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Sanctification
Sanctification
The story has been told of a do-it-yourselfer who
went into a hardware store early one morning and asked for a saw. The salesman
took a chain saw from the shelf and commented that it was their “newest model
with the latest in technology
guaranteed to cut ten cords of firewood a day.”
The customer thought that sounded pretty good
so he bought it on the spot.
The next day the customer returned
looking
somewhat exhausted. “Something must be wrong with this saw
” he moaned. “I
worked as hard as I could and only managed to cut three cords of wood. I used
to do four with my old-fashioned saw.” Looking confused
the salesman said
“Here
let me try it out back on some wood we keep there.” They went to the
woodpile
the salesman pulled the cord
and as the motor went Vvvrooommm
the
customer leaped back and exclaimed
“What’s that noise?”
The customer trying to saw wood without the power
of the saw to help him is very much like the believer who attempts to live the
Christian life without the daily empowerment of the Spirit. ──
Michael P. Green《Illustrations for Biblical Preaching》
Instant Sanctification
Chrlie Waters
former strong safety for the Dallas
Cowboys football team
tells a story about frank Howard
who had been Charlie’s
college coach. When Frank Howard was head coach at Clemson University
he went
out to practice one Monday before a big game with his first- and third-string
quarterbacks out with injuries. That left him with his second-
fourth-
and
fifth-string QB’s to play the coming Saturday. In the first five minutes of
practice
his starting quarterback (previously second-stringer) hurt his knee.
That elevated the fourth-stringer to first-string position and put the
fifth-stringer on the second team. About ten minutes later
that replacement QB
hurt his knee. Well
the fifth-stringer was now next in line for the first
team.
Coach Howard blew the whistle and gathered all the
players around him. He took the one remaining QB
put his arm around him
and
said in his gruff voice
“Son
do you believe in magic?” The QB said in a
halfhearted way
“Well
sort of.” Coach Howard looked at him
pointed his five
fingers at him like a magician
and said
“Poof! You are now a first-string
quarterback.”
Many people expect the Christian life to work in
the same manner—“Poof! All your problems are now solved!” ──
Michael P. Green《Illustrations for Biblical Preaching》
Process of Sanctification
God deals with some people like grapes. He seems to
take them in one bite
to take hold of their whole life all at once. Others are
dealt with more like onions. God seems to take them one layer at a time. ──
Michael P. Green《Illustrations for Biblical Preaching》
Process of Sanctification
Construction activity is going on as God is
building his church. You probably have seen the button given out at the Basic
Youth Conflicts Seminars that has the letters “PBPGINTWMY” on it. It is
designed
of course
to evoke the question
“What do all of those letters
mean?” The answer is: “Please Be Patient
God Is Not Through With Me Yet.” It
is true that we are “under construction.” ── Michael P. Green《Illustrations
for Biblical Preaching》
Process of Sanctification
God’s work of grace apparently moves downward
through our physical body. The last part of us to experience full salvation
seems to be our right foot! Actually
the way we act behind the wheel of a car
is often more indicative of our walk with God than the way we act praying in a
pew or smiling over a well-marked Bible. So
if we occasionally must speed
maybe it would help to sing loudly:
At 45 m.p.h.-“God Will Take Care of You”
At 55 m.p.h.-“Guide Me
O Thou Great
Jehovah”
At 65 m.p.h.-“Nearer
My God
to Thee”
At 75 m.p.h.-“Near
Still Nearer!”
At 85 m.p.h.-“This World Is Not My Home”
At 95 m.p.h.-“Lord
I’m Coming Home”
Over 100 m.p.h.-“Precious memories”
── Michael P. Green《Illustrations
for Biblical Preaching》
Process of Sanctification
The process of sanctification is something like the
springtime ritual of “scalping” a lawn. After months of inactivity and apparent
deadness the thick and tangled thatch of dead and decaying grass must be
violently removed to allow the fresh
new
green growth to appear.
So God uses the trials and problems of our
Christian life to strip away the worthless and self-defeating habits of our old
nature. This allows the glorious new nature
God’s own loving
holy character
to appear and triumph through us. ── Michael P. Green《Illustrations
for Biblical Preaching》
Process of Sanctification
The process of sanctification can be compared to an
iceberg
which is almost 90 percent under water. As the sun shines on the
iceberg
the exposed part melts
moving the lower part upward.
In the same way
we are usually aware of only a
small part of our sinfulness and need
which is all we can deal with at any one
time. However
as the light of God’s work in our lives changes us in the areas
we know about
we become aware of new areas needing the work of God. ──
Michael P. Green《Illustrations for Biblical Preaching》
Process of Sanctification
A little boy had a toothache and knew that if he
went to his mother
she would give him something to deaden the pain and let him
get to sleep that night. But he did not go to his mother
at least not until
the pain was very bad
because he knew she would also do something else-take
him to the dentist the next morning. He could not get what he wanted
immediate
relief from pain
without getting something more
having his tooth repaired.
And
since he knew dentists
he knew that something else would probably happen
to his mouth
because dentists tend to fiddle about with other teeth
those
that have not yet begun to ache.
Our Lord is like a dentist. People go to him to be
cured of some particular sin. Well
he will cure us of that sin
all right
but
he will not stop there. That may be all you asked for
but if you call him in
he is likely to give you the full treatment. ── Michael P. Green《Illustrations
for Biblical Preaching》