sanctification

Illustration by Ruth Elliott for “THE SCROLL WITH SEVEN SEALS” by Dr. Foster Shannon

By Dr. Foster H. Shannon

STEP #1 – NEW BIRTH

When we come to God through Jesus Christ we are born anew:

“But to all who received [Jesus], who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born not of blood nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” (John 1:11-13)”

“By his great mercy we have been born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. And to an inheritance which is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you.” (I Peter 1:3,4)

As obedient children do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you, be holy yourselves in all your conduct, since it is written. “You shall be holy as I am holy.” (I Peter 1:14-16)

“Like newborn babes, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up to salvation; for you have tasted the kindness of the Lord.” (I Peter 2:2,3)

New birth implies life, and life implies growth, and growth leads to maturity and responsibility. We should be eager to learn from God, to learn from the scriptures. Our thinking, our speaking, our acting should be formed from what God teaches us in his word. We should develop good spiritual habits: Daily reading of the Bible; regular participation in Sunday worship, being with God in our families, in our studies, in our work, in our recreation. We should learn from Christians whom we have admired.

Step #2 – SANCTIFICATION

Sanctification is the process of spiritual growth; very important to our continuing relationship with our Savior. It is good for us. It is good for our families and friends. It is good for the cause of Christ. It is good for the world in which we live. It is good for the future of our lives. This requires trust in God, and a heart for his purposes.

“But you were washed, you were sanctified you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the spirit of our God.” (I Corinthians 6:11) “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, behold the old has passed away, behold the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself, and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.” (II Corinthians 5:17,18)

“…God chose you from the beginning to be saved through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. To this he called you through our gospel so you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (II Thessalonians 2:13,14)

Sanctification is God’s process to prepare us for Heaven.

Step #3 – GLORIFICATION

“And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being changed into his likeness from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” (II Corinthians 3:18) “We have renounced disgraceful underhanded ways, we refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.” (II Corinthians 4:2)

“Then he showed me the river of the water of the bright as crystal flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. There shall no more be anything accursed, but the throne of Lord and of the Lamb shall be in it, and his servants shall worship him; they shall see his face, and his name shall be on their foreheads. And night shall be no more; they need no light or lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they shall reign for ever and ever.” (Revelation 22:1-5)

We believe the word of the Lord speaks for itself!

Foster H. Shannon

More about Foster…

Foster H. Shannon, Brief Biographical Note Dr. Foster Shannon received his degree from the University of California, Berkeley in Political Science, and went on to obtain a Master of Divinity at Fuller Theological Seminary and a Doctor of Ministry from San Francisco Theological Seminary, with emphasis on church growth. The Interim Pastor of True Light Presbyterian Church in Alhambra, CA until recently, he is the author of seven books and a Sunday School curriculum. As the President of Green Leaf Press, a non-profit Christian publishing company, established in 1981, he publishes and markets Christian books with special emphasis on Bible Study, Church Growth, and Christian Evidences.

The website is: www.gogreenleaf.com.

He enjoys riding his bicycle and swimming weekly. He likes both classical and popular music. He roots for the CAL Bears and the Chicago Cubs.

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By Dr. Foster H. Shannon

“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?” (Romans 6;1,2)

I hope that you find what follows to be of encouragement and help: Sanctification may sound extra religious to many people. But sanctification represents good news. In essence it means that we can become better people in our walk with Jesus Christ. The Bible puts considerable value in sanctification. The words sanctify and sanctification are found throughout the Bible about seventy times.

Sanctification brings good news to us. It means that God is going to make us better people; that we may grow in his grace. Sanctification means that with the teaching of the scriptures and our obedience to our God, our lives will give evidence that we belong to Jesus Christ. We cannot claim to be perfect. We still struggle with sins in our lives, and must come to our Savior for his forgiveness.

When we look around us, we see and hear of things that we do not like; that offend us: stealing, lying, violence, killing; some parents abusing their children; husbands and wives disrespecting and harming one another. God has a better life for each one of us. We are not alone in the process of living. God stands by us .

“I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once yielded your members to impurity and to greater and greater iniquity, so now yield your members to righteousness for sanctification.” (Romans 6:19)

“So put away all malice and guile and insincerity and envy and all slander. Like newborn babies long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up to salvation; for you have tasted the kindness of the Lord.” (I Peter 2:1-3)

“I am the door; if any one enters by me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” (John 10:9)

“Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy; for I am the Lord your God. Keep my statutes and do them; I am the Lord who sanctify you.” (Leviticus 20:7, 8)

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witness, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin with clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith,” (Hebrews 12:1,2)

“Now to him, who by the power at work within us, is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20)

It is good news that God is enabling better people! We are not on our own, we have a great God to help us!