You Can't Tell Me What To Do! - Part 3
For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification. So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you [1 Thessalonians 4:7-8].
Point #1 of Paul’s teaching states, “God calls the Christian for His purpose”. Since this truth is unknown to Christians today, how can this anomaly be rectified? Paul offers us the solution in Point #2: we learn of His call and purpose from the Bible. We must cease with the programs and activities mentality and return to the Word of God. That’s how to rectify the contemporary church malady.
God calls the Christian. Paul stated it rather bluntly. You can read it yourself and see it. God’s has a purpose in calling the Christian. Again, Paul stated that truth rather bluntly as well. God’s purpose in calling us is not for “impurity” but for “sanctification”.
Someone is scratching his head and musing, “Huh? That doesn’t help me much, teacher! What does it mean?”
Well, it’s like this. In the context of our Bible verses, “impurity” is contrasted with “sanctification”. This makes defining the concept of “impurity” a rather easy task because the concept of “sanctification” is employed extensively in the Bible.
There are three aspects to salvation by faith in Jesus Christ:
1. justification
2. sanctification
3. glorification
When a sinner comes to Savior Jesus by faith and asks Him to forgive his sins and be his Savior, he is born again. He becomes a saint, an adopted son of God by faith in Christ Jesus. At that moment he no longer has any sin. Judge God declares him “Not guilty!” He is justified. Justification is a legal term meaning “not guilty”.
When the saint is promoted to eternity, he receives his resurrection body. This is the same type of body as the resurrected Jesus now has, and will have through all eternity. This is known as “glorification”.
In the interim between being born again and being promoted to eternity—the time during which a Christian remains on earth—the saint is still clothed in his old body of sin. That body of sin (i.e., the sin nature) tempts him daily to live for self and do what seems right in his own eyes.
Unlike the time period before he was born again though, the saint also has a new nature living inside him. The Holy Spirit took up residence in him when he was born again. At that moment he was baptized in the Spirit, born into the Church as a member of the Body of Christ on earth.
The sin nature tempts the saint to live the old way, the way he did before he was saved. The Holy Spirit convicts him of suchlike living and empowers him to live the new way, the way the Lord Jesus lived while on this earth.
Jesus willingly laid aside his prerogatives as God and walked this earth in obedience to the Scriptures, while depending on the Holy Spirit for His success. While remaining on this earth after being born again, the saint is to go and do likewise. This daily process of surrender to the Word of God in the power of the Holy Spirit is known as sanctification. It lasts until glorification.
Wow! We’re out of time again. Let’s betake ourselves to prayer and meditation with Jesus now. We’ll meet back here tomorrow, same time, same channel.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Joshua: Volume 6 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
Point #1 of Paul’s teaching states, “God calls the Christian for His purpose”. Since this truth is unknown to Christians today, how can this anomaly be rectified? Paul offers us the solution in Point #2: we learn of His call and purpose from the Bible. We must cease with the programs and activities mentality and return to the Word of God. That’s how to rectify the contemporary church malady.
God calls the Christian. Paul stated it rather bluntly. You can read it yourself and see it. God’s has a purpose in calling the Christian. Again, Paul stated that truth rather bluntly as well. God’s purpose in calling us is not for “impurity” but for “sanctification”.
Someone is scratching his head and musing, “Huh? That doesn’t help me much, teacher! What does it mean?”
Well, it’s like this. In the context of our Bible verses, “impurity” is contrasted with “sanctification”. This makes defining the concept of “impurity” a rather easy task because the concept of “sanctification” is employed extensively in the Bible.
There are three aspects to salvation by faith in Jesus Christ:
1. justification
2. sanctification
3. glorification
When a sinner comes to Savior Jesus by faith and asks Him to forgive his sins and be his Savior, he is born again. He becomes a saint, an adopted son of God by faith in Christ Jesus. At that moment he no longer has any sin. Judge God declares him “Not guilty!” He is justified. Justification is a legal term meaning “not guilty”.
When the saint is promoted to eternity, he receives his resurrection body. This is the same type of body as the resurrected Jesus now has, and will have through all eternity. This is known as “glorification”.
In the interim between being born again and being promoted to eternity—the time during which a Christian remains on earth—the saint is still clothed in his old body of sin. That body of sin (i.e., the sin nature) tempts him daily to live for self and do what seems right in his own eyes.
Unlike the time period before he was born again though, the saint also has a new nature living inside him. The Holy Spirit took up residence in him when he was born again. At that moment he was baptized in the Spirit, born into the Church as a member of the Body of Christ on earth.
The sin nature tempts the saint to live the old way, the way he did before he was saved. The Holy Spirit convicts him of suchlike living and empowers him to live the new way, the way the Lord Jesus lived while on this earth.
Jesus willingly laid aside his prerogatives as God and walked this earth in obedience to the Scriptures, while depending on the Holy Spirit for His success. While remaining on this earth after being born again, the saint is to go and do likewise. This daily process of surrender to the Word of God in the power of the Holy Spirit is known as sanctification. It lasts until glorification.
Wow! We’re out of time again. Let’s betake ourselves to prayer and meditation with Jesus now. We’ll meet back here tomorrow, same time, same channel.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Joshua: Volume 6 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
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