Sanctification - Part 2

Turn with me to 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. We just had a Bible study that was a part one. This is a part two on the subject of sanctification. The Bible study set up the fact that when God speaks of sanctification, he is speaking of spiritual matters, not physical matters. And I want us to now prove that by the word. That's what we're going to do. We're going to prove it by the word. I want us to see some things concerning sanctification and I want us to see the danger. In believing that sanctification is anything other than a finished work by God. Anything other than a finished work by God.

So, we're going to jump right into some scriptures. If you were not able to be here for the Bible study, we're just kind of abruptly picking up where we left off. But we're going to go through some scriptures here. Let's begin by reading our text. It's 1 Thessalonians 4, verse 1. It says, furthermore then, we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus that as you have received of us how you ought to walk and to please God so you would abound more and more by faith. And I also want to say, if you were not able to hear the Bible study, you may want to go back and listen to it. I won't repeat all of that. That sets all of this up. Verse two, for you know what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jesus.

For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that you should abstain from fornication, which the scripture calls idolatry, refers to as idolatry, spiritual idolatry. Verse four, that every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honor, not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles, which know not God, that no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter, because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified. Well, God hath not called us to uncleanness, but unto holiness. He therefore that despiseth or rejects God's commandment, despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his Holy Spirit.

Verse three, he said, this is the will of God, even your sanctification. Now, the word sanctification means holiness. This is the will of God, even your holiness. Being sanctified is being set apart unto holiness. That's what eternity will be. Holiness. That's what it will be. That's what all of this is unto. Holiness.

And it is a work that God has done. And we're going to prove that by the word. We will prove that this is a work that God has done and only God can do. So turn with me, if you would, to Genesis 2. Genesis 2 verse 1 says, Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.

And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made. And He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it. because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made." God sanctified it. God sanctified it.

The seventh day, the Sabbath. Now, let me just point out again from the Bible study, here's another example of the fact that God was not talking about a physical day. He was not talking about a physical day. The Sabbath is a person. We don't rest on a day. We rest on a person. Christ, our Sabbath, everything points to Christ. Everything.

And God is the one who sanctified, all right? Turn with me to Exodus 31. Exodus 31 verse 12, And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths you shall keep, for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you. He said, in this observing of the Sabbaths, you're going to know. This is a picture so you can know that you are not sanctifying anything. I am doing the sanctifying.

Turn with me to Isaiah 8. Isaiah 8 verse 13, it says, Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself and let him be your fear and let him be your dread. And he shall be for a sanctuary, but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offense to both the houses of Israel. for a djinn and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

Set him apart in your mind and in your heart unto holiness. Not yourself. You need to set yourself apart to holiness. Set him apart to holiness. Somebody will say, well, what about all the times that God told the children of Israel to sanctify themselves? I pulled up the word sanctify, sanctification. You know, and God told him time and time again, Moses, you tell them, sanctify yourselves. What about all those times that God said, sanctify yourselves? He literally told them to sanctify. Yes, he did. That was his law of commandments to them.

But here's the question. You know the story of the children of Israel. You know how things went for them. You know how they acted. Here's the question. Did they? That was his commandment. But did they? Did they do it? No. No, they did not. They did not obey that law just like they did not obey any other law God gave to them. And it's because they couldn't. They couldn't. They were totally ruined sinners.

Every commandment that God has required of His people God has had to accomplish for His people, every single one. The only hope that the children of Israel ever had was that God would sanctify them, accomplish their sanctification for them, and set them apart to holiness. That's the only hope they ever had. It's the only hope any of us ever had.

Turn with me to Ezekiel 37. Ezekiel 37 verse 26, it says, Moreover, I will make a covenant of peace with them. It shall be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will place them and multiply them and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them forever. My tabernacle also shall be with them, yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And the heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them forever." Now that right there is how sanctification was accomplished for God's people. God made a covenant. God did the placing. God did the establishing. The Lord our God did it all. He did it all. Turn with me to John 17. John 17 verse 14, this is our Lord praying to the Father on behalf of His people. He said, I have given them thy word and the world hath hated them. I just have given them the truth and the world hears it and absolutely hates it.

And it's because they are not of the world even as I'm not of the world. I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through thy truth. Thy word is truth. As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself. that they also might be sanctified through the truth. What is God's truth? Christ is. John 14, 6, he said, I'm the truth, I'm the way, I'm the life, I'm the truth. What is God's word? Christ is. John 1, verse 1. God's people are sanctified through Christ.

