Perfection vs. Progress

Sanctification is the life we live in between being saved as a Christian and being glorified with Christ after our death. Due to the sometimes painful and difficult nature of being sanctified Christians often focus on glorification and salvation and overlook the importance of sanctification.

Additionally some Christian teachers erroneously claim that perfection can be attained in this life.

This video clip was taken from the sermon 'The Rebel's Guide to Joy in Exhaustion' which can be found at http://www.marshillchurch.org/media/rebels-guide-to-joy/the-rebels-guide-to-j...

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• Jesus
• philippians
• bible
• perfection
• progress
• mars
• hill
• mark
• driscoll

[JoelRA22]

We are saved through grace but that grace makes us want to and do good works. Grace isn't an excuse to do nothing.

[promisedgrace]

@Virgilt Now that is a beautifully logical question. And the answer is as logical as the question. When we come to Christ and believe Him we become a new creation. "Being Sanctified" is the process that we begin to put on all that is our inheritance and live in the reality of who He has already made us to be. We go about being sanctified so that we walk in truth and the abundance of His life in us becomes our tangible experience -if not we walk in a lie that steals His life in us Jn 10:10

[promisedgrace]

@Virgiltobias Now that is a beautifully logical question. And the answer is as logical as the question. When we come to Christ and believe Him we become a new creation. "Being Sanctified" is the process that we begin to put on all that is our inheritance and live in the reality of who He has already made us to be. We go about being sanctified so that we walk in truth and the abundance of His life in us becomes our tangible experience -if not we walk in a lie that steals His life in us Jn 10:10

[promisedgrace]

@patty7beth The bible doesn't say to "strive" to be more like Jesus...it says "strive to enter His rest" (Heb 4:11). If we say that we receive salvation by grace through faith which I completely agree with then how I live my life is the same, no different. "Just as you received Him so walk in Him" (Col 2:6). Don't be foolish to think that it is any different...that any of our striving can make us like Jesus (Gal 3:1-3) I have been united with Him and we are one spirit (1Cor 6:17). grace to u

[patty7beth]

@promisedgrace He's not saying we work for salvation. He preaches salvation through faith and grace alone. He's talking about the work we do as we grow in Christ to become more like Jesus. Paul speaks clearly on this.

God continues to work with and in us - we do strive to be more like Jesus. Nothing to do with salvation.

[TheNatureBoyWooooo]

I would like to disagree that sanctification is "exhausting". Through human effort it is exhausting. I am being made aware of my sin more and more every day. And the more I am aware of my sin the more I am aware I cannot stop it. In that I realize that God must do it for me throught the work of the Father, The Son, and the Holy Spirit. It wasn't difficult for Gideon to win the battle. God stacked the odds so much against him, that he couldn't win. It had to be God and not Gideon's that won.

[GodLovesUs100]

@promisedgrace Well keep in mind we are told to work out our salvation with fear and trembling.That does not mean we can save ourselves, I agree it's all by God's grace and we could do nothing without him.But once we are born-again, we don't just sit back and kick up our feet, waiting for God to mature us.We must discipline ourselves, battle with the flesh, overcome the devil and the world, and keep our eyes on him.Meanwhile his grace enables us to do all these things :)

[promisedgrace]

This is terrible. God's grace by faith is all we need in "justification" and "glorification" but somehow we have to work hard by our effort to be "sanctified"...no wonder people are leaving the church because of this false doctrine. Salvation is by faith through grace too...

[opendtuning]

"Paul wrote the bible" "That's huge really" "You will want that on your resame" "What he has accomplished" now Mark Driscoll's guardian Angel is as nervous as can be.

[destine4hope]

The rest of Verse 12 of Philippians 3 says "I press on so that I may 'lay hold' of that for for which also I was laid hold of by Christ"

"Lay hold" seems to imply a possibility of becoming "perfect"

Verse 15 says "Let us therefore, 'as many as are perfect' have this attitude; and if in anything you have a different attitude God will reveal that also to you"

"As many as ARE perfect" seems to be talking about people who are among them that have the attitude of "pressing onward toward the goal"