Because I believe Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead, I am sanctified.  The dictionary defines sanctification as the process of making one holy so as to be a conduit of spiritual blessing, free from sin and set apart as sacred.  Hebrews 2:11 “So now Jesus and the ones he makes holy have the same Father. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them his brothers and sisters.”   Our sanctification is made possible because of Jesus.  He is the one who makes us holy.  Paul clarifies this thought in Philippians 2: 12b-13  “Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear.  For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.”    Jesus made us holy when he died for our sins, then the Holy Spirit of God works in us to grow us more and more like Him.  We live in a sin filled world and still sin.  Someday we will be freed from the presence of sin in heaven, but until then we need to constantly seek His forgiveness and grow in Him.  The growing is what Paul called putting on the ‘new self’ and putting off the ‘old self’ in Ephesians 4:22-24. “to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires,  and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”

Since sanctification is a growing process and the Holy Spirit within does the work in our hearts and minds, what is my part in this sanctification process?  I need to be willing to listen and respond to the desire God has put in my heart when I accepted Jesus as my savior to be more and more like Jesus, to please Him in all I say and do.  I need to desire to renewed  mind and put off old habits that are not pleasing to God.  I need to pray, study, fellowship with other believers, worship and apply myself to being one who Jesus will not be ashamed to call His brother or sister.  Only though the Spirit can we achieve this, so that is why it is God working in us that makes this possible.  I am finding the process of growing in the Lord to be a huge adventure.  The more I learn about God the more I want to learn.  The more I obey His commandments and follow His ways the more contented I am and feel loved and held by Him.  It is a life-long process to walking with Jesus day by day.

Loving my walk with Him,

Linda