It Begins At Our Sanctification

Eternal salvation begins for us the moment we are justified! Though we are born “…dead in trespasses and sins…”, we are made alive through Jesus’ substitutionary atonement on the cross, on our behalf. Because the sinless One paid the price for sin—the price that sinners should have paid—God is legally just to pass over our sin and grant us salvation. That’s why we say we are justified. Here’s a great way to remember what it means to be justified: “Just as if I’d never sinned!” Next, after God justifies us, He moves into our lives and begins to “clean house”—or to sanctify us by the power of His indwelling Spirit. 

Sin Loses It’s Power

Sin no longer has power over us! By God’s power, sin can be defeated. This is what it means to be sanctified. And God is glorified in our sanctification as well! He grows us spiritually, maturing us in our faith. Here’s what the Apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the church in Ephesus: “In Him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of His glory.” (Ephesians 1:11-12) In Christ, we have obtained an inheritance—an inheritance that has been predestined for us. However, we do not possess it yet.

Receiving Our Inheritance

Now, someone has to die before an inheritance can be received, right? Usually, someone else dies, and we receive an inheritance as a result. In regard to our eternal inheritance in heaven, however, we have to die to obtain it, don’t we? So, Paul seems to be referring to this time—right now—the time between our salvation and the moment we will inherit it. When Daniel was taken captive by the Babylonians, they intended to break him from his faith in Yahweh, in part by offering him a diet that had been sacrificed to their Babylonian gods. “But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine” (Daniel 1:8). In other words, Daniel was sanctified or set apart for God as he faced this decision. And God is glorified as we grow in our sanctification because He is the one doing the work in us! We submit to His work, but our spiritual growth is His work.

Work Out Your Own Salvation

There’s an incredibly interesting scripture related to this subject in Philippians chapter 2. I’d encourage you to memorize it or at least remember where it’s found: “Work out your own salvation,” Paul tells the church in Philippi, “with fear and trembling. For it is God who is working in you, enabling you both to desire and to work out His good purpose.” (Philippians 2:12-13) There’s no mistaking that God commands us to “work out your own salvation.” That’s an imperative! We are commanded to grow in our salvation—to be sanctified! But God actually does the work! He enables us and gives us the desire to grow in our faith. The flesh cannot produce a sanctified life. It appears that our brokenness and depravity are so thorough that we can’t even muster the desire to grow spiritually. God gets the glory for our sanctification—all of it!