Sanctification Pt. 1:Tried By Fire
Matthew 5:8
"Blessed are the
pure in heart, For they shall see God."
So...you are saved, born-again, justified by Christ. You may wonder what it is that you are still doing here on earth. This is called the sanctification process, my friend. Sanctification is the purification process that we all must go through to become perfected. It is preparation for the eternal Kingdom of Heaven. This is not always a fun process by any means, in fact it can sometimes feel like being in a furnace turned up to a billion degrees.
1 Peter 1:7-9
Our ultimate goal is to get to end of this life faithfully, and receive the eternal salvation of our souls. Stay faithful to God until the end, and do not give up. That is our goal. You may have been born again when you received Christ, but we don't receive our full salvation until after we die, when we receive eternal life.
In this process, God eventually wants you to get to the point where you can actually rejoice in your trials. That, my friends, is not an easy place to come to. It takes a lot of work and effort to come to that point. It's not easy, but it's possible. Learn to rejoice in your trials. Most of us are not yet anywhere near the point of being able to do this. I know I'm not! But this isn't anything to feel bad about. We still have time. God will not allow you leave this earth before it's your time to go. You are exactly where you belong in this process. You can breathe easy, because you are right where you are supposed to be.
The fire of adversity, trials and obstacles are tools God uses in this purification process to perfect us and get us ready for eternity.
Let's interpret this verse:
Isaiah 4:4
“When the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and purged the blood of Jerusalem from her midst, by the spirit of judgment and by the spirit of burning,”
The
commentary of this verse is: “Through the processes of a purging FIRE, which outwardly consumes the faithless and inwardly PURIFIES
the faithful; God will produce a Holy City.”
This is talking about
the city of Zion- the NEW Jerusalem, in which
Jesus will reign on this earth as King of Kings and Lord of Lords
forever. He needs to purify us to get us ready to enter into His Kingdom.
1 Corinthians 10:13
"No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it."
So what does this mean? God does allow trials of all kinds, and even some that feel like more than we can bear. Before you get too afraid, let me say that whatever we go through as children of God is part of his plan, fully ordained in his hands. Nothing will happen to you that he does not allow. You are his child, and he promises to be with you through whatever happens in your life and never, ever, ever, ever leave you! He also promises that His grace is sufficient for any trial we go through, and NOTHING can separate us from His love.
Deuteronomy 31:6
"Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.”
God's grace is especially extended to us in the hardest of circumstances and trials. There is a special grace there for us when we seek God. When you seek God in the hardest of circumstances you will most certainly find Him and His special brand of sweet grace when we need it most. He is always there when we need Him. Anyone who has experienced God's special grace in the hardest of times will know exactly what I'm talking about. This special grace makes any trial or circumstance bearable. In a way these hard times are a blessing in disguise because they give us the opportunity to experience this special kind of grace we wouldn't experience any other way. When we need God most desperately we experience Him in a special way and He becomes more real than ever in the hardest of times.
Paul said this beautifully:
2 Corinthians 12:9
And He (God) said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Have hope! These trials are not fought in vain. These are working towards the perfection of your soul. These trials will make you a better person, even if you can't see it now. God is in control and He knows what he's doing. You can get through whatever it is you're going through. You have to fight and push your way through. We must fight to gain the victory. The victory is there if you look for it. Seek God's face and you will find the answers you have been looking for. Sometimes we must just keep pushing ahead and pushing through obstacles. As you keep doing this you will eventually find the things which once were obstacles are no longer obstacles to you. This means you've gotten stronger and are on to bigger obstacles. God must do this to make us holy and complete the way He is. Have you ever heard that quote "God loves you too much to leave you the way you are"? Well this is true. We don't have an accurate perception of ourselves. We can't see the deep hidden evilness in our hearts the way God can. I think we often have a tendency to think we are further along than we really are spiritually. I know I do and then God will show me something else about myself that's not very pretty and it's a blow to my pride. That's exactly what He's aiming for, the destruction of pride and all the other ugly traits we have hidden deep inside. But have hope, this quote from Job is absolutely beautiful. Make this your motto:
Job 23:10
"But He knows the way that I take;
When He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold."
When He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold."
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