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SANCTIFICATION

"Not every on that says to Me, LORD, LORD shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doeth the will of My Father [Matthew 7:21] and what is the will of the Father?  Even our sanctification [1. Thess.4:3] which is what? Holiness, character building.

"By beholding we become changed; and as we meditate upon the perfections of the divine Model, we shall desire to become wholly transformed, and renewed in the image of His purity.  It is by faith in the Son of GOD that transformation takes place [Rom.12:1] in the character, and the child of wrath becomes the child of GOD. He passes from death to life; he becomes spiritual and discerns spiritual things.

The wisdom of GOD enlightens his mind, and he beholds wondrous things out of His law. As a man is converted by the truth, the work of transformation of character goes on. He has an increased measure of understanding.  In becoming a man of obedience to GOD, he has the mind of CHRIST, and the will of GOD becomes his will.---1SM 338

COUNTERFEIT SANCTIFICATION

He that says, I know Him, and keeps not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth [the true JESUS] is not in him.....1.John 2:4,5.

The sanctification now gaining prominence in the religious world carries with it a spirit of sef-exaltation and a disregard for the law of GOD that mark it as foreign to the religion of the Bible.

Its advocates teach that sanctification is an instantaneous work, by which, through faith alone, they attain to perfect holiness.  "Only believe," they say and the blessing is yours."  No further effort on the part of the receiver is supposed to be required.

At the same time they deny the authority of the law of GOD, urging that they are released from obligation to keep the commandments.  But is it possible for men to be holy, in accord with the _will and character of GOD, without coming into harmony with the principles which are an expression of His nature and will?

                 The desire for an easy religion that requires no striving, no self-denial, no divorce from the follies of the world, has made the doctrine of faith, and faith only, a popular doctrine; but what saith the word of GOD?  Says the apostle James: "What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he has faith, and have not works?  Can faith save him?...Wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?

Rolf Vaessen

David Cloud [Baptist] Newsletter, Monday 16 January, 2006.

This confusion is a reflection of Lewis's heretical stand on the atonement. He said, "The central Christian belief is that Christ's death has SOMEHOW put us right with God and given us a fresh start.

Theories as to how it did this are another matter. ... Any theories we build up as to how Christ's death did all of this are, in my view, quite secondary..." (Mere Christianity, HarperSanFrancisco edition, 2001, pp. 54, 55, 56). This is heresy. God has revealed exactly what Christ did and what the atonement means. It is not a matter of theorizing or believing one "formula" over against another. The Bible says our salvation is a matter of a propitiation, a ransom, whereby our sins were washed away by Christ's bloody death, which was offered as a payment to satisfy God's holy Law.

Through Christ's blood we have eternal redemption. "Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us" (Heb.

9:12).

This is not a theory or a formula. It is the Word of God, and if one does not like it or believe it, he cannot be saved.

In Mere Christianity, Lewis claims that "the Christ-life" is spread to men through baptism, belief, and the Lord's Supper. This is a false gospel of faith plus works. He says, "There are three things that spread the Christ-life to us: baptism, belief, and that mysterious action which different Christians call by different names--Holy Communion, the Mass, the Lord's Supper. ... I am not saying anything about which of these things is the most essential. My Methodist friend would like me to say more about belief and less (in

proportion) about the other two. But I am not going into that" (Mere Christianity, p. 61). (Note that he includes the Catholic Mass in his list of the various names by which holy communion are known, failing to acknowledge to his readers that the Mass is an entirely different thing than the simple Lord's Supper of the New Testament.)

It is not a Methodist we should listen to but the Bible itself, and the Bible says that salvation is by the grace of Christ alone through faith in Christ alone without works, that works are important but they follow after salvation and are the product of salvation rather than the means of it. The difference between saying that salvation is by faith without works and that works follow and saying that salvation is by faith with works or faith plus works is the difference between a true gospel and a false one, the difference between heaven and hell. "Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness" (Rom. 4:3-4). "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them" (Eph. 2:8-10). "And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work"

(Rom. 11:6).

I have read several of C.S. Lewis's books and several biographies about him, and I have never seen a clear teaching on the new birth or a clear biblical testimony that he was born again. This should be cause for the deepest concern.

As for Aslan's resurrection, Lewis calls it "more magic."

Friends, I would urge you in the strongest way to beware of C.S. Lewis!

Lewis and of the deluded evangelical world that glorifies him.

[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, a listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. Our goal in this particular aspect of our ministry is not devotional but is TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list.

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We could not agree more with this newsletter.  Notice that it says that works come after salvation which is a free gift of GOD [Eph.2:8-10].  But evangelicals and fundamentalists take themselves the liberty of which work they accept and which commandments of GOD they obey. 

John Calvin’s insistence upon the divine sovereignty, and upon self-discipline, made “SANCTIFICATION” a question of evermore complete obedience to the Decalogue. [the 10 Commandments].---mb-soft.com/believe/text/sanctify.htm

True Sanctification is a Bible doctrine. The apostle Paul, in his letter to the Thessalonians church, declares: “This is the will of God, even your sanctification.” And he prays: “The very God of peace sanctify you wholly.”---1.Thess.4:3; 5:23.

The Bible clearly teaches what sanctification is and how it is attained. The Savior prayed for His disciples: “Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy Word is truth.”---John 17:17

And Paul teaches that believers are to be “sanctified” by the Holy Ghost.—Romans 15:16

What is the work of the Holy Spirit? JESUS told His disciples: “When He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth.”---John 16:13.

And the Psalmist says: “Thy law is the truth.”---Psalms 119:142. By the Word and the Spirit of truth are opened to men the great principles of righteousness [right doing] embodied in His law. And since the law of GOD is “holy, just, and good,” [Rom.7:14] and spiritual [v.14], a transcript of divine perfection, it follows that a character formed by obedience to that law will be holy.

                                                             Christ is a perfect example of such character. He says: “I have kept My Father’s commandments,” “I do always those things that please Him.”---John 10:15; 8:29. The followers of Christ are to become like Him-by the grace of GOD to form characters in harmony with His principles of His holy law. This is Bible sanctification. And this is meant when the apostle Paul says: “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.”---Philippians 2:12,13.

“I press towards the mark for the prize of the high calling of GOD in Christ Jesus.”---Philipppians 3:13,14.