In this talk from Louie Giglio, we learn that sanctification is an ongoing process in which we immerse ourselves in the Word, and our lives are transformed as a result. Our focus shouldn’t be on getting to heaven; it should be on growing in our spiritual maturity until the end when we hear God say, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”
Key Takeaway
We need to awaken to the wonder of saving grace in a way that produces a hunger for living lives that mature by grace—for the good of others and the glory of God.
It's not about being a "good" or a "bad" person. It's about being a spiritually dead or alive person. The sin we wrestle with doesn't make us bad—it makes us dead. But God's heart is that none would perish but that all would come to the truth.
Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, resulting in rescue, right standing, and renewal.
If you watched week one of the collection of talks, Jesus Saves, you were introduced to the seven words of salvation. Let's revisit those:
SALVATION - The redemption plan of God received.
DEPRAVITY - All are sinners.
WRATH - The judgment of a Holy God against all sin.
LOVE - God has mercy on His people.
ATONEMENT - Jesus dies as a payment for all sin.
FORGIVENESS - Our debt is canceled by the sacrifice of Jesus.
JUSTIFICATION - Christ’s righteousness is transferred to us.
SANCTIFICATION - Salvation is a process that transforms our lives.
Read Ephesians 2:1-10.
Here are four ways to understand these words:
1. Salvation has an “oh no” moment.
This is a general awareness that we are in a really bad spot.
Read Isaiah 6:1-8.
We are tea cups sitting underneath a giant wrecking ball hurtling toward us. We cannot move out of the way of the wrath that is to come.
2. Salvation has a “but wait” moment.
We must realize that God is a God of mercy.
Read Isaiah 53:4-6.
Most revivals start with people in the Church getting saved.
Jesus came into the story to be punished, and by His wounds, we are healed.
There were two cups on the night that Jesus died—in one cup, He was pouring out His blood; in the other cup, God had filled it with our iniquity.
You may ask, "If God can do anything, why didn’t He just move the table?" Why not let the teacup move out of the way from the wrecking ball? Because we want justice, and God is a God of justice. He is a just God who wants to justify us.
Read 2 Corinthians 5:21 and Romans 3:21-26.
3. Salvation has a “no way” moment.
We must understand what Yahweh has done to exchange the guilty
for the innocent.
We might become the righteousness of God in Him.
4. Salvation has a “now what?” moment.
Read Ephesians 2:10 and Philippians 2:12-16.
God did it, and now we work it out.
Salvation is a process that begins the moment you place your faith in the person and work of Jesus and ends the moment you hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
We should focus on wanting to be spiritually alive, not on just getting to heaven. The aim is maturity. We are saved and being saved. (2 Corinthians 2:15)
For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.
Hebrews 10:14
The verb "hagiazó" primarily means to sanctify or make holy. It describes the process by which believers are made holy through the work of the Holy Spirit, aligning them with God's will and character.
We are both perfect and being perfected.
There is a birth, a moment of being saved. But there is also life and growth, which is evidence of being saved.
If your entire confidence in salvation is your effort—you're sunk.
If your main confidence in your salvation is in an event in the past—you’re on shaky ground.
If, in this very moment, you see the fruit of your faith resulting in you becoming more like Jesus—you are on solid ground.
Maybe in this process, you're reminded of the thief on the cross who put his faith in Jesus on his deathbed. He didn’t know anything about soteriology. You can call on Jesus to save you but know nothing about the doctrine of salvation, and be saved. But this is not the norm.
If you get saved and wake up to live another day, the entire thrust of the New Testament is about you becoming more like Jesus.
Every salvation text ends in sanctification.
Read Titus 3:3-8 and John 3:16-21.
So, if sanctification (holy lives) is the goal, how are we sanctified? How do we work out our salvation?
1. We immerse ourselves in the Word.
Read Ephesians 5:25-27 and John 17:13-19.
We immerse ourselves in the Word not just to encourage, lead, or teach us—but to shape us.
