In his sermon on the second London Baptist confession, Eric Bechler discusses sanctification as a transformative process that affects the whole person, yet remains imperfect in this life. He distinguishes between justification, sanctification, and glorification, explaining that while justification frees us from sin's penalty and glorification from its presence, sanctification frees us from its power. Sanctification is both definitive, changing our nature, and progressive, involving a lifelong struggle against sin. The sermon emphasizes that sanctification affects all aspects of a person—including intellect, emotions, will, body, soul, and spirit—drawing on various biblical references to support this. Despite the ongoing internal conflict between the flesh and the spirit, the process of sanctification is a journey towards holiness, strengthened by the Holy Spirit. The sermon encourages patience and perseverance in this journey, underscoring that God's love is not contingent on our progress, as we are already fully accepted in His family.

Our reading today from the second London Baptist confession again comes from chapter 13 today paragraph 2 This sanctification is throughout the whole man yet imperfect in this life Thereby, it is still some remnants of corruption in every part. Whence ariseth a continual and irreconcilable war, the flesh lusting against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh. This week we continue our focus on sanctification, but again since there can be some confusion between sanctification and justification and glorification, I want to share something I came across in a number of commentaries this week related to the effects of justification, sanctification, and glorification. First, justification delivers us from the penalty of sin. Paul reminds us there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, for the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ from the law of sin and death.

Romans 8, 1 and 2. Sanctification delivers us from the power of sin. For those who have been sanctified and set apart, sin will have no dominion over you since you are not under the law but under grace, Romans 6, 14. And lastly, glorification delivers from the presence of sin. After death, the believer can no longer sin.

From Revelation 21, 27, nothing unclean will ever enter heaven, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb's book of life. So justification delivers us from the penalty of sin, sanctification delivers us from the power of sin, and glorification delivers us from the presence of sin. I hope that helps. Last week I described two parts of sanctification, definitive and progressive, both exist and are scriptural. The point to catch is that definitive sanctification is not a matter of perfection, it's a matter of direction.

Definitive sanctification changes our nature. It breaks the reign of sin but does not free us from sinning. When the Holy Spirit regenerates us and gives us a new heart, our will is transformed and now we are inclined towards godly things. Now we want to draw closer to God and now we want to obey His commands. Because of this change, this new direction, We find ourselves in a constant conflict, a struggle between the sin remaining and the spirit.

This progressive sanctification is a lifelong struggle that is not complete until we die. In our paragraph today, there are two main points. First, sanctification is throughout the whole man. And second, sanctification is imperfect in this life. Thomas Watson states, sanctification is an extensive thing.

It spreads into the whole man. From 1st Thessalonians 523, the God of peace sanctify you holy. As original corruption has depraved all of our faculties, the whole head is sick, The whole heart is faint, no part sound, as if the whole mass of blood were corrupted. So sanctification goes over the whole soul. After the fall, there was ignorance in the mind, but in sanctification we are light in the Lord, Ephesians 5.8.

After the fall the will was depraved. There was not only impotence to good, but obstinacy. In sanctification there is a blessed pliableness in the will. It symbolizes and comports with the will of God. After the fall the affections were misplaced on wrong objects.

In sanctification they are turned into a sweet order in harmony. The grief placed on sin, the love on God, the joy on heaven. Thus sanctification spreads itself as far as original corruption. It goes over the whole soul. The God of peace sanctify you holy.

He is not a sanctified person who is good only in some part, but who is all over sanctified. Therefore in scripture grace is called a new man. Not a new eye, not a new tongue, but a new man. A good Christian though be he sanctified but in part yet in every part. Sanctification again is throughout the whole man because there are remnants of sin and corruption in every part of us.

John tells us if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us, 1 John 1, 8. And Paul reminds us of the consequence of that sin and corruption remaining in us. For the flesh lusteth against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh. And these are contrary, the one to the other, so that you cannot do the things you would. Galatians 5 17.

As long as there's still breath in us, sin remains dwelling within us, waging a war. But this fight, this This warring is not a single battle. It is a war over a lifetime and it is not finished until we die, until we are glorified when Christ transforms our lowly body to be like his glorious body. This process putting to death more and more the old man and striving more and more to holiness, is sanctification and it affects every part of us again. The intellect, the emotions, the will, the body, soul, and spirit.

It affects our intellect from Colossians 1.10. Walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him, bearing fruit in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God. It affects our emotions from 1 John 2.15. Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

It affects our will from Philippians 2 13, for it is God who works in you both to will and to work for his good pleasure. It affects our body from 1st Thessalonians 4, 3 & 4, for this is the will of God, your sanctification, that you abstain from sexual immorality, that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor. It affects our body and spirit. From 2nd Corinthians 7-1, since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God and it affects our spirit soul and body again from first Thessalonians 523 and the very God of peace sanctify you holy and I pray God your whole spirit, soul and body be preserved blameless until the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. We must strive to control ourselves in holiness and honor and praise God that we have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, yet our sanctification is still not perfect.

John Gill comments on 1st Thessalonians 523 where it says, the very God of peace sanctify you holy. Sanctify you holy are all of you as in the Arabic version manuscript, all of you perfectly as in the Syriac manuscript. These persons were sanctified by the Spirit of God, but not perfectly. The gospel was come to them in power and it had wrought effectually in them. And they were turned from idols to serve the living God and had true faith, hope, and love implanted in them, in which they were enabled to exercise in a very comfortable and commendable manner.

But yet this work of grace and sanctification begun in them was far from being perfect, nor is it in the best of saints. Again, our sanctification will not be completed in this life. Only when we die will we be made perfect, only then will we be glorified. There will no longer be any corruption in our members, any sin dwelling within us. We will finally be like Christ.

And Paul tells us The Lord Jesus Christ will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body. Philippians 3, 20 and 21. When he appears, we shall be like him because we shall see him as he is. 1 John 3, 2. Dr.

Sproul comments, the godly person does not have a casual understanding of the law of God. He meditates on it, he thinks about it, he studies it, and exposes himself to it. The ungodly person ignores the law of God and has a superficial religion, a religion of externals, not a religion that takes hold of the soul and of the heart and says, I'm going to live my life for God and I want to please him. Oh Lord, reveal what pleases you. And God says here is what pleases me.

Here is my law. And Jesus said if you love me you will keep my commandments. John 14-15. Well how is your sanctification progressing? Each day brings battles.

Some of those battles we win, some of those battles we don't. Just as Paul exhorted Timothy, we should fight the good fight. Sanctification though is a lifelong process towards holiness. It's a marathon but one that we're not running alone. We have the Holy Spirit in us.

Don't be discouraged when progress seems slow or even microscopic. Look for victories, even small ones. Maybe choosing patience this past week where normally you may have lost your temper. Or staying silent when Normally you would have responded with a sharp word or daily praying for a specific person or family within our church. God delights in our progress and meets our failures with grace, not with condemnation.

Remember we don't pursue holiness to make God love us. We pursue holiness because he already loves us. Our standing with God is secure. We've been declared just. We've been fully adopted into His family and are His cherished and fully accepted sons and daughters.

Praise God. Amen. You you