The Sanctifier

A few weeks ago when we first started this study on the Holy Spirit, we mentioned some perplexing information.

We mentioned that God the father is a spirit and Holy. Yet He is not the Holy Spirit. Christ, God the Son, before taking on flesh was a spirit, yet He is not the Holy Spirit.

So then why is the third person of the Trinity named the Holy Spirit?

R.C. Sproul answers this question in His book titled “Who is the Holy Spirit?” He gives us two reasons to consider

#1 The Holy Spirit Sanctifies us.

Who Is the Holy Spirit? Chapter Four: The Sanctifier

There are a couple of reasons why the third person is known as the Holy Spirit. First, the term holy is attached to His title because of the particular task the Spirit performs in our redemption. Among the persons of the Trinity, the Spirit is the principal actor who works for our sanctification, enabling the process by which we are conformed to the image of Christ and made holy

#2 There are other spirits who are not holy.

1 John 4:1 CSB

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see if they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

While we are not going to focus on this aspect this morning. It is important to note. There are other spirits at work. Their mission is to impede the sanctification process by deceiving us into believing we are hearing from God.

It would amaze you how often many are deceived into doing the wrong thing because we have been given a “peace” about it.

While peace can certainly come from God when we surrender our will to His. Feeling “peace” is not the sole indicator of God speaking.

For instance, Did Jonah feel a peace about going to Nineveh?

Does scripture indicate that Moses had a peace about going to Pharoah?

Does scripture indicate that Esther had a peace about going before the king on the behalf of her people?

The answer to these questions are obviously no. They obeyed but were not at peace. Jonah was angry, Moses and Esther were terrified.

For this reason, we are warned to test the Spirits.

However, we will cover the subject of learning to hear the Spirit’s voice in an upcoming message.

Today our goal is explain the work of the Spirit as the sanctifier.

1 Thessalonians 4:3 CSB

For this is God’s will, your sanctification: that you keep away from sexual immorality,

The primary will of God for your life is that you continue in the path of sanctification.

So what is sanctification? I love this definition

“Sanctification is the ongoing supernatural work of God to rescue justified sinners from the disease of sin and to conform them to the image of his Son: holy, Christlike, and empowered to do good works.”

I. The Holy Spirit rescues us from the power of sin

Titus 3:5–6 CSB

he saved us—not by works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy—through the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit. He poured out his Spirit on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior

When a person trusts in Jesus Christ, There is an immediate justification granted them through the blood of Jesus Christ paying our debt. But our flesh has no power over sin. It is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that grants us power over the flesh.

1 Peter 2:9 CSB

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

Notice that it was not us that called ourselves out of the darkness of sin. It was the work of the Holy Spirit that drew us to Christ.

In the same way the same Spirit that draws us, “the helper” or “advocate” that grants us the power to say no to sin.

In fact, we are so sinful that we often do not know the depths of our own sin. It’s the mercy of God that sanctification is a process.

iceberg

The process of sanctification can be compared to an iceberg, which is almost 90% under water. As the sun shines on the iceberg, the exposed part melts, moving the lower part upward.

In the same way, we are usually aware of only a small part of our sinfulness and need, which is all we can deal with at any one time. However, as the light of God’s work in our lives changes us in the areas we know about, we become aware of new areas needing the work of God.

This is the process of sanctification. God begins to melt away the impurities from our hearts. Little by little the light of Christ shines deeper and deeper on us and the change becomes bigger and bigger.

But here is a sad reality is that some people will stubbornly refuse the process by holding on to sin.

Hoarding is a mental illness in which a person see’s all items in thier possesion as equal in value. Everything is worth keeping.

So a hoarder will live in unfit conditions often choosing their items over their health and friends.

I met one such lady in Pensacola. Her windows were filled with stacked empty egg cartons and her house to the brim with all manner of items, trash and debris. We used to cut her grass for her to keep her from being fined by the city. But even that was often disturbing and upsetting to her to see the weeds be removed.

From the outside, we all would ask the question of how can a person hold onto such garbage. How can they say no to a better life for the sake of trash. How can they live in such a way that will keep them sick, isolated, and depressed.

But in a way, can’t we all be that way spiritually

.I think if we are honest we can identify with this woman more than we like to admit.

