1 Corinthians 6:11
“And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”
There is something so hopeful about this verse. The Apostle Paul reminds believers in Corinth that who they were is not who they are now. Through Jesus Christ, they had been washed. They had been sanctified. They had been justified. That is the beauty of salvation.
Scripture teaches that anyone can enter the Kingdom of God when they repent of their sins and place their faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Salvation is not earned. It's received. It's a gift. And what a gift it is. To be saved by grace. To be rescued by mercy. To know that eternal life is not something we earn, but something God gives through His Son. Through the sacrifice of Jesus, the sinner is forgiven, cleansed, and brought into right standing with God. He or she becomes a child of God.
But the Christian walk does not stop there.
After salvation, the lifelong process of sanctification begins. This is the part of the journey where God continues His work in the life of the believer. It’s the shaping, correcting, refining, and maturing work of the Holy Spirit. It’s where God teaches His children how to live in a way that reflects His only begotten Son, Jesus.
One definition of sanctification that stood out to me in my studies is: Sanctification is the ongoing supernatural work of God to rescue justified sinners from the disease of sin and to conform them into the image of His Son—holy, Christlike, and empowered to do good works. — Lexham Survey of Theology
That definition is powerful because it reminds us that sanctification is not something we accomplish in our own strength. It is not a self-improvement project. It's the work of God. Yes, we must yield. Yes, we must obey. But it is God Himself who is at work in us, patiently conforming us into the image of Christ.
I also appreciate the phrase “justified sinners.” It reminds us that saved people still need God to work on them. Accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior does not mean a person never struggles again. It does not mean every habit disappears overnight or every thought instantly lines up with the will of God. It means that the person now belongs to God, and the Holy Spirit is faithfully at work within them.
That truth should also affect the way we minister to others.
When we evangelize, our role is not to beat up unjustified sinners because of what they do. The world is already broken. People are already burdened. Our responsibility is to point them to Jesus Christ. He is the One who saves. He is the One who washes. And once a person truly belongs to Him, the Holy Spirit begins the sanctifying work that only God can do.
This should give us both humility and hope.
Humility, because none of us arrived where we are by our own goodness. Hope, because God does not save people and then leave them to themselves. He continues His work in them. Day by day, trial by trial, lesson by lesson, He is making them more like Jesus.
Sanctification is not always comfortable, but it's necessary. It's evidence that God is still working. And for every believer, that is good news.
Peace & Blessing!
Yetta N.A.
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Don’t quit in ’26.
Not because the road will be easy,
but because God is faithful even when the journey is hard.
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Keep Walking Towards the Cross. DON’T GIVE UP!
Until the next time, remember Jesus loves you
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