Posts Tagged ‘Sanctification’
Instruments of Change
In Romans 8:29 we learn that God has predestinated us to be conformed to the image of His Son. That is the ultimate end of all things — that God is going to make us, His people, like His Son Jesus Christ. That is why we were created originally. With the fall of man, we…
Read More1 John 1:9 — Salvation or Sanctification?
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” For much of my lifetime, I heard this verse referred to as a cleansing and restoring truth for believers who in some way had stumbled into sin. Such an interpretation affects sanctification. About…
Read MoreAnger in the First Degree
Murders come in all kinds of ways. They come through violence. They come through domestic squabbles. They come through gang warfare. Unfortunately, records of murder litter the history of the world. In fact, murders are so commonplace that they don’t always make the news cycle unless they’re bizarre or multiple. Yet, the most prevalent form…
Read MoreThe Double Cure
The first verse of the hymn “Rock of Ages”ends with these words: “Be of sin the double cure, Save from wrath and make me pure” (Majesty Hymns, 451). Interestingly, some hymnals have an alternate reading: “Be of sin the double cure, Cleanse me from its guilt and power” (Hymns for the Living Church, 149.) Fortunately,…
Read MoreWhat Were You Thinking?
Sanctification is a transformation of the believer into the image of Christ. If believers are going to please God, they must involve themselves in the process of spiritual transformation. The goal of this article is to suggest some basic truths regarding Biblical transformation as expressed in Romans 12:2. Paul asks two questions. First, into what…
Read MoreThe Error of Counterfeit Holiness
The Scripture upholds true godliness and holiness with statements like “Godliness is profitable unto all things” (I Tim. 4:8), and warns against the counterfeit, with statements like “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away” (2 Tim. 3:5). While the context of 2 Timothy primarily addresses counterfeit religion among…
Read MoreGuns and Sanctification
The recent tragedy of the shooting in Florida reminds us once again of man’s depravity and his need for salvation through Jesus Christ to receive a changed heart. The wake of this egregious crime certainly has spurred debate about guns, but common sense recognizes the truth of the adage, “The only thing that stops a…
Read MoreDoes the Bible Really Teach Two Types of Forgiveness?
Kristopher Schaal I’d like to make a case for two distinct types of forgiveness. When a person gets saved, God forgives all of his sin—past, present, and future. This is often referred to as “positional forgiveness.” Although some people may not like that term, I don’t think anyone even close to orthodoxy really disputes the…
Read MoreStraight Cuts: “The Just Shall Live by Faith” (Habakkuk 2:4b)
Mike Harding This inspired text penned by the ancient prophet Habakkuk is quoted three times by two NT authors. In the NT, the prophet’s profound utterance comprises the “soul of Pauline theology.”1 Boice comments, “This is a great text. It could even be called the great text of the Bible. To understand it is to…
Read MoreStubborn, Ceaseless Civil War (2)
Mark Minnick In Part One, Dr. Minnick writes to us of the struggle of the spiritual life, instructing us of the Nature of the struggle and assuring us of the Normalcy of the struggle. The Enormity of This Struggle Though everything described thus far is the normal experience of all Christians, it isn’t their experience…
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