We often will continue to hold on to the ways of the world, sin, that disgust God.

We actively fight against the freedom, the joy, and peace that sanctification brings.

If you are bitter and anger your living in and are unwilling to remove the trash of unforgiveness, forgetting to remind yourself of how much you have been forgiven.

If your living in some type of secret addiction whether chemical or sexual chances are you are living in and holding onto the trash of pride. This trash is keeping you from seeking accountability and living in true freedom and victory.

When we hold onto sin and keep our spiritual houses a wreck there is no way we can be productive for the kingdom because we are too busy dealing with the consequences of our trash.

But as the spirit reveals our sin to us and we surrender that area of our lives to Him. We become more like him.

Which leads us to the next action of the Holy Spirit.

II. The Holy Spirit conforms us to the image of Christ.

So what does it mean to be conformed to the Image of Christ?

2 Corinthians 3:17 CSB

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

2 Corinthians 3:18 CSB

We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit.

To be conformed to the image of Christ means that we are being transformed.

It means that we are being emptied of self-will.

The process of sanctification is a process that begins to break our will. Not just in the area of moral sin. But in everyday life.

It means that we consider God’s will in everything first.

Philippians 2:5–8 CSB

Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. Instead he emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when he had come as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death— even to death on a cross.

Jesus considered the father’s will in everything first, even though He Himself is equal to the Father. He emptied Himself of self-will.

But when we hold on to sin, when we refuse to allow the Holy Spirit to do its work in removing the trash from our lives, our wills are not broken and we cannot live as Christ.

You see being conformed to His image is more than just not sinning. It’s more than just being moral and kind.

Conformed to His image is being emptied of our own self volition and motivation for the Glory of God.

As Paul said it about himself. It’s considering yourself as a slave/bond servant to Jesus Christ.

Then something amazing happens. We become useful.

Look at what the Holy Spirit does.

III. The Holy Spirit Empowers us to do Gospel work.

2 Corinthians 3:17–18 CSB

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit.

Now notice the connection between removal of sin, being transformed into the image of Christ and Gospel Ministry.

2 Corinthians 4:1–2 CSB

Therefore, since we have this ministry because we were shown mercy, we do not give up. Instead, we have renounced secret and shameful things, not acting deceitfully or distorting the word of God, but commending ourselves before God to everyone’s conscience by an open display of the truth.

2 Corinthians 4:3–6 CSB

But if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case, the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For we are not proclaiming ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’s sake. For God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of God’s glory in the face of Jesus Christ.

When our lives look like Christ we proclaim Him both in word and deed. The power to proclaim the Gospel does not come from us but from the Holy Spirit in us. So if the Holy Spirit is in you, sanctifying and transforming you into the image of Christ. Then you have the power to proclaim the truth to a dying world.

Listen to this last part of chapter 4.

2 Corinthians 4:7–18 CSB

Now we have this treasure in clay jars, so that this extraordinary power may be from God and not from us. We are afflicted in every way but not crushed; we are perplexed but not in despair; we are persecuted but not abandoned; we are struck down but not destroyed. We always carry the death of Jesus in our body, so that the life of Jesus may also be displayed in our body. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’s sake, so that Jesus’s life may also be displayed in our mortal flesh. So then, death is at work in us, but life in you. And since we have the same spirit of faith in keeping with what is written, I believed, therefore I spoke, we also believe, and therefore speak. For we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you. Indeed, everything is for your benefit so that, as grace extends through more and more people, it may cause thanksgiving to increase to the glory of God. Therefore we do not give up. Even though our outer person is being destroyed, our inner person is being renewed day by day. For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory. So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

Can you imaging what it would be like to live with a united and singular purpose as a church body? Where every member confessed and released control of the trash in our lives.

Where Joy overflowed as we emptied out our collective will before the Lord.

Where we lived a life, not just a moral one, but one that looks like Jesus.

Can you imagine the power in that?

Church family that is what the Spirit has granted us. If we will surrender our sin, If we will empty ourselves of our own will and live in the Spirit of His death so that God’s glory may be shown.

The Spirit of God, the Holy Spirits will for your life is primarily transformation that results in Gospel presentation both in word and deed. It’s being like Christ.