AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |
Back to Blog
![]() ![]() Greg points out several problems with this view: They said we do not need Purgatory (or indulgences), rather we are made perfect and compatible with the kingdom of God the instant we die. The reformers Luther and Calvin rightly got rid of that, and instead came up with a new view, the Zap doctrine. The early church abused this practice and basically extorted huge sums of money from believers. ![]() The concept of Purgatory in past centuries was also wrapped up in practices of Indulgences, the exchange of money for reducing one’s time in Purgatory. Luther and Calvin thought this teaching contradicted the New Testament teaching that Jesus atones for our sins. The traditional teaching is that you go to Purgatory to “work off” your sins and atone for them. They did not like the traditional Catholic doctrine of Purgatory. It is the standard protestant doctrine, it originates from Calvin and Luther. Or,Ģ) The process of Sanctification continuesġ: Greg refers to the first option as the “Zap” Doctrine. We need this in order to be compatible with haven and God’s true love.Īs for how exactly this gets completed, there are two possible options:ġ) When you die God makes you perfect instantly. So this points to the process of sanctification. We will know what Christ is like once we are like him. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.” Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God and so we are. We also see it in Hebrews 12:14 Make every effort (the Greek word means to very earnestly strive for) to live in peace with everyone and to be holy without holiness no one will see the Lord. ![]() This is made very clear in many places, such as Revelations 21:27 Gates of the heavenly city are always open but nothing unclean can enter. The first thing to understand is that this process must be completed before we can enter heaven. But what happens if you die before process of sanctification is complete? Even the apostle Paul said he was a work in progress. The process of sanctification during our lifetime IS under our control. The spirit is involved in this process, but the spirit does not actually do it for us, we play a significant part in it. Sanctification is the process by which this adjustment happens.ĭuring our lifetime, we are told over and over again YOU need to be transformed by the renewing of your mind, and put away sin. So our attitudes and behaviors need to become aligned somehow. We have a whole lifetime of habits and feelings and thought processes that need to catch up with our new reality. God grafts his DNA into us the moment we surrender our life to Christ.īut even though this change is real and instant, our hearts, minds and habits are not always brought into alignment with this new truth of who we are in Christ. Justification is not under our control, it happens entirely through grace. His love becomes our love, his joy becomes our joy, his standing with God becomes our standing with God. Justification happens instantly, in the moment that you surrender your life to Jesus. But think about it and give it consideration!Ĭhristians have always made a distinction between justification vs sanctification. But what exactly goes on there, before resurrection? Are we made perfect and pure enough to enter the kingdom instantly, or do we have to continue our growth and development?īefore we answer this, just know that this view that Greg presents in this sermon is not an official doctrine or anything like that, it’s just his educated opinion. In previous weeks we discussed the evidence that our consciousness persists in the interim stage between death and resurrection.
0 Comments
Read More
Leave a Reply. |