Evidence of justification:
- Righteousness credited: Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness (Gen.15:6).
- Sins are forgiven: Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered (Ps.32:2).
- Peace with God: Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (Rom5:1)
- Access to God: Through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God (Rom.5:1).
- Saved from God’s wrath: Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! (Rom.5:9).
Applications of Justification:
- Justification demands Christ’s righteousness alone and not our own.(Acts 13:39; Phil.3:8-10; GaL.5:4-5).
- Justification orients Christian morality (Rom.12:1-2).
- Justification discourages licentiousness, when we consider the One who redeemed us and the cost of our redemption (Rom.6:1-2; 1:10; Rom.6:17-18).
- Justification assures that we now possess Eternal life. Every believer is assured of Eternal life (Rom.11:29; Jam.1:17; Rom.3:24; Jn.5:24; Jn.6:47; Jn.6:54).
Sanctification:
Sanctification means “to be set apart.” But, while justification is God’s act of forgiving your sins and counting you righteous through faith in Jesus Christ, Sanctification is the continual work of the Holy Spirit in the believer in order for you to conform to the image of Christ, who is God’s son.
In Regeneration our nature is changed; in Justification our standing is changed; in Adoption our position is changed; in Sanctification our character is changed.
The Meaning of Sanctification:
(Ps.4:3) “But we know that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for Himself.”
It is setting apart: (Heb.12:14):
1). By God, 2) for God, 3) from sin, 4) for a Holy life .
Paul says: (2 Tim.2:21): “Those who cleanse themselves from the latter will be instruments for special purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work.” (Ref. Ex.40:9-11; Lev.27:14-16).