JUSTIFICATION and SANCTIFICATION

During the time I have been here on the forum, I have made a few observations about the way that people seem to view Justification and Sanctification.

I think that we can all agree that both Justification and Sanctification are BY FAITH. We can do nothing to "earn" or to "merit" our salvation.

Yes the question is, will be be in Heaven if we continue on living in sin? If we are in willful rebellion against God will we be allowed into Heaven? In other words, are we FIT for the society of Heaven?

Justification is our TICKET to Heaven but Sanctification is our FITNESS for Heaven.

When it comes to Sanctification, I cant help but notice that many Christians will take the Law of God to it's utmost extreme and exclaim, "Well do YOU keep the Commandments?" and they will go into the minute details of sin, trying to convince others that they cannot possibly keep the Law of God so why even try?

But I dont see God that way at all, and I dont see Sanctification that way at all. I dont view God as sitting there just waiting to pounce on us over any little violation of the Law... I view that as the attitude that the Pharisees had, sticklers for the Law. They would strain at gnats and swallow a camel.

But in our modern times it seems like too many Christians do the same thing but only they strain the Law to the minute details and then say "ok since God and His law are so STRICT... we need to throw it out because we cant possibly keep it anyway."


Well then how did these people keep it?

Lk:1:6: And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.


...and how did Job do it?

Job:1:1: There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.

Do you really think God would command you to do things you cannot do?

Matthew 5:44-48

"That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven.. Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."

Does God tell us to do something then leave us without the means to do it?

Cant people see God wants YOUR HEART, YOUR LOYALTY, YOUR LOVE?

Obviously He isnt sitting there waiting for you to "mess up"... He is wanting you to reflect His character of love to the world.

THEN you will be fit for Heaven.

They view ME as a Legalist" because I say we must keep the commandments. But in turn I view THEM as legalists because they seem to see God as a severe tyrant who requires of them something that they cannot perform.


...and I see this in their future:

Matthew 25:24,25, 30
Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed
And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.

And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.


God was not REALLY "a Hard Man" requiring of them something they could not perform. But since the unprofitable servant THOUGHT that God was that way then God answered and said "If you think of Me this way then WHY didnt you go ahead and do your duty? Why did you bury your talent?"

This is the same attitude of many Christians today the REAL REASON they bury the Law and trying to keep it as God asked them to is that they view God as "a HARD MAN" who "reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed"

They view God as requiring things of us that we cannot possibly perform. THAT I believe is the secret of their wanting to throw out the Law of God.

Claudia

[ May 16, 2006, 10:05 AM: Message edited by: Claudia_T ]

 

Hi Bob,

I added some more to my opening statement, if you want to read it.

I believe God writes His Law in our hearts and I agree that the law keeps us by the Holy Spirit.

Absolutely... because of the blood of Christ, because of His Grace, we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit and we are enabled to keep God's Law, because we love Him and the ways of the world should now be repulsive to us.

We should become new creatures with brand new reasons for living and motivations to do God's will instead of our own.

Claudia

 

Brian,

I believe that if the Bible says someone is perfect or walking in the commandments, then thats just what it means. If it says Job was perfect then thats what it means.

Job:1:1: There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.

Job was perfect, upright and eschewed evil.

"eschewed" --Meaning he avoided evil, had nothing to do with it, shunned it. This was something Job DID, choices Job made.


Sanctification isnt just something men see, it is something God requires of us.

As far as the white robe of righteousness goes, this Wedding Garment represents the unity of humanity with divinity, the “marriage”.

God provides the Wedding Garment but some don’t choose to wear it, they come in with their common citizen dress on. When the king in the parable of the Wedding Garment comes to inspect the guests this is representative of the work of Judgment. To the church it is given "that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white," "not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing." Eph. 5:27. The Scriptures say that the fine linen, "is the righteousness of saints." Rev. 19:8. It is the righteousness of Christ, His own unblemished character, that THROUGH FAITH is imparted to all who receive Him as their personal Saviour.

