God Alone Can Sanctify Me!
Reading: Leviticus 20
My Verse: "And you shall keep My statutes and do them. I am the LORD Who sanctifies you" (20:8).
Dear LORD God, thank You for sanctifying me. I kind of get this although it is hard to put the fact that only You can sanctify me and that You have sanctified me together with my being holy. I think this is because I do not always feel holy, in fact I rarely feel holy. More often than not I feel pretty inadequate and unholy! But, here You tell me, "I am the LORD Who sanctifies you."
I had to look around a bit to help me better understand this idea of sanctification. One study points out that "sanctify" whenever used in the New Testament is in the perfect tense. Being in the perfect tense means that the action happened in the past, it was completed, but it still effects us today. In other words it is ongoing - it still applies to us. Another interesting point was that the verb is passive, which means that the action was done to us not by us. We have no part in it. The work that You, LORD Jesus did on the cross was done in the past but still applies to me today. And it was a complete action.
Colossians 1:22 tells me that Your whole purpose in reconciling me was "to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation." I have always had trouble with this. I just didn't understand how I could be holy, without blemish and free from accusation. Ephesians 1:5 tells me that You, LORD God "chose us in (Christ) before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight." Again, this idea that I am holy and blameless! I just have had trouble reconciling this with my daily life. I fall short so often how is this to be?!
But I begin to get it, however dimly. I begin to realize that it is all You, LORD God. Yes, my part is that I need to take this gift You offer me and realize that it is Your work - Your action alone that sanctifies me. Because You view me as holy and blameless then I must live as one that is holy and blameless. Still do not fully grasp how it all works out but I can only act on it. I guess that is what stepping out in faith means. I can use this fact as a motivator to strive to live as I should, to submit to You each day. This is what Paul calls us to do in Colossians chapter 3.
"If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on the earth" (Colossians 3:1-2).
Daily, every moment of the day I need to be reminded that You, LORD God sanctified me and so because You did that You view me as holy and blameless. My feelings, my doubts, my failings do not affect that at all. I need only live as You view me - sanctified, holy and acceptable.
Ditat Deus - God Enriches!
Reading: Leviticus 20
My Verse: "And you shall keep My statutes and do them. I am the LORD Who sanctifies you" (20:8).
Dear LORD God, thank You for sanctifying me. I kind of get this although it is hard to put the fact that only You can sanctify me and that You have sanctified me together with my being holy. I think this is because I do not always feel holy, in fact I rarely feel holy. More often than not I feel pretty inadequate and unholy! But, here You tell me, "I am the LORD Who sanctifies you."
I had to look around a bit to help me better understand this idea of sanctification. One study points out that "sanctify" whenever used in the New Testament is in the perfect tense. Being in the perfect tense means that the action happened in the past, it was completed, but it still effects us today. In other words it is ongoing - it still applies to us. Another interesting point was that the verb is passive, which means that the action was done to us not by us. We have no part in it. The work that You, LORD Jesus did on the cross was done in the past but still applies to me today. And it was a complete action.
Colossians 1:22 tells me that Your whole purpose in reconciling me was "to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation." I have always had trouble with this. I just didn't understand how I could be holy, without blemish and free from accusation. Ephesians 1:5 tells me that You, LORD God "chose us in (Christ) before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight." Again, this idea that I am holy and blameless! I just have had trouble reconciling this with my daily life. I fall short so often how is this to be?!
But I begin to get it, however dimly. I begin to realize that it is all You, LORD God. Yes, my part is that I need to take this gift You offer me and realize that it is Your work - Your action alone that sanctifies me. Because You view me as holy and blameless then I must live as one that is holy and blameless. Still do not fully grasp how it all works out but I can only act on it. I guess that is what stepping out in faith means. I can use this fact as a motivator to strive to live as I should, to submit to You each day. This is what Paul calls us to do in Colossians chapter 3.
"If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on the earth" (Colossians 3:1-2).
Daily, every moment of the day I need to be reminded that You, LORD God sanctified me and so because You did that You view me as holy and blameless. My feelings, my doubts, my failings do not affect that at all. I need only live as You view me - sanctified, holy and acceptable.
Ditat Deus - God Enriches!
No comments:
Post a Comment