You should be sanctified. 1 Thessalonians 4:3, NIV
Think of your sanctification as a tug of war. Look at all the forces that are pulling against you—the power of habit, the weight of past memories, the power of temptation, the pull of the flesh, and the devil himself. All of these are pulling against you.
And here you are on the other end of the rope. What hope do you have of overcoming all the power that is pulling against you? Here’s your hope: “It is God’s will that you should be sanctified.” That means almighty God is pulling on the rope with you.
- God, who gives you his Holy Spirit. (1 Thes. 4:8)
- Greater is he who is in you than he who is in the world. (1 Jn. 4:4, KJV)
- If God be for us, who can be against us? (Rom. 8:31, KJV)
Christ shed His blood for you. But He also offers His hand to you. He puts strength and victory within your reach. There is forgiveness for yesterday, strength for today, and hope for tomorrow.
There is no sin that you cannot overcome in the strength of God’s Spirit. That’s the promise of the gospel. So whatever your failure in the past, God invites you to put your trust in Christ and commit yourself to pursue holiness today.
Since God is pulling on the rope with you, does that mean you can stop pulling? Why or why not?