2. We weave ourselves into godly community.
Read Proverbs 27:17 and Ephesians 3:14-19.
You will be conformed to the closest five people in your life.
3. We persevere through trial and training.
Read James 1:2-4 and Romans 8:28-30.
Conforming to the image of Christ is not a gentle process.
Michelangelo reminds us of this, saying that he saw the angel in the marble and carved him until he set him free.
4. Surrendered in worship.
Read Psalm 115:8.
Serving. Giving. Beholding. Sharing.
Whoever or whatever we worship is who we become.
Salvation is God’s gift to you. Surrender to the process of sanctification is your gift to God.
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"The primary thing we should be thinking when we immerse ourselves in this Word is 'shape me.'"
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Louie Giglio
Discussion Questions
"God's heart is that none would perish but that all would come to the truth." How does this statement impact your perception of God and salvation?
How does understanding sin as spiritual death rather than just putting sin into the terms of "bad" or "good" change the way we view salvation?
What does it mean to be saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone? How does this challenge common misconceptions about salvation?
Which of the seven words of salvation stands out to you the most, and why?
How does Isaiah 6:1-8 help us grasp the seriousness of our spiritual condition?
Why is it important to recognize both God’s wrath and His mercy in the process of salvation?
What does it mean to “work out” our salvation, as described in Philippians 2:12-16? How does this relate to the idea that salvation is both a moment and a process?
In what ways do trials and hardships shape us into the image of Christ? How have you seen this in your own life?
How can immersing ourselves in the Word, being in godly community, and persevering through trials contribute to our sanctification?
What does it look like to live a life surrendered in worship, and how does this deepen our relationship with God?
Scripture References
1.As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2.in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3.All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh2:3 In contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit. and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. 4.But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5.made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6.And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7.in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8.For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9.not by works, so that no one can boast. 10.For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
1.In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2.Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3.And they were calling to one another:“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty;the whole earth is full of his glory.”4.At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.5.“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”6.Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7.With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”8.Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”
21.God made him who had no sin to be sin5:21 Or be a sin offering for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
4.Surely he took up our painand bore our suffering,yet we considered him punished by God,stricken by him, and afflicted.5.But he was pierced for our transgressions,he was crushed for our iniquities;the punishment that brought us peace was on him,and by his wounds we are healed.6.We all, like sheep, have gone astray,each of us has turned to our own way;and the Lord has laid on himthe iniquity of us all.
21.But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22.This righteousness is given through faith in3:22 Or through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23.for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24.and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25.God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement,3:25 The Greek for sacrifice of atonement refers to the atonement cover on the ark of the covenant (see Lev. 16:15,16). through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— 26.he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.
10.For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
12.Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13.for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.14.Do everything without grumbling or arguing, 15.so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.”2:15 Deut. 32:5 Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky 16.as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.
14.For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.
3.At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 4.But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5.he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6.whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7.so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. 8.This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.
16.For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17.For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18.Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19.This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20.Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21.But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.
25.Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26.to make her holy, cleansing5:26 Or having cleansed her by the washing with water through the word, 27.and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.
13.“I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them.14.I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.15.My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.16.They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.17.Sanctify them by17:17 Or them to live in accordance withthe truth; your word is truth.18.As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.19.For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.
17.As iron sharpens iron,so one person sharpens another.
14.For this reason I kneel before the Father, 15.from whom every family3:15 The Greek for family (patria) is derived from the Greek for father (pater). in heaven and on earth derives its name. 16.I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17.so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18.may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19.and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
2.Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,1:2 The Greek word for brothers and sisters (adelphoi) refers here to believers, both men and women, as part of God’s family; also in verses 16 and 19; and in 2:1, 5, 14; 3:10, 12; 4:11; 5:7, 9, 10, 12, 19. whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3.because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4.Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
28.And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who8:28 Or that all things work together for good to those who love God, who; or that in all things God works together with those who love him to bring about what is good—with those who have been called according to his purpose. 29.For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30.And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
8.Those who make them will be like them,and so will all who trust in them.
