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Disciplines of Devotion
34 Ethical Issues All Christians Should Know
What does the whole Bible teach us about which acts, attitudes, and personal character traits receive God’s approval, and which do not?
Articles on Sanctification
130 results found
10 Key Bible Verses on Sanctification
For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.
The Better Question Believers Should Ask about God’s Will
For the believer wanting to know God’s will for her life, the first question to pose is not “What should I do?” but “Who should I be?”
10 Things You Should Know about Union with Christ
In the New Testament we find literally hundreds of references to the believer’s union with Christ.
9 Wrong Ways to Read the Bible (And One Better Way)
The Bible is good news for us. Here are nine common but wrong ways to read the Bible, followed by the right way.
3 Ways Christians Are Sanctified
There are three primary agents in the character formation or sanctification of a Christian—ways that God uses to change us.
Practically, How Do We Abide in Jesus?
Jesus commands that we go on repenting, coming, believing, loving, and listening. The transformation of repentance continues. Coming to Jesus again and again continues.
10 Things You Should Know about God’s Communicable Attributes
God's communicable attributes show us how to reflect God as Christ did.
2 Reasons Christians Lose Their Joy (And What to Do about It)
How did you become a Christian? Was it after you got your life sorted out?
10 Things You Should Know about Sanctification
Margaret Elizabeth Köstenberger
Though work remains to be done in terms of our spiritual growth, the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit involves placing us in a spiritual position of having been cleansed from sin.
Why We Worship Idols Instead of God
God’s agenda for our lives is for us to be holy, just as he is holy. This holiness is the fruit of what we think or trust and what we desire or worship.
Losing your temper means you’ve placed anger in the saddle and you are now galloping along at its command.
If I’m Saved by Grace, Why Fight Sin?
Having been justified, we are now being sanctified. And God’s sanctifying grace makes continuing in sin—willfully and unrepentantly—illogical, inappropriate, and ultimately impossible.
An Open Letter to Those Frustrated by Their Progress in Sanctification
A professional counselor encourages believers who are experiencing doubt that God is still with them and working in their lives.
Waiting on the Lord Is Not a Waste
You’re not doing anything, but God is. Waiting is one of the greatest applications of the Christian faith.
10 Things You Should Know about Your Conscience
J. D. Crowley, Andrew David Naselli
Thankfully, we’re not left to popular perception in regard to conscience. We have the Bible to teach us what conscience is and is not. Let's lay out some introductory principles about conscience.
Christian, What Are You Watching?
For most Americans, media is the omnipresent backdrop of life. We generally give no more thought to it than we do to the air we breathe. But give thought to it we must.
Rooted in God’s Love: A 9-Day Devotional for Women
Are you tired, anxious, frustrated, or overwhelmed with life’s demands? Start a 9-day online devotional aimed at helping you cultivate the fruit of the Spirit.
What God Starts, He Always Finishes
As New Testament passages abundantly emphasize, God is faithful to sustain and establish us in our relationship with Jesus.
You Become Like What You “Like”
Social media has become the new PR firm of the brand Self, and we check our feeds compulsively and find it nearly impossible to turn away from looking at—and loving—our “second self.”
How to Pray When You’re Feeling Apathetic about Your Faith
If we take apathy seriously, as does God, we will be better equipped to recognize it when it threatens, avoid it, or at least escape from it earlier.
How to Grow in the Fear of the Lord
Since the fear of God is a matter of the heart’s deepest inclinations, how you think you can cultivate it will depend on how you think our hearts work.
Before we can fight our sin, we must know what sins are currently present in our lives
How the Love of God Helps Us Walk in Holiness
The testimony of Scripture is clear: if we want to walk in the way of holiness, the love of God is indispensable to our progress.
The Problem with the Self-Help Movement
Sanctification demonstrates that right actions work their way out from the inside and not the other way around.
Sanctification: An Often Painfully Slow Process
We have sin patterns that we battle for years, and we can have the sense that we're getting any better at this re-imaging thing.
In Sanctification, Where You’re Going Is More Important Than Where You Are
When it comes to sanctification, it’s more important where you’re going than where you are. Direction matters more than position.
