"Ye Are Sanctified"
I Corinthians 6:11
The hodgepodge theology of those who teach
progressive sanctification (progressive, increasing holiness and decreasing sin
in the believer's nature) is so inconsistent with the gospel of God's free grace
salvation in Christ and with my personal experience that I long ago gave up
trying to understand them. IF, AS ALL AFFIRM, SANCTIFICATION IS ESSENTIAL TO
SALVATION, THEN WORKS HAVE NO PART IN IT. IT IS ALL OF GRACE! If one means, by
the term progressive sanctification, that believers grow in grace we have no
quarrel at all. But if their meaning is that believers gradually attain higher
degrees of holiness by something they do, or are enabled of God to do, we do
have a quarrel. Nowhere in the Word of God are men admonished to sanctify
themselves, except in a ceremonial sense, under the symbolism of legal worship.
SANCTIFICATION IS GOD'S WORK OF GRACE IN MAKING COMMON, SINFUL MEN AND WOMEN
HOLY. When holiness can be looked upon as a progressive thing, then may
sanctification be looked upon as progressive, but not until then.
Every believer enjoys a threefold sanctification.
1. BY THE DECREE OF GOD (Jude 1) - When
God the Father chose us, predestinated us to be made holy, and ordained us to
eternal life before the world began, we were sanctified, set apart for God
"that we should be holy and without blame before him."
2. BY THE BLOOD OF CHRIST (Heb.
3. BY THE HOLY SPIRIT IN REGENERATION (II Pet.
1:4) - In the new birth the Holy Spirit gives every believer the holy nature of
Christ (I John 3:9). This holy nature grows in grace, but not in holiness, in
knowledge, but not in holiness, in commitment, but not in holiness!
Many will cling to sanctification by their
own works and decry sanctification by grace alone as an antinomian doctrine
that promotes licentiousness. Commonly, when men cannot refute truth they
suborn false witnesses to discredit it (Acts
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to
Christ alone for righteousness, imputed righteousness and imparted
righteousness, and affirm to all that we are what we are by the grace of God (I
Cor.
Don Fortner