Page 109 - Biblical Theology Textbook - masters

“For the Christian, sanctification has three aspects. First, the believer has been set apart by his position
in the family of God. This is usually called positional sanctification. It means being set apart as a member
of the household of God. It is true of every believer regardless of his spiritual condition, for this concerns
his spiritual state. Read 1 Corinthians 6:11 and remember the carnal condition of these believers. That
this positional sanctification is based on the death of Christ is clear from Hebrews 10:10.

Of course, there is also the experiential aspect of sanctification. Because we have been set apart, we are
to be increasingly set apart in our daily lives (1 Peter 1:16). In the positional
sense no one is more sanctified than another, but in the experiential aspect it
is quite correct to speak of one believer as being more sanctified than another.
All the exhortations of the New Testament concerning spiritual growth are
pertinent to this progressive and experiential facet of sanctification.

There is also a sense in which we will not be fully set apart to God until our
position and practice are brought into perfect accord, and this will occur only
when we see Christ and become as He is (1 John 3:1–3). Thus, there is an
aspect to sanctification which is often called ultimate or future sanctification, and which awaits our
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complete glorification with resurrection bodies (Eph. 5:26–27; Jude 24–25).”

What Dr. Ryrie is saying is that when a person believes in Christ for salvation, they are immediately
made holy positionally. This is often referenced in the Bible by using the past tense. Keep in mind that to
some of the writers who lived before Jesus came it was a future event. A great example of this is
Ephesians 2:8 where Paul says, “By Grace you have been saved.” It is an event that has already
happened. Through faith in Christ a person’s past, present, and future sins are cleansed, and they are
made positionally holy. Nothing can ever undo that. We never must pay the penalty for our sin because
Jesus has paid it.

While nothing can ever undo that, it is frustrating to see believers, including ourselves, struggle with sin.
If they are holy, why don’t they live holy lives all the time? That issue is addressed in the second aspect
of salvation. It is what God is doing presently. He has made us holy positionally. We can never be unholy
positionally before God again. He is also working in us to make us holy practically. He doesn’t force us to
obey. He guides through the Holy Spirit and we must follow. Often times we grieve the Holy Spirit. This
does not mean we were not cleansed and are not still positionally clean. It means God it is working on
our lives to help us reflect our new status. God is in the process of freeing us from the power of sin in
our daily lives.

Past
The New Testament speaks of salvation in the past tense as something that has already happened.
Ephesians 2:8: “For by grace you have been saved”

Present
The New Testament speaks of salvation as something in the present tense as something God is bringing
about. 2 Corinthians 2:15: “For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and
among those who are perishing.”

82 Charles C. Ryrie, A Survey of Bible Doctrine (Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1972

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