3 Barriers to Spiritual Growth Faced by Teens Today
Christian teenagers attempting to grow in godliness tend to face a series of unique challenges.
How to Pray in Times of Physical Pain
Father in heaven, in spite of all our uncertainties and all our embattled anxieties and all our discomfort, we say, great is the Lord and greatly to be praised.
Do We Play Any Role in Our Sanctification?
God is the one who enables us to do the good works he has called us to do.
An Open Letter to Those Apathetic about Their Sanctification
A professional counselor speaks to Christian who are unmotivated to continually seek God and serve others.
Viewing the Christian Story through the Lens of Our Suffering
Suffering disrupts our lives, seeming to violate the way life should be. This can make us desperate to know why we are suffering.
3 Means God Uses to Change Us (and 3 Ways We Change)
There are three primary agents in the character formation or sanctification of a Christian. Within these three categories come several other means that God uses to change Christians.
Sanctification is a process that lasts a lifetime—it follows no formula or schedule. God's grace sustains us to grow as we simply point in the right direction.
Mentoring is a discipleship relationship that focuses on equipping younger believers for the work of ministry so that they grow in maturity and unity in the faith with the ultimate goal of glorifying God.
Why You May Want to Take a Silent Retreat after Christmas
You may not know how badly you needed silence and solitude until you get to know them.
5 Questions about Sanctification
Knowing that you are a beloved child does not leave you complacent and self-satisfied.
10 Things You Should Know about the J-Curve
Like the letter “J,” Jesus’s life descends through his incarnation and then death, and then upward into his resurrection and exaltation.
Growth in Christ Is Not Just Personal Improvement
Jesus is not a concept. Not an ideal. Not a force. Growing in Christ is a relational, not a formulaic, experience. Who then is this person?
J. I. Packer’s Thoughts on Holiness
Repentance begins with a recognition of the multitude of ways in which our thinking and attitude and belief system are contrary to what is revealed in Scripture.
How God Uses Friction to Shape Us
God employs friction to shape us into his Son’s likeness. Scripture reflects on this in various places.
What Changed after C. S. Lewis Came to Christ?
He not only knew about God with his reason but also met God with his emotions. He experienced Joy. And God changed him.
Godly growth and change happens through 5 influences and circumstances: God, Scripture, wise people, suffering, and you.
The glorious good news of Jesus is that you and I can change. Part of the problem is we often try to change in the wrong way.
How God Changes Hearts for His Glory
As Spurgeon saw it, the new birth of a Christian has to be a work of pure divine grace: the sinful human heart is impotent, unwilling, and wholly unworthy.
Our spiritual appetites need a recalibration so that we find pleasure in Christ instead of in the world’s offerings. The solution isn’t to pursue what this world can offer but to seek what truly nourishes.
Do You Struggle to Discern God’s Will?
Thinking about the will of God is asking a secondary question when there’s a primary question that we need to ask first.
Finding Your Identity in Christ
We need to know that we are not in charge and we need to know how to submit to God as the one who is in charge.
How Does Sanctification Differ from Justification?
Justification and sanctification, though related, are different gifts. The most serious, and potentially damning, errors surface when the two are not carefully distinguished.
The object of our love can always be detected in our behavior.
Podcast: The Story Behind ‘Desiring God’ (John Piper)
John Piper looks back on almost 40 years since his book Desiring God was published and the ministry it has served.
How God Saved David Powlison from Destroying Himself
Counselor David Powlison shares his testimony of how God softened his heart and brought him to repentance and faith.
How Do We Grow in Holiness? (Part 1)
Holiness isn’t a mysterious spiritual state that only an elite few can reach. It’s more than an emotion, or a resolution, or an event.
Tim Keller Viewed Evangelism and Justice as Biblically Inseparable
Operating as if justification has little to do with justice is like operating as if faith has little to do with deeds.
The Hope of Renewal for the Sexually Broken
Is darkened sexuality even the prime battleground today? Where is today’s choice point? The current struggle is the place where the Vinedresser is pruning.
