HOLY PROGRESS



Have you ever asked the question “Am I really saved?”  This question keeps many in constant turmoil. They ask, “Did I really mean it when I asked Jesus into my heart? Was I really sincere? Did I do it right? Did it take?” God’s not playing games with you, and he’s doesn’t want you to be plagued by doubt. The bottom line is this: If you invited Jesus into your life and asked him to forgive you of your sins, you’re saved. That’s it. That’s God’s promise not mine. Here is how to process the progress of your God given holiness.

Did you ever do the Sunday School project where you put the seed in a Styrofoam cup? After church you would take it home and on Monday expect to see a flower growing. But it took days before even just a bit of green would appear from the soil in the cup. It took patience to realize the beauty within.  It’s the same with the seed God has planted in your life. He has placed his life in you, but the seed has to grow and fully mature. It takes time, but it works. It can’t fail. “No one who abides in him sins…No one born of God will continue to sin because God’s seed remains in him; he can’t go on sinning because he has been born of God.” (1 John 3:6, 9 NASV)

For the Christ-follower it is vitally important to understand that there’s a difference between being saved and abiding in Jesus. You received salvation when you invited Jesus Christ to come into your heart and forgive you of your sin. It’s a one-time event.  It’s an act of God.  You receive it by faith. But that’s not where the God part of your life ends. It’s where it begins. You have been saved and are called to abide in Jesus.

What does abide in Jesus mean and how do you do it? Here’s what it means to abide in Jesus. It means acknowledging his presence in everything you do, and yielding to his leadership at every turn. It’s spiritual breathing. It’s receiving God’s presence in your life each day—each moment of the day. John says, “no one who lives in him keeps on sinning” because the seed that God has placed in your life will continue to grow, continue to mature, continue to blossom, until the image of Jesus Christ is fully developed in your life.

This is not an overnight process. In fact, John tells us when the process will be completely finished. He says in verse two of John chapter three that… “Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared yet what we shall be. We know that, when he appears, we shall be like him, because we shall see him just as he is.”

 When we see Jesus face to face in heaven that’s when we’ll attain perfection. Until then, our sanctification is a process – a progressive process that God guarantees will be successful, but a process that makes holy progress nonetheless. When you struggle with sin, it’s not a question of whether you’re in or out of heaven. It’s a question of whether you’re living each day in his presence. If you’ve asked Jesus Christ to come into your heart, your struggle with sin, then, is not the result of badness— it’s the result of awayness. You can’t live apart from Jesus. You’ll fall on your face every time you try. Do you want to experience transformation from sin? Then abide— live in him. Make it your habit everyday to acknowledge his presence in everything you do, and yield to his leadership at every turn.

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