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Refreshment in Refuge

    by Gina Burgess

Continual process of sanctification
Date Posted: May 23, 2021

Now, the sacrifice that Jesus made willingly of His life was to satisfy the Law. It paid for all the sins ever to be committed, from Adam until the end of time.

Hebrews href="https://pro.studylight.org/study-desk.html?t=amp&s=0&sr=1&q=Hebrews+9%3A">Hebrews 9 explains it in detail. The sacrificial blood of goats and bulls was only the shadow of Jesus' sacrifice. Here, see this... 9:14 by how much more the blood of Christ (who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God), will purify your conscience from dead works, to serve the living God!

From verse 14 through 23, the Hebrews author describes the reason for sacrifices. Then in Hebrews 9:24 For Christ did not enter into the Holy of Holies made by hands, types of the true things, but into Heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf, Not so that He should offer Himself over and over, but once and for all as a Testimony in the Heavenly Court of Law that the Law was satisfied, once and for all.

Before that happened, no human soul could enter into God's presence. It was a matter of Law, not Grace. Hebrews 10:12 But He, offering but one sacrifice for sins, "sat down" in perpetuity "at the right hand" of God,

Until Jesus sat down at the right hand of God, we could not enter God's presence. Jesus resurrection was the single sign that all debt had been paid. If there was just one sin that had not been paid for, Jesus would have remained locked in the grave.

His resurrection was the victory over death AND over sin: Because the wages of sin IS death. Jesus was raised FOR our justification. Look up the different translations and then look at the original Greek.

Jesus was raised for the perfecting and completing of our justification. Sanctification and justification are two different things, very closely related, but they are two different things.

When Jesus was buried, He took the punishment or the consequence of our sins upon Himself. He was locked in prison, just as those OT saints were locked in Paradise with no way out until The Door opened in Heaven giving them their way into God's presence.

It is the resurrection of Jesus that proves we are not justified by our own works. Jesus did not raise Himself from the dead (Acts 3:15,13:30, Romans 4:24 et al). It is the resurrection that proves God was satisfied... proves remission of sin... proves salvation is through Jesus and only Jesus because only Jesus is the First Fruit of the First Resurrection. Jesus was raised from the dead in His glorified body, unlike Lazarus who died again, unlike Enoch and Elijah who did not again walk the earth, unlike Moses who's foot first touched the promised land when he was transfigured that night in the garden.

We are justified because He was raised. Justified means declared righteous the sacrifice is accepted. We are sanctified, or officially approved by God, because He died on the cross. Set aside as holy, purified, by His blood, for without blood there is no release from the debt of sins, but without the perfect blood of Christ, we are not purified (Hebrews href="https://pro.studylight.org/study-desk.html?t=amp&s=0&sr=1&q=Hebrews+9%3A">Hebrews 9). Justification is a one time act. Sanctification is a continuing process because we are human. Ephesians 5:26 that He might sanctify it, cleansing it by the washing of the water in the Word…

If you do not read the Bible and hide His Word in your heart every day, then God has no foundation in your heart with which to build the sanctification. Paul explains it as removal of all blemishes, wrinkles and spots (and warts) in Ephesians 5:27. Not only hiding His word in our hearts, but practicing His precepts and obeying His commands for this is how we are known to belong to Him.

God did not pour manna into the Israelites bowls during the night. They had to wake up every morning and gather the manna for the day's food. They had to participate in their own feeding.

That directly relates to sanctification. We must work at it. God planned our good works that we should do at the very foundation of the world. It is by our good works that we glorify God.

Matthew 5:16 So let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works, and may glorify your Father in Heaven. Of course the works do not get us into Heaven.

Ephesians 2:9-10 not of works, that not anyone should boast for we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God before prepared that we should walk in them.

Without the resurrection, there would have been no eternal life, for death would still have the sting. Without the resurrection, the Holy Spirit Who is our engagement ring, our Seal upon our hearts, would not dwell within us. It would have remained as it did in the Old Testament times. Without the resurrection there would have been no salvation with glorified bodies because there would have been no first fruit.

Romans 8:23 And not only so, but also we ourselves having the firstfruit of the Spirit, also we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly expecting adoption, the redemption of our body;

The Cross and The Resurrection are of such equal and great importance that the two make the fulfillment of One Promise. You cannot have one without the other for the redemption of our souls.

He most certainly does perfect His work by sanctifying those who participate with Him in the process. Those who do not participate in it with Him find an empty Spiritual bone. Their plate is never full and they find themselves starving. Which is incredibly sad when God says we have only to open our mouths and He will fill them up.

Psalm 81:10 I am Jehovah your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt; open your mouth wide, and I will fill it. It is participating with Him in the work He does in us that brings Him glory.

Ezekiel 2:8 But you, son of man, hear what I am saying to you. Do not be like that rebellious house of rebellion. Open your mouth and eat what I am giving to you.

It is precisely the reading of our Bibles, the study of His Word, the prayer and the listening to Him that changes us into being more like Christ. A person who was lost and then believes and then Jesus saves, absolutely is a new creation in Christ... a new man.

But, the New Man must put off the Old ways. That can't happen unless a person works at it with Jesus. Certainly there are some drug addicts that walk away from that life as soon as they become a Christian, but how many of those stay out of that life if they do not replace that old way with the New Way?

But a Christian does not fight the fight alone. We are commanded to put on the whole armor of God. Ephesians 6. That is an active part we must play.

Listen, the General of the Army doesn't go out and put the clothes on his soldiers, does he? Of course not, the General provides the clothes and the soldier dresses himself. This is precisely what Paul is talking about in Ephesians href="https://pro.studylight.org/study-desk.html?t=amp&s=0&sr=1&q=Ephesians+6%3A">Ephesians 6.

We are made powerful in the LORD, with that same power that raised Jesus from the dead. We have to put on the belt of Truth. Our hearts are protected with the breastplate of righteousness, and we have the boots of peace, and the shield of faith to ward off the fiery darts from Satan, and the helmet of salvation and the Sword which is the Word of God. All of that is to be set in place and covered in prayer. The equipment is provided, but we must put it on. This is the process of sanctification. We are being sanctified because we are being perfected. Ephesians 4:12. That is a Greek verb meaning a continual and ongoing state to be read such as this: sanctifying we are sanctified, perfecting we are perfected.

1 John 3:2 Beloved, now we are the children of God, and it was not yet revealed what we shall be. But we know that if He is revealed, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is.

-oOo-

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Biography Information:

Gina Burgess has taught Sunday School and Discipleship Training for almost three decades. (Don't tell her that makes her old.) She earned her Master's in Communication in 2013.

She is the author of several books including: When Christians Hurt Christians, The Crowns of the Believers and others available in online bookstores. She authors several columns, using her God-given talent to shine a light in a dark world. You can browse her blog at Refreshment In Refuge.

If you'd like to take a look at some Christian fiction and Christian non-fiction book reviews check out Gina's book reviews at Upon