Sin Defeated Three Ways

Justification, Sanctification, Glorification:

These are three words that are said frequently in church that I feel don’t get explained nearly well enough or often enough. I don’t think I truly understood what these words mean or their relationship with each other until I read “all of grace” by my hero Charles Spurgeon. That is the base for everything I say here today.

Our Lord Jesus came to take away sin in three ways; He came to remove the penalty of sin, the power of sin, and the presence of sin.

First is Justification, the removal of the penalty of sin. We all have sinned, and we all deserve to go to Hell for our sins. But when we turn from our sins and accept Jesus into our hearts as LORD and savior, the guilt of our sins is washed away by the blood Jesus shed for us on the cross. The moment we are born again we are completely 100% justified. You are exactly as justified one millisecond after giving your life to Christ as you will be after being in Heaven for 10,000 years. If you are saved, you and I are just as justified as Paul, Peter, Moses, Spurgeon or any other person in history. There is nothing we can do to become more justified because it is 100% the gift and work of God which we can only receive by grace through faith.

Next is sanctification, the removal of the power of sin. Human nature is to be selfish, evil, and an enemy of God. Romans 3:10-12 “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one." We are naturally slaves to sin. Sanctification is the process in which we are freed from our sins. This is a constant battle with our flesh that will last as long as we are alive on earth. The goal is to be pure and holy and Christlike in all the parts of our life. This is not something we can do on our own because it is not in our nature. We must rely on God in order to be transformed and sanctified. Ezekiel 36:26 “I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh.” Sin binds us and takes away our joy and purpose in life. It is only through sanctification and breaking away from the yoke of sin that we are free to live for Christ. Jesus said in John 10:10 “The devil comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it more abundantly.”

Last is glorification, the removal of the presence of sin. This is what will happen when the devil is permanently destroyed and we are all taken up into heaven. I don’t think anybody knows exactly how this will happen, but the Bible tells us it will so I don’t worry about it!

This is the Christian life:

1. We were lost and deserving to go to Hell.
2. We turn from our sins, give our lives to Christ and are instantly justified.
3. The rest of our time on earth is spent in a battle with our flesh called sanctification
4. Sin is permanently destroyed and we are in a state of glorification for eternity.

The Bible is abundantly clear that salvation doesn’t come by works or by any level of sanctification. But it is also clear that if there is no evidence of transformation, then justification probably has never happened and that person is probably not saved.

Thanks everyone for reading (-: hope everyone has a blessed week!

In Christ,

Steve Stockwell

P.S. Today through Sunday is the comal county fair. I’m looking for people who are willing to go witnessing with me there. It seems to be much more effective in small groups than when someone goes alone. I already have a few people going with me on Friday, but I’d love more and I’m looking for people who will go on Thursday and/or Saturday. Please let me know if you are interested.