have deemed us fully sanctified, it will be a time of great celebration. That will make the wedding feast of the Lamb, to which all who endure in faith are invited, all that much sweeter [REV 19: 5-10]. Dearest Abba, we come before You today in humble confession of our sins and to offer You our adoration, worship, loyalty, diligence, glory, honor, trust, obedience, thanks, and utmost praise. In Christ’s holy name, we pray. Amen.
Tomorrow, I am led to write about the third aspect of sanctification, glorification. Our Lord keeps His promises. All the hard work, suffering and loss endured, and difficult changes we have to make are for a reason that will be fulfilled. That reason is being taken up to our Father in heaven and being made immortal. Sanctification must be completed at that time. God will keep the promise of 1 JN 1: 9 if we will present ourselves to Him in honest, open confession. “But if we confess our sins to God. He will keep His promise and do what is right: He will forgive us our sins and purify us from our wrongdoing.” His willingness to keep His promises is a wonderful example of how He shows His love for us. We don’t have to live without hope or the loving support of our Lord and other believers, who are also obeying Christ’s command in JN 13: 33-34 to love one another, as He loves us. We have sufficient reason to lift up the Lord’s name daily in thanks for the love, wise teaching, and effort to sanctify us He provides constantly. Remember, He often works through the circumstances of our lives and the people He brings together with us in this sanctification process. In this way, He truly blesses us. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn Johnson