They are not sanctified through the law. They are not sanctified through the deeds of the flesh. They are sanctified through Christ. They are set apart unto holiness in Christ, by Christ, through Christ. Turn with me to 1 Corinthians chapter 1. 1 Corinthians 1 verse 2, it says, unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus. We are set apart unto holiness in Christ Jesus. That does not say to them that are sanctified in the law. to them that are sanctified in the deeds of the flesh. It says to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus.

Look at verse 30 right here. 1 Corinthians 1 verse 30, it says, but of him are you in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption. It's very important for us to realize that that does not say that the law is made unto us sanctification. Christ is. Just like it does not say that the law is our wisdom or our righteousness or our redemption. Christ is. The same applies to sanctification. The law is not our sanctification. Christ is. Turn with me to 1 Corinthians 6. Verse 9, 1 Corinthians 6, verse 9.

Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived, neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners shall inherit the kingdom of God.

And such were some of you, but you are washed, But you are sanctified. But you are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. He did not say you are in the process of becoming sanctified. He said you are sanctified. Just like he did not say you are in the process of becoming justified. He said you are justified.

Past tense done deal fully accomplished to say that holiness in God's people is not accomplished in Christ. And there's still a progression that we need to achieve is to call God a liar. That's what, that's what we need to recognize. God says the sanctification of God's people is a done deal. And God says God is the one who did it. Turn with me to second Thessalonians two. 2 Thessalonians 2 verse 13.

But we are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth. Where unto he called you by our gospel to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. He said we're bound to give thanks not because you sanctified yourself. but because the Spirit of God Almighty sanctified you. And he said, here is the order of how it went.

Verse 13, we're bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord. He said, number one, God loved you. This is how the whole thing started. God loved you. Verse 13, we're bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord. because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation." He said, God loved you and then he elected you. We're bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit. Number one, God loved you and then God elected you.

And then God set you apart unto holiness in Christ. God set you apart by placing you in the condemnation of His cross. God placed you in the punishment of His death. God placed you in the victory of His resurrection. Then, after all that was done, He revealed it to you by the gospel and He gave you faith to believe it. Verse 13, we're bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth. You were sanctified before you ever believed. Verse 14, whereunto he called you by our gospel to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. God has not left one work concerning His people unfinished. If you walk out of here with one sentence, get this one. God has not left one work concerning His people unfinished. God has left nothing undone.

If He did, it wouldn't be so great a salvation. Turn with me to Hebrews 2. Hebrews 2 verse 10. For it became him for whom are all things and by whom are all things in bringing many sons unto glory to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both he that sanctifyeth and they who are sanctified are all of one, for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren." That's the whole cause. He who did the sanctifying and they who are sanctified are, right now, all one. All one. Turn with me to Hebrews 10. Hebrews 10, verse 5.

Wherefore, when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice an offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. Then said I, Lo, I come, and the volume of the book it is written of me, to do thy will, O God. Above when he said sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin, thou wouldest not neither hatched pleasure therein, which are offered by the law. Then said he, lo, I come to do thy will.

Oh God, he taketh away the first that he may establish the second. by the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Is that saying we were sanctified once or is that saying that he was offered once? Yes. Yes. He was offered once and that one time is all it took.

Verse 11, and every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices which can never take away sins. But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God, from henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool, for by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.

What more can he say than to us he hath said? How much more plainly can our God possibly be about this? Look at Hebrews 13. Verse 12 says, Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate. We're not sanctified by obeying the commandments of the law with this sinful flesh. We were sanctified by the blood of Jesus Christ. Are we going to progress away from the blood of Jesus Christ? No. God forbid. God forbid. Turn over to Jude 1. Jude 1, just before Revelation.

Verse 1 says, Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father and preserved in Jesus Christ and called, mercy unto you and peace and love be multiplied. Can we establish the fact from God's Word that He accomplished the sanctification of His people? They are set apart in Christ and they are as holy as they will ever be in Him. Our brother Red, you are complete in Him. As you've learned to walk in Christ, walk in Christ. The answer is yes, we can establish that.

All right? With that being said, let me leave you with this truth and this word of warning. I'm not against morality. Okay? I am not against morality. I'm for morality. I am not against exhortations in obedience within our lives on this earth. You all, well, I was gonna say, you know me, some of you do. I'm for exhortations in obedience. Gabe, should we break the law or try to obey the law? Try to obey the law. You are going to hear me bring, the Lord may lead me to bring a message next Sunday morning on this is how the scripture says we ought to be and how we ought to act and that's how we ought to be and that's how we ought to act. I don't have a problem with that. I'm for that.

