Thursday, September 29, 2011

Be Set Apart (1 Thess. 4:7-8)

For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification. So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you.
(1 Thessalonians 4:7-8, NASB)

God is in the business of saving lives. As soon as Adam and Eve made the choice to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil—against God’s command—He has always had a gracious plan of salvation. His plan culminated in the death, burial, and resurrection of God the Son, Jesus Christ. It is only by the belief in and acceptance of this amazing gift that we are saved.

But our faith journeys don’t end at the moment of salvation; rather, they just begin. Once we commit ourselves to God—heart, soul, mind, and strength—He begins the process of sanctification in us.

Sanctification means being “set apart to a sacred purpose” (Webster’s Dictionary). And this is ongoing in the lives of believers. Every day, if we “take up our cross,” if we submit ourselves completely to God, He’ll continue to mold and refine us so that we can complete whatever purpose He has willed for us.

However, if we fight this process by constantly choosing our own way—or choosing to be impure in any way—or if we refuse to grow in our faith by ignoring His word or neglecting Him, then we prevent His perfect work in us. We are no longer being sanctified.

Our time on this earth is just a blip, a vapor, a miniscule dot on the timeline of eternity. What we do with our time has eternal impact. The question is: Are we going to spend our time here pursuing meaningless, impure things, or are we going to allow the sanctifying work of God to make us worthy vessels to be used by Him?

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