“And lo a voice from heaven saying this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.”-Matthew 3:17
Repentance, the first work of grace in which a commitment to God is required from us. God bestows his grace and mercy on the repentant sinner; he pardons and forgives, but not without a commitment from you to leave the world and the devil from you. Only after you die out will he cleanse of all sins committed and by extension prepare your heart for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
It is plain that many Christians seek after the blessing of forgiveness thinking that this is the chief goal of the Christian faith; to “feel” forgiveness and pardon for our transgressions. When in fact the Bible says that the will of God is our sanctification. (1 Thess 4:3) It is Gods will that we be sanctified, holy, filled with the Holy Ghost, and conformed to the image of his dear Son. It is God’s will that we be called the sons of God, elevated by the merits of Christ to the same plain that Christ himself was. Not in the flesh but in the Spirit. Jesus came on earth just like you or I, and lived as a man, however he was no ordinary man; far from it. Time would fail us to tell of the: character, attributes, abilities, and importance of the divinity and humanity that was in Jesus Christ. Of all that could be said about this, I would like to just say for now: Jesus was the first sanctified man. What that means is he was from birth to death, without the nature to sin and walking with the Holy Ghost within. We needed Jesus so bad, because we needed a Savior. No one is sanctified from birth because of sin within, and not long we find a life polluted with sin without. We did not need Jesus so that we could be forgiven (though we need to be), we needed Jesus so that we could be like Jesus; sanctified. Christ was the first living example of the union between God and man since the fall of Adam. He exemplified this bond. Therefore, when he came out of the Jordan water and the Spirit descended like a dove to pronounce him the Son in whom God was well please. It solidified that which was already known by Jesus himself; that he was in perfect fellowship with the Father. That is what sanctification does for you. It brings you back into perfect fellowship with the Father, by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. You are forgiven and cleaned up so that you might be brought back into fellowship with God through the vehicle of the Holy Ghost, and when this happens, when the Holy Ghost comes into your heart to stay, you are then a son (or daughter) of God. You are adopted into his family and you are spiritually elevated to the same plain that Jesus was. How wonderful the works of God to the children of men! How great is the sum of them!
In order to obtain this wonderful gift of the Holy Ghost, the second blessing that makes holy; one must simply ask in faith. In repentance you have “died out” to your old self. The old plans, wishes, and ambitions. It is self that is the chief obstacle of a sinner, and therefore you must crucify that, you must die to it. Then and only then can you be forgiven and fit for the coming of the Holy Ghost. God wants to fill you with His Spirit, he wants to adopt you into His family, and he wants to sanctify you, but you have to ask in faith. You have to ask Him into your heart and in doing so be committed to His will always. It is an easy thing to ask for something when you can see it, and another thing entirely to ask in faith, because when you ask in faith you’re putting God ahead of yourself. You are recognizing that there is someone else that is going to take the throne and lead your life. This someone is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. He is the greatest and best thing a person can have on this earth. There is no greater joy, that the joy of knowing that the Holy Ghost dwells within, and you are in the family!
