Sanctification - God's work and man's cooperation
Phillipians 2:12-13 12 So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.
With a healthy perspective on grace, we can come to Phillipians 2:12-13 and hear Paul reveal God's work in sanctification. When we respond to His call and begin to follow, the change to Christlikeness that we experience is sanctification. Clearly not a separate process from salvation, but a facet of the majestic diamond that is salvation.
It is God who author’s the work of sanctification. He is the originator of the process. Monergism is the doctrinal idea that God is the “first cause” of sanctification. He conceived of our transformed life before the garden. He shares no credit, and has no ghost writer in the work of making His children like Himself. The power behind sanctification is also God’s. He sources the power for all of sanctification, from the initial call of the saint, to the moment we walk into his presence. The perfection and power to produce sanctification live in Him alone! The sanctifying work of God, is “God’s alone”.
With great generosity, the Father shares this work us! He allows us to “put our oar” into the process. In fact, He commands that we express our will daily in the transforming process (Roman’s 12 & John 15) Synergism is a gift to us of partnership, producing something eternal both in us, and those we disciple. When we latch onto the mind and heart of Christ, and join Him we are “cooperating” and “partnering” with Him.
Just because we bring nothing to table, does not mean we have no part in the meal. Rather, the "for" at the beginning of verse 13 tells me that, rightly understood, the fact of God's monergistic work moves me to trust His command and expectation to partner with Him. It is a relational reality to partner with Him in sanctification!
We work beside Him, and marvel that our universal inadequacy produces maturity in Christ.
It is for this we labor and strive!
With a healthy perspective on grace, we can come to Phillipians 2:12-13 and hear Paul reveal God's work in sanctification. When we respond to His call and begin to follow, the change to Christlikeness that we experience is sanctification. Clearly not a separate process from salvation, but a facet of the majestic diamond that is salvation.
It is God who author’s the work of sanctification. He is the originator of the process. Monergism is the doctrinal idea that God is the “first cause” of sanctification. He conceived of our transformed life before the garden. He shares no credit, and has no ghost writer in the work of making His children like Himself. The power behind sanctification is also God’s. He sources the power for all of sanctification, from the initial call of the saint, to the moment we walk into his presence. The perfection and power to produce sanctification live in Him alone! The sanctifying work of God, is “God’s alone”.
With great generosity, the Father shares this work us! He allows us to “put our oar” into the process. In fact, He commands that we express our will daily in the transforming process (Roman’s 12 & John 15) Synergism is a gift to us of partnership, producing something eternal both in us, and those we disciple. When we latch onto the mind and heart of Christ, and join Him we are “cooperating” and “partnering” with Him.
Just because we bring nothing to table, does not mean we have no part in the meal. Rather, the "for" at the beginning of verse 13 tells me that, rightly understood, the fact of God's monergistic work moves me to trust His command and expectation to partner with Him. It is a relational reality to partner with Him in sanctification!
We work beside Him, and marvel that our universal inadequacy produces maturity in Christ.
It is for this we labor and strive!
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