Hope for When Sanctification Feels Slow
You’re a new creation. So sanctification is a reality, affected by how obedient and willing we really are.
What Freedom from Sin Looks Like in This Life
It’s natural to feel frustrated that you’re still staring down the same habits of sin in your life.
Our Christian Terminology Is Built on the Old Testament
When it comes to the nuts and bolts of the gospel, the NT often adopts essential concepts/words from the OT, particularly the Greek version.
A Brief Word to J. I. Packer on His 90th Birthday
As I reflect on who J. I. Packer is and what he has meant to me personally, several things come quickly to mind.
What Does It Look Like to “Put On” Humility?
Colossians 3 to communicate the all-encompassing nature of our new identities: we should dress ourselves in these virtues in the same way we cover ourselves with physical garments.
Luther's Two Theses about What a Christian Is
A Christian is a free lord of everything and subject to no one. A Christian is a willing servant of everything and subject to everyone.
We live with a God who has many, many, many ways of meeting us, and it's good to become aware of them all.
Are You Frustrated by Others’ Spiritual Immaturity?
The Holy Spirit guarantees that he is at work. He will continue to be at work until it is completed on the day of Christ Jesus.
Is it possible you look at personal holiness like I look at camping? It’s fine for other people.
A Simple Way to Think about Sanctification
Walking with and becoming like our Savior are two important dimensions of sanctification.
Podcast: Why Is Obeying God So Simple and Yet So Incredibly Hard? (David Gibson)
David Gibson talks about our struggle with obeying God's word and what that reveals about our sinful hearts, our theology, and our understanding of the Christian life.
Why Godly Discipline Is about Learning to Fail Better
We're sinners and are not striving for perfection, but aiming to please God.
The problem with all of our desires to change is that they’re not ambitious enough.
Francis Chan: "Knowledge is essential, but not sufficient."
Your brilliance is worthless if you’re not building up your brother—and even worse if you’re destroying him with your knowledge.
How Do We Grow in Holiness? (Part 2)
Tim Chester presents seven elements of a reinforced faith.
Experiencing conviction over sin should actually encourage rather than condemn us, because it is evidence of being alive in Christ.
Mundane with the Chance of Miraculous
The dirty dishes are not my biggest problem in life, even though it seems like they are. The biggest problem in my life and yours is sin.
What Does It Look Like to “Put On” Patience?
Patience is a virtue, and one Paul urges us to pursue: “Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience” (Col. 3:12).
Hope sometimes doesn’t feel like power; it feels like foolishness. High hopes can lead to horrible hopelessness. The Bible has something to say about that feeling.
Before we address fighting sin, it is worthwhile to point out that the victory over sin has already been won in Christ.
The true Christian is called to be a soldier, and must behave as such from the day of his conversion to the day of his death.
The Danger of Wrongful Comparison
The knowledge of God and the knowledge of self always go hand in hand. There is no true knowledge of self apart from the knowledge of God.
Why Is Waiting on God So Important Yet So Difficult?
Waiting on God is important and it’s hard because it surfaces our lack of control. Whether it’s a delay or a lack of information or uncertainty, waiting puts us into a gap moment.
Is the Fruit of the Spirit More Like a Pie or a Tree?
Rather than picturing the Spirit’s fruit as a homemade pie that depends on its ingredients, we are to picture it as a tree. A fruitful tree is dependent on external factors to survive and thrive.
How (and How Not) to Think about Religion
I cannot speak about religion without lamenting that among so many who claim to be religious, so few understand what it means.
Podcast: Sinclair Ferguson on Living a Life Worthy of the Gospel (Sinclair Ferguson)
Sinclair Ferguson walks through why living lives worthy of the gospel is a biblical exhortation that all Christians must take seriously and one that doesn't inevitably lead to the sin of legalism.
The Journey of Following Jesus Isn’t Always Smooth
Dying and rising is the pattern not only of Jesus’s life, but of our lives—of our everyday moments.
We live in an angry world, and most of it is obviously destructive. But anger is not intrinsically evil, essentially evil, or necessarily evil.