Some Christians try to to supply the place of the heavenly garment by sewing together “fig leaves” of their own devising. But we are supposed to put on the very righteousness of Christ…. His righteousness is to become OUR righteousness.

1Jn:3:7: Little children, let no man deceive you: he that DOETH righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.

Eph:5:6: Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.

"I counsel thee," He says, "to buy of Me . . . white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear." Rev. 3:18.

Jesus "was manifested to take away our sins; and in Him is no sin." Sin is defined to be "the transgression of the law." 1 John 3:5, 4. Christ was obedient to every requirement of the law. By His perfect obedience He has made it possible for us to keep God’s commandments. Righteousness is right doing, and it is by their deeds that all will be judged. Our characters are revealed by what we do. The works show whether the faith is genuine.

"He that keepeth His commandments dwelleth in Him, and He in him. And hereby we know that He abideth in us, by the Spirit which He hath given us." "Hereby we do know that we know Him if we keep His commandments." 1 John 3:24; 2:3. This is the way we can know if someone is genuinely converted. Whatever our profession, it amounts to nothing unless Christ is revealed in works of righteousness.

"As many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name." John 1:12. It is the power of God. When a soul receives Christ, he receives power to live the life of Christ.


When we become Christlike in character God will be able to trust us to be in Heaven. The final judgment, John describes it:

"I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works." Rev. 20:11, 12.

There will be many surprised and sad people then.

"In such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh." "Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame." Matt. 24:44; Rev. 16:15.

So many Christians are deceived.

Revelation 3:
15: I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
16: So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
17: Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:
18: I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.

The gold tried in the fire is the character of those who come through trials purified of the earthly worldly dross of sin.

The white raiment is that pure character of Christ that we are supposed to put on... it must be in us..

The eyesalve is the Holy Spirit which "reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment" Joh n 18:8

The Spiritual eyesight would enable professed Christians to see that they are resting easy in their sins and that they need to put on the righteousness of Christ.

1Jn:3:7: Little children, let no man deceive you: he that DOETH righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.

Isa:30:1: Woe to the rebellious children, saith the LORD, that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin

Claudia

 

Here is the passage BobRyan brought up, I thought I'd post it:

I John 2:
3: And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.
4: He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
5: But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.
6: He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.

Like I said before, there are going to be some terribly surprised people on that day.

 

JJump,
I personally can see nothing in the Scriptures that indicate that salvation and eternity are two different things.

On this message board Im always reading things that people post where they do this. "Oh thats not anything to do with your salvation", they say. But I just do not see that at all.


Any time you show them Bible verses about the commandments they claim its nothing to do with salvation.

Then they also seem to say "oh thats for the Jews and not for us" in the New testament. And so thats all they have to do is say one of those two things.... to be able to excuse themselves.

[ May 16, 2006, 12:51 PM: Message edited by: Claudia_T ]

 

JJUmp,

If you say the Bride has nothing to do with salvation, let me ask you this...


The whole of Matthew chapter 25, Jesus is putting forth scenarios, all describing the same event... the same idea... just stating it in different ways.

So you are telling me then that the parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins, The parable of the talents, the sheep and the goats are all things that have nothing to do with our salvation?

Because my Bible doesnt read that way..


Matthew 25:
41: Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
42: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
43: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
44: Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
45: Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
46: And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

In the Wise and Foolish Virgins/Bride Parable Jesus slams the door in their faces... saying "depart from Me, I never knew you"

How on earth can you think this has nothing to do with salvation if Jesus says He doesnt even KNOW them?

 

JJump


The goats in the parable who dont do good works and help the needy, are going to to away into everlasting punishment while the sheep go to eternal life, as it says in the passage but you say this has nothing to do with our salvation.

Matthew 25:31-46

would you
want to reconsider this?

[ May 16, 2006, 02:46 PM: Message edited by: Claudia_T ]

 

hmmmmmmmmmmmm