Have you ever wondered about your relationship with Jesus and the affect it has had on your life? Maybe it’s the question of when your decision to follow Jesus was official or why even now you don’t do the things you use to do. These are really deep questions that cause us to think through two big theological terms to help us understand our relationship with God and the impact they have on our lives.
Those terms are: Salvation and Sanctification.
Let’s first focus on Salvation.
Salvation can be defined as the moment in which someone places their faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. It is a process with multiple layers that allows people to witness the revealing of God’s truth in their lives. First, they are set apart by God to hear the good news of Jesus Christ. The story of Jesus points to the beauty of the perfect life that he lived, fulfillment of his ministry, his death on the cross without any wrongdoing, and his resurrection showing that He defeated sin and death. This is why it is so important for people to share the truth of Jesus with others. Without the sharing of this message, some people may never hear the very truth that will save them and set them free.
Through hearing this message they are convicted of all of the evil, sins, and wrongdoings in their life. Romans 3:23 confirms to us that every human being has fallen short of God’s glory. That means that evil choices continue to overtake us as we react selfishly in most instances. What is even crazier is that we deeply understand a moral law in our hearts but in some instances we are have been sinning in the same way for so long that it no longer feels wrong, but instead it feels normal. People then begin recognize their need for a savior once they come to the realization they are incapable of saving themselves. The moment you realize you can do no good on your own is the moment you realize you cannot do life alone.
This leads them to ask God for forgiveness because of this eye opening moment and once forgiven they are no longer seen by God as a rebellious sinner, but instead are justified by the perfection found only in Jesus Christ. This is the foundational moment. When the going gets tough, do you cut and run or do you turn to God for the help only he can provide? Leaning into God’s forgiveness is the only way to overcome a lifetime of guilt, shame, and judgement. God loves to wipe the slate clean. He does so out of his great love for people. He knows how messed up you and how many times you’ve messed up. God even knows that you’ll mess up again in the future. Yet God’s great love for you surpasses the things you do wrong. That truth blows me away every time I think about it!
This is the beauty of Salvation. It’s not just one moment, but cascading doors that open to a a brand-new life with Jesus. Salvation in the most beautiful way was started by death and ends in resurrection. It starts with the recognition that our old life and ways need to die off and that we are resurrected and made new because of Jesus. That in itself would be amazing if it ended there, but it doesn’t because God knows exactly what we need.
This is where sanctification comes in…
The best way to describe sanctification is essentially it is the process that makes you more like Jesus. Once you have experienced salvation and been saved by Jesus, nothing is the same. God’s Spirit now dwells within you and your life is forever changed. You can’t go back and do the same things you once did as they remind that they go directly against God. Your life is now changed and you can barely recognize yourself. Why? Because you aren’t supposed to act like the old you, but the new you. And the new you should look like Jesus.
Have you ever seen the WWJD bracelets? WWJD stands for What Would Jesus Do.
What would Jesus do is the entire theme of sanctification. Theologian Wayne Grudem says, “Sanctification is a progressive work of God and man that makes us more and more free from sin and like Christ in our actual lives.”
One of the differences between salvation and sanctification is that salvation is that salvation can happen in a moment, but sanctification lasts for a lifetime. Sanctification is a process that continues to chip away and chisel you into an image that looks more and more like Jesus.
Think of a sculptor receiving a new blank stone canvas for their next great piece of art. As they begin to chisel away, you see the form of the new face, hands, and other features become visible. The sculptor makes the stone in the image they want and it always takes time to get it right. Now if that stone was a living being, every chisel away would hurt, but it would still be necessary for the beneficial life the stone.
Sanctification functions in the same manner. Ephesians 2:10 says that we are God’s workmanship and his masterpiece. God is the sculptor of our lives and our story. The Holy Spirit chisels away at the life of the Christian to remove sins and imperfections to make the Christian look more like Jesus. Many times that process is painful. Sometimes it means giving up things that were once loved or relied upon because they are in direct rebellion against God. Other times they are relationships or people that can no longer be sustained because of the nature or foundation of those relationships. They can be extremely painful to lose, but God only does things for the benefit of those He loves. Resisting that chiseling is far more painful allowing the chiseling to happen in the first place.
If you want a more visible illustration, check out this video by Christian influences and comedians, the Skit Guys
Watch Here
The revealing of God’s masterpiece in your life is always to bless you and give you the life you could never have on your own. That’s the reason life following Jesus sometimes feels harder than a life without Jesus. But that’s a lie from the enemy meant to distract your from the beautiful life that God has laid out for you through His salvation and sanctification.
So how should you live your life according to these truths?
1. Ask God to put people in your path to share the truth of Jesus with them. Understand the work that God has done in your own heart that has led you to ask for forgiveness and experience His grace.
2. Ask God what he wants to chisel away and how to lean into that process.
3. Ask God what you’ve resisted him chiseling away and ask God for wisdom on what to do about it.
Salvation and sanctification are two of the most beautiful things that set the Christian life apart from the rest of the world. Don’t just stop at salvation. Lean into what God wants to do in your life to make you more like Jesus and watch the blessing of God be poured out into your life.