Another way to view this battle going on within us is to look at what Scripture calls "sanctification." Sanctification has to do with being set apart from the world unto God's service.
Sometimes sanctification is confusing because passages in the Bible which talk of it seem to contradict one another, with some speaking of sanctification as being already accomplished, and others saying it is still in process of being completed.
For example Heb. 10:10 says, “we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” This is finished work. This is but one example; others are 1 Cor 1:30, 2 Thes 2:13, and Heb 10:14. But then in 1 Thes 5:23 Paul writes, “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly.” Here sanctification is still uncompleted. Other verses that speak of it in this way are Rom 6:19, 2 Cor 13:11 and 1 Thes 4:3-7.
These seeming contradictions disappear when we see that the first verses refer to our position before God. We are positionally sanctified — set apart for God’s eternal purpose and perfect in God’s sight — because we are in Christ. It is a finished work. And the second verses refer to our life here on earth, called our practical walk. We should be wholly set apart for God’s use and live perfectly before Him; however, because our sin natures are still within us, this will never fully happen while we're on this earth.
Nevertheless, Scripture stresses the pursuit of practical sanctification. Interestingly, it first points to all the things that God has done for us and who we are now through the death and resurrection of His Son. It is only after this that Scripture pleads for a life lived in harmony with this exalted position (Rom 12:1; 2 Cor 5:17; Eph 4:1; Col 2:6). This should be an example to all preachers. Those who teach that we should be living a certain way without first stressing who we are in Christ, are merely preaching works (Gal 1:6; 2:15-21; 3:1-3; 5:1).
It is to be concluded, then, that positional sanctification is not a second work of grace to be pursued after salvation. Rather, it takes place at the moment of salvation. If we have placed our faith in Jesus Christ, we have been set apart once for all — we are God’s sanctified ones (1 Cor 1:30).
Practical sanctification, however, is an ongoing process which involves a human response. It is the will of God that we pursue it. Will we choose to do so?
Sometimes sanctification is confusing because passages in the Bible which talk of it seem to contradict one another, with some speaking of sanctification as being already accomplished, and others saying it is still in process of being completed.
For example Heb. 10:10 says, “we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” This is finished work. This is but one example; others are 1 Cor 1:30, 2 Thes 2:13, and Heb 10:14. But then in 1 Thes 5:23 Paul writes, “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly.” Here sanctification is still uncompleted. Other verses that speak of it in this way are Rom 6:19, 2 Cor 13:11 and 1 Thes 4:3-7.
These seeming contradictions disappear when we see that the first verses refer to our position before God. We are positionally sanctified — set apart for God’s eternal purpose and perfect in God’s sight — because we are in Christ. It is a finished work. And the second verses refer to our life here on earth, called our practical walk. We should be wholly set apart for God’s use and live perfectly before Him; however, because our sin natures are still within us, this will never fully happen while we're on this earth.
Nevertheless, Scripture stresses the pursuit of practical sanctification. Interestingly, it first points to all the things that God has done for us and who we are now through the death and resurrection of His Son. It is only after this that Scripture pleads for a life lived in harmony with this exalted position (Rom 12:1; 2 Cor 5:17; Eph 4:1; Col 2:6). This should be an example to all preachers. Those who teach that we should be living a certain way without first stressing who we are in Christ, are merely preaching works (Gal 1:6; 2:15-21; 3:1-3; 5:1).
It is to be concluded, then, that positional sanctification is not a second work of grace to be pursued after salvation. Rather, it takes place at the moment of salvation. If we have placed our faith in Jesus Christ, we have been set apart once for all — we are God’s sanctified ones (1 Cor 1:30).
Practical sanctification, however, is an ongoing process which involves a human response. It is the will of God that we pursue it. Will we choose to do so?
This wraps up your series on "who we are" quite well. It's important to understand that both positional and practical sanctification are significant to the believer, and the positional makes the practical meaningful - but not inversely. Without positional sanctification works are just works, nothing more.
ReplyDeleteExactly! Doing good works are to be done IN RESPONSE TO what God has done for us, not as something we must do in order to be saved or to prove that we're saved. Some may think that this way of thinking promotes lax behavior or gives license to sin, but this isn't true. Titus 2:11-12 says that GOD'S GRACE TEACHES US "that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world." God's grace teaches us how to live by pointing to the things which God has done in providing our position before Him and then pleads that we live in harmony with it. Our position before Him is perfect in every way and excludes all human contribution. If we say that doing good works are necessary in order that our position will ultimately be realized, then we are insisting on adding human merit to God’s perfect work, and this destroys the absolute perfection that God uses as an argument to promote a life lived for Him. In fact I think it's impossible to clearly understand God’s grace in saving us from condemnation AND teaching us how to live, unless we see that our position before Him depends in no way upon our walk, but that our walk rests entirely upon our position. I like the way you say it, though. It's more succinct.:) "...the positional makes the practical meaningful — but not inversely."
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