When we are in Army / Navy / Airforce, there is a discipline that is expected from the soldiers, likewise there is discipline that is expected from our Christian life as we walk with God when we become christians.
In the process of making us righteous and pure, there is something that God expects us to do to grow in his path of purity and sanctifying us to his kingdom. Let’s look at the three Basics which we need to follow.
Regular Bible Meditation
The first step for us to Sanctification is to Meditate the word of God daily. The Bible gives us the reason why we need to Meditate the Bible, to sanctify and to make us clean to his holy path
Word cleans us - John 15:3 “You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.”, John 17:17 - “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.” - Reading the Bible is the basic step to cleansing us. Once you read the word, its sanctifies us with truth.
Four fold benefit leading to righteousness - 2 Timothy 3:16-17 “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”, the Word of God teaches us + It rebukes us as we mediate + it corrects our behaviour + It trains us with many examples / incidents of Bible leading to make us Righteous. This helps to keep away from temptations which we face in the world.
Strengthen our knowledge of God - Its a mystery not given to any one, we grow as we read more and more, As we keep on studying the Word, we grow in the knowledge of God which leads us to a walk in path that pleases him with fruits in every good work Colossians 1:10 - “so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,”
David’s secret of Holiness - Psalms 119:9-11, 15. - “How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word. I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways.”
David committed to stay in the path of Purity when he was young by living according to the word of God.
He sought the word with all his heart and stored them into his heart. When you read Psalms it reflects his heart for God
The Word protected him from the sins of God to make him more pure.
Vigilant Prayer
The Second step for us to Sanctification is to be Vigilant on our Prayers with God. E.M. Bounds, a lawyer by profession, was a man of Prayer. His books are classics on Prayer
“Between holiness and prayer, the absence of one is the absence of the other!”
Spirit is willing / Flesh is weak - As we Pray, the intent of our prayer is not sufficient, as our flesh is weak - we need help from father to fight the battles to sanctify us and make us pure. That’s why Jesus connected prayer and temptation — Matthew 26:41 “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.””, Good intentions of the disciples were not sufficient. They were at war between “willing spirit” and “weak flesh”. Same way lets examine weak areas of our flesh which is preventing us to make us holy in eyes of God (e.g., Your work schedule / Your life priorities / family issues etc..) surrender to God to help you with the weak areas of flesh.
Armour of God - Wear the whole armour (Ephesians 6:11 - “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.”) when you pray , you also get the armour of righteousness with “right hand and left hand” - 2 Corinthians 6:7 - “in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left;” to fight the world with his power to sanctify us.
Prayer sharpens all weapons — Ephesians 6:18 - “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.” as we pray it keeps our mind alert to the impurities of the world and keeps us to the path of personal sanctification.
Sanctification thru prayer - God says us to Pray without Ceasing, as we pray repeatedly for a cause the prayer also sanctifies us and takes us to the path of holiness. 1 Thessalonians 5:23 - “May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Periodic Self-examination
The third step for us to Sanctification is to do periodic self examination of ourself to lead to his path of purity.
Daily Confession - Hebrews 3:13 - “But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.” exhort daily ... deceitfulness of sin so that it does not harden, If you are born again - you need to wash your mind daily as it is the source for dirt to enter your body John 13:8 - ““… Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.””
Search / Test / Know - A classic prayer by David in Psalms 139:23-24 - “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
Search by using this sins list to see where you are wrong - Use sin lists:
7 Detestable sins in eyes of God - Proverbs 6:16-19 - “There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.”
Search to see if you have done this in your daily life or in the past to get to God’s sanctification path.
13 Sins from Heart (inside a man’s heart) - Mark 7:21-23 - “For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person.””
Search your heart to see if any of these stem from your heart, don’t try to justify yourself with excuses.
21 Sins from Mind - Romans 1:29-31 - “They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy.”
Search your mind if you get these kind of thoughts which come thru your mind as you are attached to the world
15 Sins of Flesh - these sins of our flesh when we give into the temptations of satan Galatians 5:19-21 - “The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
Examine your daily life to see where you are in this list to see how God can bring his sanctification to make you pure.
18 Sins in last days - As we are in the last days, people who live a life to the world will be filled with Sins - 2 Timothy 3:2-5 NIV “People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.”
Examine yourself if you are associated to any of these Sins. The word says “Have nothing to do with such people” Pray God to help you move away from these people.
Be specific! Don’t generalise your sins when you ask for confession with God. We commit a specific sin, but when we confess we generalize the sins without getting specific. Cite specific Sins to get the daily cleansing of what God is talking to you.
3. Self-examination questionnaires. Deal thoroughly with failures, We learn so much from our failures — more from failures than from victories! Ask your self
Why I failed?
Where I failed?
When I failed?
How I failed?
God will give you answers to these to help sanctify us and make us more pure..
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