Why Pursuing Sanctification Is More Than Just Remembering Justification
There are many truths in Scripture that speak to the process of sanctification.
Your Words Will Change the World Today
Do you ever consciously and deliberately set your words to work, sending them off into the world and into someone else’s life to do them good?
Spiritual warfare made the Puritans what they were. They accepted conflict as their calling, seeing themselves as their Lord’s soldier-pilgrims.
14 Notable Quotes from Habits of Grace
“Habits of grace” are the God-designed channels through which his glorious grace flows—making them life-giving practices for all Christians.
Understanding the Role of Justification
Theologically understood, justification is the moment—the event—that God declares a sinner righteous in his sight.
God Blesses Holiness, Not Pastoral Talent
If you’re not cleansed from the things that corrupt your life, you’re not a vessel fit for the Master’s use.
Is There a Silver Bullet of Sanctification?
Sanctification isn't a one-size-fits-all process—God guides different people in different ways.
You Can Change: A 5-Day Devotional Reading Plan
Over the course of five days, be encouraged by God’s commitment to his own in this devotional adaptation from John Piper’s book, Providence.
Podcast: Am I Really Supposed to Forgive and Forget? (Erika Allen)
Erika Allen discusses the emotional challenge of forgiving someone who has sinned against us and thoughtfully answers questions about what is required for true forgiveness.
In a lifetime of “anxious toil,” we need a regular reset. Day after day, the tasks just keep coming, and while the Bible affirms the goodness of work, it also acknowledges its frustrations.
Should We Look for God in Every Story?
Finding God is our primary task and our greatest treasure. Can he be found in every story? How can literature feed us spiritually?
Podcast: Don’t Waste Your Waiting (Mark Vroegop)
Mark Vroegop offers his thoughts on the difficult yet important question of what it looks like to wait well as a Christian.
Ministry leadership, at its core, is about a community of leaders practicing together the presence of the Lord.
The Vinedresser Shows His Love by Pruning the Vine
We have to remember that the vine dresser loves the vine, and the vinedresser loves the branches. And his pruning is not just hacking away or lopping off things carelessly, but he’s very, careful.
Gospel wakefulness persists and endures, settling deep into the heart and the conscience of a believer that it carries through all emotional highs and lows.
Pastor: Is Your Holiness a Priority?
There's diminishing interest in holiness and godliness among this generation of younger pastors because of pragmatism.
Podcast: Christianity Is Both Easier and Harder Than You Think (Kevin DeYoung)
Kevin DeYoung discusses the reasons we’re so hard on ourselves and what it looks like to truly embrace the freedom and joy of being beloved children of our heavenly Father.
How Are Your New Year's Resolutions Going?
How are your New Year's resolutions going? Still going strong? Or is your resolve beginning to waver? Have some of those fine ideals already fallen by the wayside?
How to Cast Out Impure Affection
The best way of casting out an impure affection is to admit a pure one, and, by the love of what is good, to expel the love of what is evil.
In Your Race of Faith, Run Together
Christians aren’t designed to run alone. When we run together, we encourage one another to endure.
Podcast: How to Be Like God without Trying to Be God (Jen Wilkin)
Jen Wilkin helps us understand what the Bible teaches us about how we, as redeemed creatures made in the image of God, are called to reflect God’s character to a watching world.
Podcast: Growing as a Follower in a Culture Obsessed with Leadership (Richard Langer, Joanne Jung)
Richard Langer and Joanne Jung point out the prevalence of books, podcasts, and workshops on leadership and suggest that the contrasting idea of followership is where our focus should be.
Podcast: The Cure to Our Polarization and Outrage: Humility (Gavin Ortlund)
Gavin Ortlund talks about misconceptions we often have about humility—that it corresponds to weakness or that it hides our abilities—and discusses how humility is so foundational for experiencing true joy in Christ.
Podcast: Why Discernment Today Is So Needed Yet So Neglected (Tim Challies)
Tim Challies talks about what spiritual discernment actually looks like, why it's so important for the mature Christian, and how to cultivate it in our own lives.
