GLORIFICATION: THE BLESSED STATE
The Baptist Faith & Message • Sermon • Submitted
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· 10 viewsA study of the Baptist Faith & Message's treatment on glorification with particular attention to practical uses for the Church today
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GLORIFICATION: THE BLESSED STATE
GLORIFICATION: THE BLESSED STATE
We come to the last facet of salvation from our examination of the Baptist Faith & Message. We have looked through some amazing passages of Scripture, observed their uses for the church, and glorified our gracious Triune God for saving us.
We come to the end of our study of salvation with the focus on glorification. The BF&M declares,
Glorification is the culmination of salvation and is the final blessed and abiding state of the redeemed.
Before we move on, have you ever considered how knowing the end of something helps you make it through the task? For example, Hannah recently gave birth to our fourth child. While in labor, she would regularly say she couldn’t press on. However, knowing the end result of holding our precious son, Hannah continued to push through (no pun intended). Or, think about an intense workout. You know that the end of the race is nearing and so you can push through the pain. We could list numerous examples of this, but suffice it to say knowing the end of something helps us endure.
As we look at salvation, we must remember that, from God’s eyes, He sees Christ, not us. Yet, as human beings, we are bound within time and space. Salvation is not progressive, yet it also seems to have a linear aspect. Consider the beginning moment of our salvation in regeneration. We are enabled to believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ, to repent of our sins and enjoy justification.
In justification we are fully acquitted of all our sins and the righteous of Christ is imputed to us. Then, as we live life in this fallen world, we are given the task of becoming more like Jesus Christ through this process called sanctification.
Though we experience frequent failures, we are given the biblical hope of full change. This is the end in sight, so to speak. We know, that is, it is a biblical fact, that we will be like Christ. We will be changed, we will be glorified as our resurrected Lord Jesus was and is glorified. So we endure the difficulties of life. We press on through our failures. We are encouraged to progress when, through the grace of God, we enjoy success.
Our study should be shorter than rest, but it will be a soul-nourishing study nevertheless.
I. THE CULMINATION OF SALVATION—GLORIFICATION- 1 John 3:2; Philippians 1:6
I. THE CULMINATION OF SALVATION—GLORIFICATION- 1 John 3:2; Philippians 1:6
Glorification is the culmination of salvation...
The first part of the BF&M’s treatment of Glorification is that it is the culmination of salvation. Our two verses show the end goal that will be realized.
Our opening passage of Scripture teaches this was well. Consider the goal to which believers are predestined. To be conformed to the image of His Son, Jesus Christ.
The word conformed is the idea of being placed into a mould. Like Playdough moulds are used to make a mass of dough into a specific object, God uses our lives (sanctification) to mould us to the image of His Son. And though this life will never fully realize this Christlikeness, in glorification we will be like Jesus. We will be made like Him. We will be placed into the mould and emerge like our Savior.
This work began, as Paul mentions from the passage in Philippians at a point of time. But this salvation is holistic and will be completed as the culmination of our salvation.
We will discuss why this should provide a deep encouragement toward the end of our time, but for now I want to note several key aspects to remember.
A. Glorification is the work of the Triune God- Phil. 1:6
A. Glorification is the work of the Triune God- Phil. 1:6
With every aspect of our salvation we are reminded of how hopeless we are apart from the work of God. I have heard it said that if our salvation depended upon us we would never be saved. But God, in His rich in His mercy, saved us. Ephesians 2:4-5 discusses the fact that God made us alive. It is His work, not ours, and glorification, this culmination of salvation, is His work, not ours. Just as Playdough is powerless to push itself into the mould, so too believers are simply clumps of dough being shaped by the hands of the Triune God.
B. Glorification is the realization of the process of sanctification- Rom. 8:28-29
B. Glorification is the realization of the process of sanctification- Rom. 8:28-29
But a second point we must consider is that glorification is the realization of the process of sanctification. We discussed sanctification in detail last week, so you can go back and watch that. However, we know the purpose of sanctification is to be like Christ, and this will be realized through glorification. God glorified His children to be like Jesus Christ. Using our analogy of Playdough again, the dough is placed into the mould and pushed and prodded until it becomes like the mould. The process is completed.
C. Glorification is the renewal of our physical bodies- Phil. 3:20-21
C. Glorification is the renewal of our physical bodies- Phil. 3:20-21
The final part is of glorification is that our physical bodies will experience transformation. Now, as we age our bodies begin to decay. Our strength begins to wane, our minds do not remember things quite as easily as they did. We long for the day when our bodies receive the transformation into the same glorified bodies that our Lord Jesus enjoys. This is what Paul discusses in 1 Corinthians 15:35-58.
II. THE BLESSED STATE OF SALVATION- Revelation 21:1-4; 22:1-5
II. THE BLESSED STATE OF SALVATION- Revelation 21:1-4; 22:1-5
the final blessed and abiding state of the redeemed.
The last phrase concerning glorification deals with the happiness (utter bliss) and eternal state of believers. This is one of the most wonderful aspects of the salvation. What I would like to do is look at these two parts and then one more unspoken point that provides the true blessedness.
A. The blessedness of the state—complete perfection and freedom from the fallen world- Rev. 21:4
A. The blessedness of the state—complete perfection and freedom from the fallen world- Rev. 21:4
One of the wonders of glorification is that we will enjoy complete perfection and freedom from the fallen world. That is exactly the point in Revelation 21:3-4; Romans 8:18-25
We are free from the sadness of life in a fallen world.
Glorification includes the freedom of the sadness of life in a fallen world. Imagine the entire being remade as it was before the fall (Rev. 21:1). No more disasters, no more loss of food, no more animals killing each other.
Imagine a life like that. It is blessed beyond anything we can imagine. But there is more!
2. We are free from the decay and death of life in a fallen world.
“Death will not exist anymore.” That is what the Scriptures are saying. The Scriptures teach us that God will abolish death (1 Cor. 15:54-58) This blessed state provides the perfect world completely free from decay and death. Our bodies will not experience the same decay we all are presently undergoing.
B. The eternality of the of the state— “they will reign forever and ever” (Rev. 22:1-5)
B. The eternality of the of the state— “they will reign forever and ever” (Rev. 22:1-5)
Oh, brothers and sisters, this blessedness will last forever! It is an abiding state, a state from which no one will ever be removed.