But if we tell men and women that obedience to God's commandments in our flesh is the evidence of salvation, And I'm going to tell you that it's the most common thing being told in the world. This is how we started the Bible study. I'm going to end the message with this same statement, this same truth. If we tell men and women that obedience to God's commandment, us doing it in the flesh, that is the evidence of salvation. We're going to give men and women a false hope. We're going to give men and women a false hope because it is not the evidence of salvation.

You know the story in Luke 18 of the Pharisee and the publican, the Pharisee said, I am a great person. The publican said, I'm the worst man on earth. God said to the Pharisee, not justified. He said to the worst man on earth, justified. All that worst man on earth did was cry, God, be merciful to me. I plead Christ. That's all he said. And all those good deeds, he said, I fast twice in the week. I give 10% a tithe of all that I have. I'm not an adulterer. I'm not an extortioner. I'm not unjust. Not saved. It's not the evidence of salvation.

Our Lord told a bunch of, he told the chief priests and elders in the temple one time, you're going to be shocked when you see all of these harlots and murderers go in and you be left out. That's what he said to them. You're gonna be shocked. God sent spies to one woman in Rahab.

If we give men and women the impression and if we cause them to believe that our obedience to the law is the evidence of salvation, we're going to give them a false hope. You stand up here and preach that and people are going to start doing it. They're going to start thinking they're doing it. And they're going to start to say, you know, I think I'm saved.

And I am all for exhortations and I'm all for morality. only after we cut that idol down first. Only after we cut that idol down to the ground and say, now let's establish how men and women are saved and let's establish what the evidence of salvation is. It's one word, Christ. That's it. It's not Christ and, it's Christ alone.

Our hope is not in our flesh. I hear people all the time say, I'm not getting any better. I don't know why I'm not getting any better. It's because you're a sinner against God, and so am I. But thank God, our hope is not in our flesh. It's not what we see in our flesh. Our hope is in Christ's flesh. Our hope is in what we see in Christ's flesh.

You know, our text in 1 Thessalonians 4 said, this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that you don't commit fornication and you don't do all those bad things. That's why Christ came into the world. To live a life without all of those bad things. To give to his people. to earn a righteousness, to provide a sanctification, a holiness for His people, and to take everything that they did wrong, all their unsanctification, to the cross of Calvary.

Our hope is in what we see in Christ. Our hope is not in our obedience to the law. You say, I'm trying to do better about obeying the law. Great, great. More power to you. But our hope is not in our obedience to the law. Our hope is in Christ's obedience to the law. Our hope is not in our resolve. Our hope is not in our efforts. Our hope is not in our anything. Our hope is in Christ's blood and righteousness alone. That is it. This world is full of men and women who have done a pretty good job of obeying the commandments. As much as can be done in the flesh. As much as can be done in the flesh.

But they don't have faith in Christ alone, which God says is the evidence. And if they don't possess the evidence, it means they do not possess salvation. If we do not possess the evidence of salvation, we do not possess salvation. What is the evidence of salvation? Not by works of righteousness, which we have done, but according to His mercy, He saved us by the washing of regeneration, renewing of the Holy Ghost.

And I'm going to stop. I'm going to stop. And I'm not, I don't want to, I don't like making shocking statements, but I'm going to make this statements because the world is so full of this. I need just a little bit of shock value. Hell is going to be full of men and women who did a pretty good job in the flesh of keeping God's commandments. I just really want to make this known.

Um, There is no salvation in trying to obey and trying is the key. Nobody's doing it. That's why nobody's doing it. If you could, our Lord said, do this and you'll live. You didn't. Neither did I. One man only did. One man only did. Christ alone. Christ alone.

So there is no salvation in trying to obey God's commandments and failing. There's no salvation in that. Salvation is in Jesus Christ alone. And to believe anything other than salvation being in Jesus Christ alone is spiritual fornication. To have your love and affection and desire anywhere else. But Christ alone is spiritual fornication.

It's idolatry. And there is no salvation in idolatry, none whatsoever. Our hope is built on nothing more and nothing less than the Lord Jesus Christ's blood and righteousness. His oath, His covenant, His blood support us in the whelming blood. When all around our soul gives way, He then is all our hope and stay. On Christ the solid rock we stand, all other ground is sinking sand.

And I'll close with the last two verses of Jude. OK, look at verse 24. It says. Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, we're not going to keep ourselves. Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless, we're not going to present ourselves. to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy. To the only wise God, our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.

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Sanctification - Part 2

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