Podcast: How Should We Respond to Our Doubt? (Randy Newman)
Randy Newman explains that when we struggle with questions about our faith, we should view these not as roadblocks to faith but as natural twists and turns that accompany our lives as Christians.
Fighting for Personal Sanctification
Living for the Lord is tremendously difficult at times. Owen Strachan gives three exhortations to keep in mind as you strive for personal holiness.
Podcast: Why the Church Needs Spiritual Mothers (Susan Hunt)
Susan Hunt reflects back on decades spent working to nurture the practice of Christian mentoring and shares her personal experience of mentoring others and being mentored herself.
Podcast: Are You Courageous or Cowardly? (Joe Rigney)
Joe Rigney discusses what it really means to have Christian courage. He explores why, contrary to common misconceptions, true courage isn’t the absence of fear but rather requires it.
Tim Chester explains how his book, You Can Change, unfolds.
Podcast: Why Did God Put Difficult People in My Church? (Jamie Dunlop)
Jamie Dunlop explains how unity—not necessarily uniformity—in the face of diversity glorifies God and strengthens the church's witness.
What Pastors Should Agonize Over
We learn from the apostle Paul that the pastor's primary calling is the sanctification of his people.
Podcast: Is Your Soul Starved for Nourishment? (Kristen Wetherell)
Kristen Wetherell offers wisdom and encouragement to the Christian struggling with a lack of passion for God's Word, and she shares practical tips for establishing better Bible reading habits.
Podcast: How to Develop Healthier Tech Habits in 2025 (Samuel James)
Samuel James talks about one of the biggest areas where we all might need to do some adjustments this new year.
Video: Four Ordinary Means of Grace
Kevin DeYoung explains that there are four very ordinary means to pursuing holiness.
Podcast: The Universal Struggle with Self-Control (Sharonda Cooper)
Sharonda Cooper unpacks this universal struggle and explores the biblical perspective on self-control as a fruit of the Holy Spirit.
When Our Ambitions Are Delayed...
How we live when ambitions are delayed significantly shapes who we become. God uses the wait to teach us to walk in a manner worthy of our calling.
If we’re after true and lasting change, we must pray that the Lord work out our sanctification by his Spirit
Why Should We Care About Holiness?
Kevin DeYoung shares his heart and vision behind the new book, The Hole in Our Holiness.
Video: Justin Taylor and Kevin DeYoung Discuss "The Hole in Our Holiness"
Justin Taylor and Kevin DeYoung, author of The Hole in Our Holiness discuss the topic of holiness.
Podcast: Is Evangelicalism Suffering from a “Sanctification Gap”? (Matthew Bingham)
Matthew Bingham discusses how evangelicalism teaches us to walk with God.
Your Sanctification Is the Work of the Trinity
The entire work of sanctification is Trinitarian in that as we are changed by the Spirit, we are changed through the Spirit pointing us to the Son.
Podcast: How (and How Not) to Think About Spiritual Habits in the New Year (Matthew Bingham)
Matthew Bingham discusses helpful and hurtful mindsets that Christians encounter when practicing spiritual disciplines, and how developing a Rule of Life fights against legalistic and shallow mentalities when working towards Spiritual growth.
Discouraged When Your Efforts Don't Produce Real Change?
Our rituals might change our behavior for a while, but they can’t change our hearts.
Video: God's Broken and Redeemed Work-in-Progress
In the video below, Rob Bentz sits down with Justin Taylor to discuss his new book, The Unfinished Church: God's Broken and Redeemed Work-in-Progress.
Podcast: A Beginner’s Guide to Fasting (Cassie Achermann)
Cassie Achermann discusses what fasting is, how the Bible talks about it, and how you can begin to practice it.
Podcast: What Union with Christ Means for Your Fight Against Sin (Brad Wetherell)
Brad Wetherell discusses the transforming doctrine of union with Christ, reminding believers that this reality brings hope to every area of their lives.
Podcast: Practical Tips to Help You Pray More (Courtney Reissig)
Courtney Reissig discusses the importance of prayer and how prayer helps us trust God by coming to him in a posture of dependency.